Although there are many cosmetic surgical procedures for eliminating fat of the body, liposuction is the most popular of all of them, intended to remove localized deposits of fat, smoothing the contours of the body, and improving the patient's appearance. This procedures is usually performed for cosmetic improvement, rather than a temporary or permanent solution to being overweight and obesity.

Liposuction, often referred as lipoplasty, is the most commonly performed cosmetic procedure in America, with 325,000 procedures practiced during 2003. Liposuction is an alternative for reducing fat in different areas of the body, including arms, thighs, buttocks, and abdomen, using a cannula and aspirator.

However, Liposuction can be applied anywhere in the body after surgical evaluation to avoid potential injuries or side effects. After removing unwanted fat, people can get a sculpted dreamy body. Not long ago, this procedure involved cardiovascular and cerebral risks in the worst cases. Due to the nature of this surgery, anyone with a cannula and some basic principles was able to perform the procedure.

Today, new techniques and more strict control of practitioners make liposuction safe. Actual techniques include ultrasound-assisted lipoplasty (UAL) and other methods, such as the super-wet technique, and the tumescent technique, providing best results and fast recovery times in selected patients.

Ideal candidates for undergoing liposuction include normal-weight people with elastic, firm skin, and realistic expectations. Those whose weight is close to or over 30 pounds should not expect to be "fat-drained" to recover their slim shape. People with localized pockets of excess fat are also considered excellent candidates for liposuction.

For contouring, the best areas for liposuction are the chin, cheeks, upper arms, and neck, which are the parts of the body reported with less post-surgery problems. However, liposuction is also popular for removing fat from breasts, abdomen, hips, thighs, buttocks, calves, knees, and ankle areas.

Although it is usual to use a local anesthesia, surgeons may recommend general sedation when the procedure involves large areas of the body, or when a patient is evaluated with special requirements, such as nervous people or those having low tolerance to pain, because the Liposuction procedure and recovery can be painful.

Tumescent liposuction is the most common of all liposuction techniques, involving the injection of a large amount of medicated solution into the fatty areas, before the procedure begins. The super-wet technique is similar, but the amount of injected solution is equal to the fat to be removed.

Ultrasound-assisted liposuction (UAL) is the newer technique, introduced in the United States in 1996. Cosmetic surgery procedure consists of ultrasonic vibrations applied directly in the fat cells to be liquified, and therefore vacuumed out. This procedure can be applied internally with a heated cannula introduced under the skin, or externally with a special device pointing to the skin surface.

Other Liposuction techniques are Power-assisted liposuction (PAL), and External ultrasound-assisted liposuction (XUAL or EUAL), although these and other liposuction procedures involve pain and possible side effects such as swelling, bruising, numbness, limited mobility and scars, which are inevitable in most surgical operations.