Skin Tightening for Arms Options for Treating Loose, Sagging, or Hanging Arms
One of the most common complaints women have as they age or gain weight is the sagging or hanging down of their underarm area. Often called batwings, this loose looking hang of the arms makes the arm look out of shape and also creates an aging appearance. No matter what they do to try and get rid of this sagging arm, nothing really works to a significant degree. All the workouts to tone the arms and skin helps very little if at all. This is a problem that cosmetic surgery has been able to help, but in the past only with cutting away of the excess skin in what is known as an arm lift or tuck. Now there are options.
At ArtLipo Plastic Surgery we are probably the only clinic in the world that specializes in liposuction of the arms. This is because we invented the first high definition, lipo 360 of the arms, which amazingly also tightens skin. This is a procedure which had never been done by any other surgeons before. Our trademarked arm lipo procedure is called Celebrity Arms Liposuction. We have more experience in treating women with looser or hanging arms than anyone in the world with over 2000 arm patients alone. It is one of the primary treatments that our surgeons do and it has given us more experience than any others in how to treat looser hanging arms without resorting to cutting. The methods we use are far advanced and to a large degree pioneered by us. What you will see in our immediate before and after photos and videos will amaze you as far as how we can achieve tighter skin with liposuction alone. Our results will leave you not only with slimmer arms, but a toned look without the hang. Where other doctors would recommend an arm tuck, we can often get better results with just liposuction.
How Arm Liposuction can Tighten Your Skin
It has been a long held belief by doctors that liposuction of any area in the body should be done conservatively to avoid creating looser skin. This applies even more so to areas like the arm where there is already a drooping underarm hang. Doctors are taught to stay deep in the fat layer and not approach the surface closest to the skin. When such an approach is taken the skin on the arm actually does sag more after liposuction. However, Dr.Su the originator of Celebrity Arms learned early on that skin actually behaves in a much different way when you do liposuction completely and close to the surface of the skin. He found a very surprising effect that the skin was allowed to retract and tighten in a way that no one thought was possible. This is the principle that he applied to all his liposuction of different body areas and it is what allows us to do our Celebrity Arms with the amazing skin tightening that we see with it. Although this principle is not taught, it has been discovered by a few surgeons over the last 30 years and written about. Doing this type of skin tightening liposuction, however, is an art that if not done properly can leave a lot of irregularities. Most surgeons will never have the skills or abilities to do this type of lipo and are right to avoid trying it. There are also limitations with some patients whose skin is very loose or has lost too much elasticity. These patients will still get retraction of the skin, but will sometimes have some remaining loose skin and unsightly wrinkles. It is up to our surgeons with their vast experience to recognize and identify when more than just liposuction is needed and to prepare patients for a possible arm lift.
Skin Tightening Procedures for Arms without Cutting
Although there have been many different devices for skin tightening over the last 15 years available to cosmetic and plastic surgeons. Few have been able to create any noticeable results and have been a complete waste of money. Some of the latest devices which deliver heat energy to the dermal and subdermal structures are done internally, instead of externally, and actually create a nice level of skin tightening. Two of these devices that have been around for several years are BodyTite and J-Plasma. We currently use a device called Renuvion which was previously known as J-Plasma before the company was sold. Renuvion is a device or procedure that is done immediately after the liposuction has been performed. It has to be done at this time, because the cannula (wand) has to move through the emptied out fat layer without resistance. Renuvion has been a welcome addition to our Celebrity Arms procedure because it provides that added degree of tightening on top of what our normal skin tightening would be. It’s like turning back the hands of time a little bit more. Instead of having moderately loose skin, it can be mildly loose. Instead of mild looseness and mild wrinkles our patients may have none.
Skin Tightening with Cutting – Arm Lift or Tuck
No one wants to have and arm lift with the skin on their arms cut away if avoidable. This procedure which is best for patients with significant loose skin is not popular mainly because of the associated scar that is difficult to hide and often times widens noticeably instead of being a thin line. That being said, if the hang is very bad then the prospect of a scar may still be a much better option cosmetically. When doing Celebrity Arms, not all clients are ideal for liposuction alone because of the loose skin and wrinkles that could remain. This is mainly going to be with patients in their 50’s and older, or for patients who have had a very large weight loss and have loose skin even though they are younger. We find that anyone having a combination of thicker arms and a loose hanging droop will need both procedures (lipo and tuck) because to do a tuck alone would still leave their arm looking bulky. This is because an armlift only removes the underhang of skin and fat. It does not remove the rest of the fat on other areas surrounding the arm which are still a problem.
Virtual Arm Consultation
If you would like to know how your arms would respond to the Celebrity Arm liposuction, then we invite you to do our virtual consultation. Our patients come from all over the U.S. and other countries and we can do our consultation long distance through emails, phone, and photos. When you send us your photos our doctors can draw on them and show you what you can expect. (click here) Learn about our Virtual Arm Consultation.