Shaping Your Body

When people think of body contouring, what commonly comes to mind is the removal of excess fat in order to achieve a desired shape. But body contouring is actually much more than that.

In its true sense, it can also include adding to the body, depending on the patient’s needs and desires. So treatments such as breast enhancement can be considered a form of body contouring. When it comes to contouring the breasts, you can not only enhance or enlarge them, you can also reduce them, or tighten and lift them. This last procedure, known as mastopexy, is typically for women with sagging breasts. This is common after weight loss or prolonged breast feeding. Mastopexy allows the plastic surgeon to remove excess skin, tuck the breasts in and lift them.

Similarly, for women who have heavy breasts that cause chronic neck and back pain, soreness, difficulty in finding bras that fit, hygiene issues and social embarrassment, the solution lies in a procedure known as reduction mammoplasty. This involves removing excess breast tissue and skin, repositioning the nipple and areola, and finally reshaping and lifting the remaining breast tissue. This helps correct the challenges being faced while simultaneously enhancing the overall appearance by making the breast size more proportionate to the rest of the body.

Breast Enlargement Options

However, the most popular breast contouring treatment in Singapore is breast enlargement, either by using silicone implants or by fat transfer technique. Our “Body to Breast” contouring programme removes fat from the waist, thighs or abdomen, providing a simultaneous body-shaping of the donor area with a breast enlargement. The removed fat is purified, concentrated and immediately re-injected into whichever part of the breast is deficient in volume. This technique is especially appealing to women who do not like the idea of inserting foreign materials into their bodies. It also allows the plastic surgeon to customise and inject the exact amount required for each breast and in the exact area. The drawback is that enlargement is limited to one cup size per time whereas implants can achieve a larger volume in one go.

A lesser-known problem is gynaecomastia or “man boobs”. This socially embarrassing issue can easily be taken care of with new techniques that allow plastic surgeons to remove the abnormal breast tissue via a minimally invasive treatment that does not leave scars.

Remodelling the Body

If you are bothered by saggy arms that no amount of weight lifting or exercise can correct, an arm lift procedure that removes excess skin can help put that matter to rest. The same goes for sagging buttocks, which can be also lifted surgically.

Women who have had large or multiple pregnancies and suffer from a floppy tummy or herniation of the muscle wall may never regain their original body shape and may require a tummy tuck. This is the most common body shaping surgery and results in more dramatic results than what you would get from non-invasive procedures.

Non-invasive procedures using machines to remove the fat are slower and need to be done a number of times for visible results. The advantage is they do not require surgery and there is no downtime. One such procedure is Ultherapy, an ultrasound treatment which tightens the collagen under the skin and enables it to redrape better. Another procedure using ultrasound technology is UltraShape, which uses ultrasound energy to break down fat cells. A newer technique called Cryolipolysis uses extreme cold energy to achieve the same outcome.

The most common surgical body-contouring treatment is liposculpture. Apart from bulk removal, strategic removal of fat in key areas using this method allows the plastic surgeon to “sculpt” the body. Synthetic fillers can also be added to contour the body. They can be injected into the buttocks if a patient has flat buttocks or even to the hip areas to create or enhance feminine contours.

Apart from aesthetics, patients opt for body contouring to enhance the quality of their lives or regain normality. Women who have suffered from breast cancer, for example, can have their breasts reconstructed using the “Body to Breast” contouring programme.

In the hands of a skilful plastic surgeon, body contouring can take on a whole new meaning.