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Director of Cosmetic Surgery, University of Illinois Chicago Department of Dermatology
Oakbrook Center Mall Oak Brook, Illinois (630) 928-0240 Jeffrey Melton, M.D., S.C.,
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Planning your liposuction procedure:With a little anticipation and forethought you can fit your liposuction procedure into your schedule with minimal disruption and downtime. Tumescent technique liposuction results in a much faster recovery than liposuction done under general anesthesia. Patients who have had both types of liposuction tell us the difference is night and day. We love it when patients say that everything went just about as expected, and there were no real surprises. From the experience of many patients, we have found the following tips to be helpful in ensuring that everything goes as smoothly as possible: You: Regarding diet and exercise, no special preparation or changes are needed. You will need to avoid aspirin, Motrin/Advil (ibuprofen), and any other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory agents for 10 or more days before your procedure. We will review your medications with you, but for the most part, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory agents are just about anything you take internally that helps aches or pains that is not Tylenol (acetominophen). You do not want to be taking any herbal or other medications for one week prior to the procedure. Your transportation: You will want to make arrangements for a ride to and from your procedure. We will not let you drive home. Usually the ride is a spouse or friend. If you wish, they can observe a portion of your liposuction procedure. If your ride wants to stroll around the mall, we can page them on our own pager system when you are ready to go home. If you live in the Chicago area and a ride from a friend or relative is not convenient, we can help you arrange transportation ahead of time. We have found the airport limousine services to be useful in this situation. If you are coming in from out of town and are staying at one of the Oakbrook Center hotels, we will walk you to your hotel or arrange for a ride. If you are staying at a hotel that is further away, have us help you arrange a ride back to your hotel in advance. Time off: You will probably want 2-3 days off of work following your liposuction. For example, most patients who have their liposuction done on a Friday go back to work on Monday. Some plan for an extra day or so. Taking a lot more time off usually just prolongs your recovery, and you won't feel back to normal nearly as quickly. If the busiest part of your workweek is on the weekend, having your procedure early in the week is usually the best choice. This is often the case for those in the dining and entertainment industries. Your kids: If you stay at home and care for children, you might want to make arrangements to lighten your load a little for a couple of days. Especially if you have several small children to care for, and particularly if your kids are the type that like to hug you a lot or sneak up on you and jump you (ouch!). Patients who made arrangements for their kids to spend a couple of days of quality time with the grandparents are generally glad that they did (but this is by no means necessary). Keep in mind that any significant amount of bruising or swelling can be quite concerning to young children. It is often best to just avoid letting them see the area for a week or so, when things will look a whole lot different. What you will be able to do afterwards: You should be able to accomplish light tasks during your time off period. If you normally stay at home and work on the phone, at a desk, or on a computer, your work may not be impacted much at all after your liposuction procedure. You will be able to drive the day following the procedure, so running a few errands would be reasonable. What has worked well for many patients is: plan to have very little that you need to do, but have in mind some light tasks that can be done if you feel up to it. That way, you do not have to worry about getting this or that done. Iinstead, you may be able to catch up on some small things that you might not otherwise get around to. Plan it to your advantage: Two things that can throw out the best-laid plans are: unanticipated abnormal lab test results (or other medical clearance issues), and having difficulty getting the procedure done on the day that works for your schedule. Therefore, getting these two out of the way early will eliminate potential worries. We can almost always find a date that works with your schedule if enough lead-time is available. You can finalize your place on our schedule by making payment and final arrangements for the procedure. Until you do this, it is possible that someone else will want (and get) your spot. The first part of medical clearance is related to your history and physical examination. This can easily be taken care of at your consultation visit, or shortly thereafter if you wish. Your lab test results are usually received in 2-3 days. Lab test result surprises are not very common in our patients, but they do occur. Certain test results can spur the need for additional tests, and those can take time to run also. It is no fun at all to be anxiously anticipating the day of your procedure, only to have it cancelled or postponed at the last minute. Check list:
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