SINGAPORE: The Singapore Association of Plastic Surgeons says more than 100 people undergo liposuction every week.

Now, a newly developed water-jet assisted procedure promises to reduce both bleeding and the time needed to recover.

Water-jet assisted liposuction uses a thin, targeted fan-shaped jet of water that washes out the fat from the targeted area.

Because water-jet assisted liposuction removes the need to inject the tissue with the fluids, recovery period is reduced by 2 weeks.

"The idea is to avoid all the disadvantage of the current method, as there is collecting a lot of fluid in the body in the procedure which may harm the patient not only within the operation, but also after that," said Dr Harmut Meyer, Medical Director, Praxisklinik Brahmsallee.

Standard liposuction procedures tend to suck out a lot of blood as well as fat, but with the new method, not only is this avoided, but the uncontaminated fat can even be transplanted to other parts of the body.

Plastic surgeons say that the numbers of male patients are on the rise, especially men in their 30s to 40s.

"I'm seeing also a rise in men, particularly (those) who want to have reduction in abdominal fats and fats around the breast area," said Prof Walter Tan, Medical Director, Raffles Hospital.

However, women remain their predominant clientele, making up 8 out of 10 patients. - CNA /dt