Contact Century Aesthetics® today to learn more about recent breakthroughs in surgical fat removal and body sculpting, including autologous fat transfer (fat injection), ultrasonic liposelection (UAL), LipoSelection®, and power-assisted liposuction (PAL).






Century Aesthetics®
Peter B. Fodor, M.D., F.A.C.S.
2080 Century Park East,
Suite 710
Los Angeles, CA 90067

P. 866-370-9042
F. 310-203-9798

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Century Aesthetics® - centurycitycosmeticsurgery

Body Contouring With Liposuction, VASER® LipoSelection®, and Autologous Fat Transfer

A pioneer in the development of advanced liposuction techniques, plastic surgeon Peter Fodor, M.D., F.A.C.S. performs minimally invasive body contouring with precision. Technically accomplished and highly attuned to the needs and goals of each patient, Dr. Fodor is able to perform this body sculpting modality to its full potential. Dr. Fodor is an innovator and leading practitioner of the SuperWet technique, ultrasonic liposuction, and power-assisted liposuction. In his practice, the various methods are combined on an individual patient basis for the best possible results.

"The enthusiasm about liposuction is understandable. Liposuction comes closer to seeming truly 'magical' than perhaps any other aesthetic procedure. Access incisions generally produce inconspicuous, if not imperceptible, scars. Recovery when the procedure is performed by a competent surgeon in a properly selected patient is usually very straightforward and uneventful with minimal to no discomfort, swelling and bruising. And the major improvement in those unsightly localized fat deposits that can be present in various areas of the face and body is a result that, for many people, is simply unattainable by dieting, exercise, or any other means."

— Dr. Peter Fodor
Medical Editor, Be Your Best: A Comprehensive Guide to Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (Insight International Press)

What is liposuction?

Since its invention more than 30 years ago, liposuction has become the most frequently performed aesthetic procedure in the United States and around the world. Understanding its history, as well as Dr. Fodor’s contributions to the field, can help make patients aware of the abilities and limitations of the cutting-edge liposuction techniques offered at Century Aesthetics®.

Key Developments in Liposuction

“The first official report of liposuction was from Dr. Joseph Schrudde of Germany in 1972,” writes Dr. Fodor in the book Be Your Best: A Comprehensive Guide to Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, published by Insight International Press, of which he served as Medical Editor. “Even though the dry technique and a sharp curette-like cannula were used, the procedure clearly had the potential to be an important new modality for body sculpting.” A French physician, Dr. Yves-Gerard, contributed a significant development by advocating the use of a blunt-tipped cannula — a less traumatic approach.

Dr. Fodor writes, “the dry technique was gradually replaced as surgeons began using wetting solutions with epinephrine... the result was a dramatic reduction of the amount of blood loss associated with the [liposuction] procedure.”

Using wetting solutions involves infusing the fatty tissue prior to their removal by aspiration with fluids containing numbing medication (for post-operative comfort) and epinephrine (a substance which constricts blood vessels to minimize any blood loss in the aspirate). As later detailed in this section, Dr. Fodor developed the SuperWet technique, a key advancement in liposuction wetting solutions. In contrast, some practitioners routinely use potentially dangerous high volumes of wetting solution and excessive amounts of local anesthetics, an approach which turned out to greatly increase the risks for patients. The SuperWet technique enables the surgeon to safely remove large volumes of fat with extremely reduced, if any, blood loss while producing aesthetically very pleasing results.

" When properly performed, lipoplasty is indeed a wonderful body sculpting modality. I consider myself very fortunate to have had the opportunity to learn this procedure directly from the lipoplasty pioneers and to play a role in its further development."

— Dr. Peter Fodor
Medical Editor, Be Your Best: A Comprehensive Guide to Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (Insight International Press)

The SuperWet Technique

The breakthrough in wetting solutions for liposuction came in 1986, when Dr. Peter Fodor introduced the “SuperWet” technique. This safe and effective technique has since become widespread. Dr Fodor elaborates:

“Around 1986, I coined the term 'SuperWet' to describe the technique of infiltrating approximately as much volume of wetting solution as the estimated volume of fat and aspirate to be removed (1:1 ratio). Blood loss was reduced to less than one percent of the total aspirate, comparable to (if not better than) the tumescent technique. Unlike the tumescent technique, however, SuperWet infusion did not have the effect of excessively distending the tissues (which I believe makes sculpting less precise), and it also avoided the hazardous aspects of over-infusion that can include anesthetic toxicity.

“Today, even the formerly enthusiastic proponents of the tumescent technique have generally modified their approach to more closely resemble the SuperWet technique, or 1:1 ratio of infiltration to aspiration. This has proven both safe and effective over many years of use.”

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Why choose Dr. Fodor for liposuction?

Dr. Peter Fodor is an internationally recognized expert in the art of body contouring using liposuction. He has been instrumental in the development of new liposuction techniques, applications and equipment, including the SuperWet technique, ultrasonic liposuction (UAL), and power-assisted liposuction (PAL).

Dr. Fodor’s Unique Approach to Liposuction

Because Dr. Fodor is an expert in a number of liposuction techniques, he is able to combine various modalities in a complementary manner to yield an enhanced overall aesthetic result. Though each liposuction procedure is personalized depending on the needs of the patient, Dr. Fodor often uses SuperWet fluid infusion followed by VASER® LipoSelection® for fat emulsification. For debulking, Dr. Fodor then uses power-assisted liposuction (PAL), and suction-assisted liposuction (SAL) using fine instrumentation and suction for final sculpting. This approach exploits the strengths of each liposuction technique.

Patient Safety at Century Aesthetics®

Dr. Peter Fodor’s reputation as a body contouring expert draws patients from around the world to Century Aesthetics® in Los Angeles.

Dr. Fodor points out in many of his medical writings that, in some ways, liposuction seems like a simple procedure — and this image is deceiving. In fact, this perception has led physicians of questionable backgrounds — including those with no formal training in liposuction — to incorporate the procedure into their practices, and these surgeons’ lack of skill and poor surgical judgment has resulted in less-than -optimal outcomes and even put some patients at unnecessary risk.

Surgical complications, as well as poor aesthetic outcomes, can result from a variety of factors: improper patient selection, too much wetting solution, too much local anesthetic, inappropriate surgical instrumentation, extraction of excessive volumes of fat aspirate, and others. It takes experience and knowledge to avoid these errors and perform a procedure that is safe, comfortable, and rewarding for the patient.

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Who is a good candidate for liposuction?

As noted above, poor patient selection is often a factor in surgical complications and poor aesthetic outcomes. Therefore, it is important for patients to understand who is a good candidate for liposuction, and who might be better suited for another procedure.

The ideal candidate for liposuction is an adult in good health with adequate skin elasticity. Good skin elasticity is crucial, because skin must readily conform to the body’s new contour if an optimal aesthetic result is to be achieved.

Liposuction is not a weight loss method. Patients who wish to undergo liposuction must be of a reasonable weight and should already have a healthy diet and exercise routine — and they must be prepared to maintain this lifestyle after undergoing liposuction. Liposuction is designed to remove stubborn, exercise-resistant pockets of fat. It is not suited to address generalized obesity, or to make up for lack of exercise or poor diet.

While most liposuction procedures are elective and performed for purely cosmetic purposes, there are some medical conditions that can be improved or remedied by liposuction. Extremely large breasts can be a health concern for women as well as for men and can be treated effectively with liposuction in a procedure called lipoplasty-only breast reduction (LOBR), as can lipomas (fatty lumps) and the fatty deposits that grow in the neck area as a result of a hormonal imbalance. The above notes about the uses and limitations of liposuction are generalized and cannot take the place of a personalized examination and consultation with Dr. Fodor.

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Ultrasonic Liposuction (UAL) — VASER® LipoSelection®

" Superior to earlier generation UAL equipment is the newest VASER®, which offers precise instrumentation and a more selective targeting of fat cells and has been enthusiastically endorsed by a number of experts. I have enjoyed assisting in the refinement of this technology for clinical applications, beginning with its inception in 1997 to the present."

— Dr. Peter Fodor
Medical Editor, Be Your Best: A Comprehensive Guide to Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (Insight International Press)

Ultrasonic liposuction (UAL), performed using the VASER® LipoSelection® system, is a remarkable innovation in the field of body sculpting. This system uses a specialized cannula that delivers ultrasonic energy into the patient’s tissue to liquefy areas of targeted fat just prior to their removal. Because the ultrasonic waves target only fat, the surrounding tissues — nerves, blood vessels, and collagen fibers — remain intact. This means less discomfort, swelling, bruising, and a faster recovery time for patients. In addition, because ultrasonic liposuction (UAL) using LipoSelection® is selective to fatty tissue, the result is smoother and more natural-looking than that achieved by earlier liposuction techniques.

The LipoSelection® Procedure

After introduction of general IV sedation or local anesthesia (depending on the area to be treated and amount of fat to be removed with the VASER LipoSelection® procedure) Dr. Fodor injects fluid into the area to be treated, which causes the blood vessels to contract and therefore makes the area more easily accessible to suctioning with very reduced, to no blood loss. Dr. Fodor then uses a special ultrasound-emitting cannula to break up fat cells. The liquefied fat cells and remaining fluid are easily removed, requiring far less force than necessary during traditional liposuction. (Dr. Fodor served in a consulting capacity in the development of the VASER technique and instrumentation from the inception of the technique.)

Ultrasonic liposuction (UAL) complements, rather than replaces, traditional suction-assisted liposuction. With very extensive experience in treating patients, Dr. Fodor found that UAL is especially effective for removing fat from more fibrous areas of the body, such as the "love handles," back, outer thighs, upper abdomen, and breasts.

In addition, Dr. Fodor commonly uses ultrasonic liposuction (UAL) with the LipoSelection® system to complete secondary, or corrective, liposuction procedures, which pose their own set of challenges.

Dr. Fodor has been employing ultrasonic liposuction from the time that the procedure was first developed and served as the Chairman of a national task force charged to determine the proper role of ultrasound in lipoplasty.

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Power-Assisted Liposuction (PAL)

Dr. Fodor coined the term “power-assisted liposuction” (PAL) while working as a principal medical consultant during the developmental stages of the PAL procedure (approved for general use by the FDA in 1998). Power-assisted liposuction (PAL) uses a motorized cannula that moves back and forth independently, requiring less exertion by the surgeon. This dramatically reduces surgeon fatigue by facilitating passage through difficult fibrous and scarred tissues. While this technique still requires skill and artistry on the part of the surgeon, the procedure’s automated aspects reduce the amount of physical effort exerted by the surgeon. Therefore, more of the surgeon’s attention and energy can be directed to sculpting efforts. Power-assisted liposuction is also gentler on the patient’s tissues, causing less bruising, swelling, and discomfort and hastening recovery times. Many surgeons feel that PAL facilitates precise sculpting of the tissues, leading to superior aesthetics postoperatively.

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Autologous Fat Transfer (AFT or Fat Injection)

Autologous fat transfer, commonly called fat injection or fat grafting, is actually a combination of two procedures performed during a single visit. Also known as microlipoinjection, autologous fat transfer involves gently harvesting fat from body regions with unsightly localized fat deposits and then injecting the purified fat into areas of depressions, irregularities, and asymmetries. Dr. Fodor often uses AFT as part of re-do or secondary lipoplasty.

The Autologous Fat Transfer Procedure

To begin autologous fat transfer, the patient is placed under anesthesia, either local or general (IV) sedation. Then, Dr. Fodor harvests fat cells from an area with surplus fat. The cells are washed to separate healthy fat cells from other fluids, and the fat is injected into the over-suctioned area, where it fills and smoothes the contour. Dr. Fodor usually performs autologous fat transfer on an outpatient basis, and patients experience only minor discomfort, swelling, and bruising after the procedure.

The most marked benefit of fat injection is that it carries no risk of rejection or allergic reaction, since the filler material comes from the patient’s own body. Though a portion of the fat injected may be reabsorbed by the body, a substantial amount remains in place permanently.

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Lipoplasty-Only Breast Reduction (LOBR)

Breast reduction is a tremendously rewarding and often medically necessary procedure. When traditional methods are used, it is also associated with extensive scarring (often an anchor-shaped scar). The most minimally invasive technique —although currently a highly underutilized one — is lipoplasty-only breast reduction (LOBR), which reduces the volume of the breast through lipoplasty alone, with careful sculpting of the breast tissue by removal of the excess fat.. This form of breast reduction surgery is performed through an incision less than ½” inch in length, which is placed in the fold under the breast. It heals with a barely visible or invisible scar.

To ascertain that a patient is a good candidate for LOBR, a preoperative mammogram is routinely reviewed by Dr. Fodor, to determine the percentage of fatty tissue in each patient’s breasts, which is seldom less than 50%. “Though not all women seeking breast reduction are good candidates for LOBR,” Dr. Fodor writes, “I believe this approach could be selected for many more patients.”

If you are interested in minimally invasive breast reduction through lipoplasty, please contact Century Aesthetics®. As an important contributor in the development of liposuction and in its application to LOBR, Dr. Fodor is uniquely suited to perform this method of breast reduction.

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Contact Dr. Peter Fodor

If you have localized, stubborn pockets of fat on the hips, abdomen, breasts, or another area, and are considering liposuction, you may want to participate in an online consultation or contact Century Aesthetics® to schedule a personal consultation with Dr. Peter Fodor. Dr. Fodor is an internationally recognized expert in all forms of liposuction and body contouring, including ultrasonic liposuction (UAL) using the VASER® LipoSelection® system, power-assisted liposuction (PAL), and autologous fat transfer (fat injection.) At Century Aesthetics®, each liposuction procedure is custom-tailored to the patient, providing safety and impressive surgical outcomes.

View liposuction before and after photos in Dr. Fodor’s gallery.

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