According to research presented at the 2009 annual meeting of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, Vaser Lipo's ultrasound energy technology is clinically proven to deliver distinct advantages over traditional liposuction:

• A 53% improvement in skin tightening
• A 26% decrease in blood loss

Dr. Parungao answers questions about VASER Lipo

Which areas of the body can you treat with VASER Lipo?

“VASER Lipo works well in removing unwanted fat from the flanks or ‘love handles,’ the breast area in men and women, as well as the abdomen.”

How do the results of VASER Lipo differ from traditional liposuction?

“VASER Lipo offers the advantage of skin-tightening, which is not possible with traditional liposuction. All liposuction methods remove volume from the tissues-so methods that do nothing to tighten the skin run the risk of producing a 'loose-skin' look. VASER Lipo gently tightens the skin after the unwanted fat is removed, resulting in sleeker body contours."

How does VASER Lipo reduce blood loss during surgery?

"VASER Lipo's ultrasound energy breaks up and liquefies unwanted fat-but leaves the surrounding nerves, blood vessels and connective tissue relatively intact. When you compare this to the vigorous back-and-forth motion required to break up the fat with a cannula [link to glossary definition] during traditional liposuction, it's easy to see how VASER Lipo causes less blood loss-and thus less bruising and swelling."

What are the differences between VASER Lipo and Cool Lipo?

"VASER Lipo is faster in treating large areas than Cool Lipo. The laser in Cool Lipo has a limited reach-the light can go only so far, so it's good for treating smaller areas."

How fast is the recovery after VASER Lipo?

"You can expect to be up and about right away. And because VASER Lipo is gentler to the tissues than traditional liposuction, it causes less bruising and swelling. You can expect recovery in three to five days. The amount of time your recovery takes also depends on the size of the treatment area."

Where do you perform VASER Lipo?

"We perform VASER Lipo at the on-site, fully accredited outpatient surgery center at our Oak Brook office."

What kind of anesthetic do you use for VASER Lipo?

"We do VASER Lipo under IV sedation or general anesthesia."