Liposuction Turns 20 ( The evolutio...),Health

The evolution of liposuction will be discussed by leading experts at the Annual Meeting of the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ASAPS), being held at the Mandalay Bay Hotel & Convention Center May 2-7, 2009.

Las Vegas, NV (Vocus) May 3, 2009 -- The evolution of liposuction will be discussed by leading experts at the Annual Meeting of the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ASAPS), being held at the Mandalay Bay Hotel & Convention Center May 2-7, 2009. "Liposuction 20 Years Later: Precision in Shaping, Prevention and Correction of Contour Irregularities" will be moderated by V. Leroy Young, MD, and will include Arturo Prado, MD, Sydney Coleman, MD, Claudio Calabrese, MD, and Simeon Wall, Jr., MD.

In the early 1970s, "suction-assisted lipectomy" (SAL), or lipoplasty (liposuction), first appeared in the peer-reviewed literature. Originally used to remove lipomas (fatty tumors) and fatty deposits in various reconstructive procedures, the procedure was soon found to have a much wider application as a cosmetic surgery technique. In 1989, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) classified suction lipoplasty systems for use in aesthetic body contouring.

Since that time, the demand for liposuction has grown significantly and, according to ASAPS statistics, it was the second most popular surgical cosmetic procedure in 2008, with 341,144 procedures performed. With such popularity, however, comes greater responsibility to patients in terms of safety and cosmetic outcomes.    

"Liposuction has come a long way in twenty years," said Dr. Young, a plastic surgeon in St. Louis, MO. "Advances in knowledge and the evolution of technology and technique have resulted in increased safety with improved outcomes. However, even after twenty years, there is still room for the field to grow. In
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