Liposuction for Men
Appleton & Green Bay, WI
Even if you are at a healthy weight and exercise regularly, you might still have stubborn fat in certain areas. For men, this often means the abdomen, love handles, chest, back, or under the chin. Liposuction can target these spots and improve your shape without affecting your overall build. At Wisconsin Institute of Plastic Surgery, Dr. Tina Sauerhammer offers liposuction for men who are near their normal weight but want help with areas that have not changed with diet and exercise.
Liposuction is a procedure that removes unwanted fat from certain parts of the body to improve your shape. It is not a weight loss method and should not replace a healthy lifestyle. Liposuction works best if your weight is stable and you have one or two areas that do not match the rest of your body.
During liposuction, Dr. Sauerhammer makes small cuts and uses a thin tube called a cannula under the skin. This tube loosens and removes fat cells from the area being treated. The fat cells that are removed do not come back, but the ones left behind can still grow if you gain weight in the future.
The procedure is mostly the same for men and women. The main difference is that men often store fat in different places and usually have different goals for how they want their body to look after surgery.
Many men are concerned about extra fat in the abdomen, sides, chest, or lower back. Some are happy with their weight but want more definition around the jawline or neck. Dr. Sauerhammer considers the whole area, not just removing as much fat as possible. The aim is to improve your proportions and keep the results looking natural for your body.
Liposuction can help make your muscles more visible if they are covered by a layer of fat. However, it does not build muscle, so your results will still depend on your natural body shape, muscle tone, and overall body composition.
The abdomen and love handles are the most common areas men want to treat, but liposuction can also be used on other parts of the body.
Some men find it hard to lose fat around the waist, even if they lose weight elsewhere. Liposuction can remove the fat you can pinch on the abdomen and sides, making your midsection look leaner and more balanced.
If extra fat is causing your chest to look full, liposuction may help flatten it. But if you feel firm tissue under the nipple or your chest stays enlarged even with little body fat, you might have gynecomastia.
Fat can also build up on the back or under the chin. Treating these spots can improve your body’s outline or make the jawline and neck look more defined.
Liposuction can also be used on the upper arms, inner thighs, hips, and knees if needed.
Whether liposuction can help depends on where your fat is located.
Subcutaneous fat is the soft fat just under the skin that you can usually pinch. Liposuction can remove this type of fat.
Visceral fat is deeper inside the abdomen, around your organs, and liposuction cannot remove it. If your stomach feels firm and sticks out but you cannot pinch much fat, visceral fat might be the reason.
This is why seeing Dr. Sauerhammer in person is helpful. She can tell you if liposuction can actually improve the fullness you notice.
Sometimes. An enlarged male chest can be caused by excess fat, glandular breast tissue, or a combination of both.
If the problem is mainly fatty tissue, liposuction may work very well. Firm glandular tissue cannot simply be suctioned away and may need to be removed directly. In those cases, Dr. Sauerhammer may combine liposuction with gynecomastia surgery to flatten the chest while maintaining its natural shape.
It is important to find out what is causing the fullness before deciding on a procedure.
At Wisconsin Institute of Plastic Surgery, liposuction is done as an outpatient procedure using general anesthesia.
Dr. Sauerhammer starts by injecting a tumescent fluid into the area being treated. This fluid has saline, a local anesthetic for comfort, and epinephrine to reduce bleeding by narrowing blood vessels.
Next, she makes small cuts and inserts the cannula under the skin. Wisconsin Institute of Plastic Surgery uses power-assisted liposuction, where the cannula gently vibrates to loosen fat before it is removed. This helps make fat removal easier and gives Dr. Sauerhammer more control.
It is just as important to know when to stop removing fat. Leaving a thin layer under the skin helps keep the area smooth and lets it blend in with the rest of your body.
Depending on the treatment area, liposuction can:
For many people, the main benefit is finally seeing a stubborn area match the effort they put into staying healthy and fit.
You might be a good candidate if you are healthy, near your ideal weight, and have specific areas of fat you want to reduce. Having good skin elasticity also helps, since your skin needs to adjust to your new shape after fat is removed.
If loose skin is your main concern, liposuction might not give you the results you want. Removing fat under loose skin can sometimes make the looseness more obvious. If this is an issue around your abdomen, Dr. Sauerhammer may suggest a tummy tuck instead.
This idea applies to other areas too. The main question is not just, “Can we remove fat?” but, “What is really causing the shape you want to change?”
During the first part of recovery, you will likely have swelling, bruising, soreness, and some tightness. Wisconsin Institute of Plastic Surgery usually recommends wearing a compression garment for about a month to help reduce swelling and support the area as it heals.
You should start light walking soon after surgery to keep your blood moving and lower the risk of blood clots. More intense exercise, like heavy lifting or hard workouts, should wait about three to four weeks.
Many people can go back to work fairly soon, depending on their job and how much liposuction they had. Soreness usually lasts about a week, but swelling can take longer to go away completely.
You will likely see a change in size soon after surgery, but swelling can hide the final shape for a while. As the swelling goes down and your skin settles, the area will look more defined.
You can usually see your final liposuction results within three to six months. Keeping a steady weight with regular exercise and a healthy diet will help you keep your results.
Dr. Tina Sauerhammer is a double board-certified plastic surgeon with a lot of experience in body contouring. Her approach to liposuction is simple: find out what is causing the problem area, decide if removing fat is the right answer, and make a plan that fits each patient instead of using the same method for everyone.
Wisconsin Institute of Plastic Surgery provides the privacy and convenience of a private, AAAHC-certified surgical center. From your first visit to your follow-up appointments, you will know what the procedure can do, what recovery will be like, and what results you can expect.
If you have stubborn fat that does not go away with diet and exercise, Dr. Sauerhammer can help you find out why. She will look at your fat distribution, skin quality, body shape, and goals, and explain if liposuction or another procedure is best for you.
Contact the Wisconsin Institute of Plastic Surgery to schedule your consultation for male liposuction in Appleton or Green Bay, WI.
The cost of liposuction depends on your treatment plan. Factors include the number and size of the areas being treated, how much fat needs to be removed, the complexity of the procedure, and whether liposuction is combined with another surgery or fat transfer. After your consultation, we'll provide personalized pricing based on Dr. Sauerhammer’s recommendations.
No. Liposuction removes localized fat to improve body contour. It is best for people who are already fairly close to a stable weight but have stubborn fat deposits in specific areas.
Liposuction cannot create muscle. It may make existing muscle definition easier to see if subcutaneous fat is covering it, but the final result depends on your anatomy and muscular development.
Liposuction removes fat, not excess skin. Good skin elasticity usually produces a smoother result. If you have significant loose skin, another surgical procedure may be more appropriate.
The fat cells removed during liposuction are permanently gone. The remaining fat cells can still enlarge if you gain weight, which is why maintaining a stable weight is important.
Light walking begins early, but strenuous exercise is generally avoided for about three to four weeks. Dr. Sauerhammer will let you know when it is safe to return to your normal workout routine based on how you are healing.
We generally recommend wearing a compression garment for about one month after liposuction. It helps control swelling and supports the tissues as they settle into their new shape.
At the Wisconsin Institute of Plastic Surgery, you can enjoy a range of cosmetic procedures and dedicated care in our offices in Appleton and Green Bay. As a double-board certified plastic surgeon, Dr. Sauerhammer specializes in rejuvenating surgical solutions, including breast augmentation, tummy tuck, and facelifts, designed to help you look and feel your best. We seamlessly integrate all our plastic surgery services with skilled dermatology care and aesthetic specialists: Megan MacCarthy, PA-C, Colleen Van Egeren, PA-C, and Amanda Olsen, PA-C. They prioritize your goals through comprehensive evaluations and advanced techniques to help you achieve optimal and long-lasting results.
