Liposuction is a plastic surgery procedure which is available to men and women of all ages who want to improve the look and feel of their bodies. The procedure, also commonly referred to as "lipoplasty," and consists of removing small isolated pockets of fatty tissue through the use of a medical vacuum tool. Lipoplasty is used to sculpt the body when no other practical option is available.

Liposuction is often the only solution to removing stubborn pocket areas of fatty tissue on the body which have not responded to regular diet and exercise. While it is used to remove fat from the body, lipoplasty is not designed as a tool to help you lose weight.

Actually, you may be surprised to learn that the best candidates for the procedure are those people who are already at their ideal body weight, not those who are overweight. Liposuction is used to remove very select areas of fat simply to improve the look of the area not to decrease one's weight.

Liposuction can be performed on a patient of any age; however, you will get the best results if you still have adequate skin elasticity. Generally, as we age, the skin starts to loose elasticity and this makes the procedure less and less of an option as we get older. If you are still at a point where your skin has enough elasticity to leave you with a good smooth contour following the surgery, then you are more than likely going to be a good candidate to have it performed.

For men, the most popular area for having liposuction is around the abdomen area. This is often the procedure of choice for removing the "love handles" which appear around the sides of the waist as many men get older. This area of the body does not always respond well to diet and exercise so liposuction can work wonders for improving the look of this area of a man's body.

Other common places to have lipoplasty performed, in both men and women, are in the cheeks, the jowls, and the neck area. This area of the body is almost impossible to improve through exercise alone and responds very well to liposuction.

Similarly, the inner knee, calves, and ankles can be other areas which are hard to target through exercise, but which can be successfully improved through the procedure.

Additionally, the upper arms can be done once you have reached your goal weight and are unable to remove those last stubborn areas of fat.

As you can see, liposuction can be performed on anyone, man or woman, who has elastic skin and an area of fat which they need removed which has not responded to regular diet and exercise. Once the procedure is performed, the fatty deposits will be gone forever and a much smoother contour will be achieved.

However, to make sure that you get the most from your lipoplasty, make sure that you have all of your plastic surgery procedures performed by an experienced plastic surgeon who is skilled at the procedure you wish to have done. By working with a skilled professional, you can achieve the body you have always desired.