Tell me your experience with Air sculpt

July 18, 2022 2:53 AM

I stumbled into info about airsculpt as an alternative to a tummy tuck or other plastic surgery that had big complication risks. It sort of seems too good to be true. Have you had an airsculpt procedure? Tell me all about it, good bad and ugly.

YANMD, etc. Did it hurt more than expected? Were the results not as dramatic as expected? Did people notice? Did someone show up to take away your feminist card? I want to hear it all. Tell me what you got done, any relevant stats about your body type and shape, age, etc.

posted by anonymous to Clothing, Beauty, & Fashion (4 answers total)

This is not my area of medical expertise (IAAD, NYD) but some of the more memorably horrific procedural complications I've taken care of were in patients who had this kind of "safer", "non-invasive" plastic surgery. There's no free lunch and anything that modifies your body to the promised degree is going to come with real risks. I sometimes wonder if the promise that these procedures are "safer" than surgery led those patients to be less cautious or have lower standards for the cleanliness and skill of the practitioners they patronized.
posted by telegraph at 4:17 AM on July 18, 2022 [2 favorites]

I just want to tell you that feminism and body modification are not mutually exclusive, and you can still be a feminist and get this procedure. Anyone who tells you otherwise or tries to "take away your feminist card" is not a feminist themselves and thus has no worthwhile opinion on the matter.
posted by twelve cent archie at 6:37 AM on July 18, 2022 [17 favorites]

It's me. I show up to take your feminist card.

Seriously, if you haven't checked it out yet RealSelf is the place to go for info on plastic surgery. You're going to get so many more people who have been through the processes. Not sure if I'd 100 percent trust their recs but it's useful for knowing what to expect.
posted by kingdead at 7:16 AM on July 18, 2022 [3 favorites]

You may already know all this, but for those who are curious, here are the facts behind the marketing.

Airsculpt is one of several laser-assisted lipolysis techniques. Laser lipolysis uses laser to break down fat tissue. First, a small hole (2mm) is made with a circular metal hole punch. Then the laser wand is poked repeatedly into the fat tissue to break it down. Finally, the fat is sucked out with a vacuum nozzle.

Liposuction was popularized in the 90's, and laser was added later. The different types of brand names correspond to different types of machines, wavelengths, and techniques. All this is to say, despite the marketing, Airsculpt is not some revolutionary new technique, but rather a variation. The best surgical technique is the one that the surgeon is most familiar with.
posted by dum spiro spero at 1:40 PM on July 18, 2022