In Singapore, the surgical procedure of liposuction is regulated by the Ministry of Health.
Only certified doctors are able to perform liposuction. There are many regulations in place such as
- Amount of fat removed
- Choice of facility where the procedure is carried out.
These determine the type of anaesthesia that is used.
No more than 100ml of pure fat removed:
- A small amount of liposuction is to be done to areas such as double chin, arms or inner knees
- The amount of pure fat removed is no more than 100ml
In this case, this procedure can be done in the clinic under local anaesthethesia.
More than 100ml and no more than 2L of pure fat removed:
This can be done in an Ambulatory Surgical Centre (ASC)
More than 2L of pure fat removed
For these cases, liposuction has to be performed in the hospital and I would recommend a minimum of 1 night stay.
For procedures carried out in the ASC and Hospital, they can be done under Local Anesthesia with sedation (with an anaesthetist around), or under General Anesthesia.
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For most of my cases where I usually perform multiple areas of liposuctions or circumferential liposuction, I usually prefer to have the procedure done in the hospital under General Anesthesia.
I prefer GA as it is safer and more comfortable for my patient. Patients get knocked out by the Anaesthetist, and this allows us to turn the patient so as to position them properly.
Thus we can perform the liposuction without fearing the patient will moan in pain or move during the procedure.
This reduces a lot of wasted surgical time compared to doing it under local anesthesia with sedation.
When the liposuction is completed, the anaesthetist can stop the GA drugs and wake the patient up immediately.
The patient's parameters are monitored regularly in the ward. (Usually I prefer that they spend at least 1 night in hospital.)
If I am just performing liposuction on only 1 small area such as the chin, or the arms, I usually like to always have an anaesthetist around to sedate the patient a bit.
This means that they can also take care of the patient for his / her pain , comfort level and safety, so that I can concentrate to perform the liposuction procedure.
It is important for your Plastic Surgeon to plan the surgery carefully and discuss with the you which will be the best choice.
If possible, I would suggest that a pre-surgery consultation be done with the anaesthetist before the surgery so that the patient will have a smooth and safe anaesthesia, whether it is local, or local with sedation or general anaesthesia.
