Planning your treatment
As odd as it may seem, not all neck fat is extra. It is important, critical in fact, to have a certain amount of neck fat to cushion your skin and neck muscles. Without it, your neck would look unnatural. Extra neck fat may be hereditary, and if so is usually evident in early adulthood. There are also those who have extra neck fat in response to aging, even in the absence of weight gain. In these cases, fat can accumulate in the neck due to the redistribution of subcutaneous fat that occurs with aging.
Neck liposuction is best suited to people who have extra neck fat and either
1) neck skin which is not loose or
2) neck skin which is loose but not hanging.
If you have neck skin which is loose and hanging, then face and neck lift is what you need.
Many patients who have extra neck fat often lack distinction between the face and neck. In this case, lipo along the jaw-line is useful in defining this area and can be done at the same time as neck lipo.
Jowls are the pockets of fat along and above the jaw line, about halfway between the ears and the chin. Although Jowls are typically reflective of loose facial skin (and hence the need for a facelift), liposuction of the jowls can sometimes be performed at the same time as neck lipo.
Neck liposuction can be performed under local anaesthetic and sedation as an outpatient procedure. It takes between 30 and 60 minutes. Your plastic surgeon will begin by injecting your neck with tumescent fluid (a combination of saline, local anesthetic and epinephrine) to help constrict blood vessels, reduce bleeding and prevent bruising. Tumescent fluid is not injected until you are temporarily asleep, ensuring that you feel nothing. This is followed by making a keyhole incision under the chin to insert the cannula and begin sucking the fat. At the end of the procedure, the keyhole will be closed with fine sutures.
Following the procedure, most find that they can return to work in 1-5 days. This is more dependent on bruising than on discomfort. You will need to wear a tape on your neck for few days. Again, your greatest limitation when returning to work will likely be the presence of bruising. Some patients have no bruising; others may bruise for 1-2 weeks. Most fall somewhere in between, with about 3-7 days of bruising. There is no simple way to predict where you will fall.
You will need 1-2 days rest, followed by light duties for 1 week.
Back to normal duties from the second week after surgery.
What Are The Risks Associated With This Procedure?
Plastic surgery, like any surgical procedure, carries inherent risks and potential complications.
Please read our Risks and Complications of Plastic Surgery page.