ULTRASONIC LIPOSCULPTURING - EXTRAPOLATIONS FROM THE ANALYSIS OF IN-VIVO SONICATED ADIPOSE-TISSUE

The ultrasonic liposculpturing technique is currently gaining increasi ng popularity. Although ultrasound is an accepted part of our diagnost ic medical practice, the way in which it interacts with solid living t issue is still a complex and unsolved biophysical problem. Very few st udies, if any, have followed the effects of diffusion of this intrigui ng technique on the fields of biosafety and interaction mechanisms. We evaluate the results of our standard ultrasound liposculpturing techn ique in order to recognize the physical mechanism - thermal, cavitatio nal, or ''direct'' - involved in tile damaging process. Our microscopi c analysis of sonicated adipose tissue confirms that ultrasound is hig hly selective in its action, producing disruption of macromolecules an d cellular structures probably through microstreaming tissue movement. The results of ultrasonic liposculpturing and standard suction lipopl asty are compared. The main advantages of this new technique are tile possibility of a very selective destruction of adipose tissue and the prospective solution to such delicate problems as the irregularity of cellulite.