Flank liposuction
We refine the fat on the sides and lower back so the curve from the waist down to the hips and buttocks can show.
LINE ONWaist & Love Handle Liposuction
Even if your waist measurement goes down, your waist may not look more defined.
If any of these apply to you, please mention it first at your consultation.
LINE ONWaist & Love Handle Liposuction
Point 1. The waist curve
From the front, we look at the proportions of your waist and hips. From the side, we look at how far your waist curves in, and from behind, whether both sides are symmetrical. Then we decide where to remove fat to follow the curve from your waist down to your hips and buttocks.
LINE ONWaist & Love Handle Liposuction
Point 2. Layer-by-layer liposuction
Fat on the sides and lower back can be firmer than belly fat because it contains more fibrous tissue (tough connective tissue). We first check its thickness and firmness with a physical examination and ultrasound. Then we remove it layer by layer, at the most effective depths.
LINE ONWaist & Love Handle Liposuction
Point 3. Protecting the entry points
SCAR OFF is LINE ON Clinic’s way of reducing scarring. While the cannula (a thin tube used to remove fat) goes in and out, we use Protect to keep the edges of the entry point from rubbing. We stitch the inner layer of the skin first, and stitch the surface with as little pull on the skin as possible.
LINE ONWaist & Love Handle Liposuction
Areas we examine
Your waist measurement also depends on things liposuction doesn’t change, such as the size of your rib cage, your pelvic width and visceral fat. We don’t promise a number of centimeters. Instead, after an examination, we explain the range of change that’s possible, along with its conditions.
For the waistline to flow smoothly, some fat needs to stay. If too much is removed, the skin can stick to the tissue beneath, and the line can end up worse.
Liposuction is surgery that carries real risks, so we don’t treat the whole body in one session. If you’d like several areas treated, we split them into at least two sessions.
LINE ONWaist & Love Handle Liposuction
How it works
We decide the extent of surgery after a physical examination and ultrasound.
We do the tests needed before anesthesia.
While you stand, we mark where fat will be removed and where it will be left.
Surgery is done while you’re asleep under IV sedation.
We inject a fluid that reduces bleeding and pain, then remove the fat.
We stitch with the SCAR OFF method to leave less of a scar.
You wear a compression garment, have your stitches removed on the scheduled day and come in for follow-up visits.
Medical note
More about waist & love handle liposuction
From here, we explain how the surgery works, recovery and what to watch for in more detail. It’s written to the standards Dr. Oh uses when he sees patients.
The sides and back of the waist are areas where fat often doesn’t shrink much, even with regular exercise.
Love handles sit right on top of the hip bones. So when the waistband of your pants or skirt presses on them, they get pushed up and stand out even more.
Whether your waist looks defined doesn’t depend on fat alone. It also depends on the size of your rib cage, your pelvic width and the curve of your spine. So how much your waist appears to curve in after fat is removed differs from person to person.
Besides fat thickness and firmness, we check the following before deciding on surgery.
The right approach differs from person to person. We decide after an examination, based on how much fat there is, how much change you’d like and how much time you can set aside for recovery.
Liposuction needs entry points for the tube that removes fat. So the marks at the entry points can’t be avoided entirely. Instead, we keep the entry points small and choose places hidden by clothing or skin creases.
For the waist and love handles, the entry points are usually near the underwear line at the lower back or at the top of the buttocks, where they’re hidden by clothing.
Scars usually look red or dark for the first few months, then gradually fade. How much they fade depends on your skin type. At your examination, we mark your body as we explain where the entry points will go and how many there will be.
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Pelvic width and rib cage size differ from person to person, so an hourglass shape can’t be applied to everyone. If there isn’t much difference between the width of your waist and your hips, we don’t push to reduce the waist alone. It looks more natural to look at the hips and buttocks as well and find proportions that make the waist look relatively slimmer.
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Love handles flow straight down into the buttocks and thighs. So they’re often planned together as Lower Body LINE ON, which combines liposuction of the thighs, buttocks and love handles with fat transfer to the buttocks. Whether to do liposuction alone or add fat transfer to the buttocks is decided after an examination and a review of your photos, based on the result you’d like.
When we don’t recommend it
Results and recovery vary from person to person. Whether a treatment suits you is decided after Dr. Oh examines you in person.
If a thick layer of fat sat on your flanks and love handles, your waistline may look different. But if there isn’t much difference between the size of your rib cage and the width of your pelvis, treating the sides alone may not make your waist look much more defined. We’ll explain this after an examination, along with the conditions.
Not necessarily. But the waist runs all the way around: the belly at the front, the flanks at the sides and the love handles at the back. Treating only one part can leave an awkward border, so connecting areas are often planned together.
Most people’s left and right sides differ slightly. If the difference comes from different amounts of fat on each side, it can be reduced by removing different amounts. But differences caused by bone or posture, such as a tilted pelvis or spine, don’t change with liposuction. It’s hard to make both sides exactly the same. We’ll explain where the difference comes from after an examination.
Sometimes, yes. These areas are harder to treat with liposuction, and the lumpy feeling during recovery can last a little longer. It varies from person to person.
For the first few days, the treated areas may ache when pressed. Sleep in whatever position is comfortable, using cushions for support or changing position as needed. If you also had fat transfer to the buttocks, please follow the fat transfer instructions in the precautions above.
It depends on the extent. For Lower Body LINE ON, which treats the thighs, buttocks and love handles together, liposuction takes 2–3 hours. If only the waist and love handles are treated, it’s usually shorter. We’ll tell you the exact time once we’ve set the extent after an examination.
Liposuction reduces the number of fat cells in the treated area. But the remaining fat cells can grow again, so if you gain weight, fat can build up again in the treated area too.
If you only treat the thighs, only the thighs improve; if you only treat the waist, only the waist gets slimmer. What matters is one continuous line running through the thighs, buttocks and love handles.
Whether it’s the face or the body, I look at the flow and proportions that connect one area to the next, not at a single area. That’s because no single line suits everyone.
If your buttocks are already full, slimming just the thighs can make them look bigger, so liposuction alone may be enough to bring out the line. If you have hip dips, or your hips or buttocks themselves lack volume, liposuction alone may not be enough.
Generally, most of the swelling goes down in about 1 month, and the rest in about 3 months. Bruising mostly fades within 2 weeks.
There’s no fixed upper limit. It depends on your body weight, how much tumescent solution (a saline-based fluid) is injected into the fat under the skin, and how much blood comes out with the removed fat.
It may still have an effect, but without exercise and a healthy diet, the change soon wears off.
We are a 3-minute walk from Gangnam Station Exit 11, and the medical director examines every patient in person.