As early as 1964, the plastic surgeon Schrudde from Cologne removed fat deposits using a minimally invasive procedure. Schrudde drew marking lines on the skin to plan the operation and recommended wearing compression garments after the procedure. In 1976, Kesselring and Meyer developed the forerunners of today’s instruments: long hollow needles connected to a vacuum pump. In 1977, Parisian surgeon Illouz injected the tissue with an enzyme and a saline solution to reduce the risk of secondary bleeding.
In 1987, the Californian doctor Klein used the tumescent anesthesia technique described by Matas in 1915 for liposuction. The term is derived from the Latin and means “to swell”. The dilution of the anesthetic and the addition of adrenaline mean that only a small amount of anesthetic enters the body’s circulation. This means that a stressful general anesthetic can be dispensed with. Patients also recover more quickly after the procedure.
In 1990, Gasperoni also performed liposuction on the superficial layers of fat in order to correct contours more precisely. Matarasso first combined liposuction techniques with tummy tuck techniques in 1997 to perfect the results.