Is a Thigh Lift Worth The Risk?

One of the main topics of conversation in today’s society is the subject of a person’s appearance. Daily life is filled with questions such as:

“How do I look?”
“Do we look good together?”
“Does this outfit make me look big?”
“Has she had some work done?”

From a new haircut to Botox to workout routines, it seems almost everyone is concerned about their appearance. While it’s important to feel good about yourself as well as your appearance, there can be some dangerous complications that result from medical procedures designed to improve a certain portion of the body and this includes complications that can occur after a thigh lift.

Thigh Lift Explained

A thigh lift is a medical procedure designed to improve the appearance of your legs. The surgery removes the skin and fat from the thigh area in order to tighten and tone the legs. Many patients choose to have a thigh lift due to excess skin in the area as well as a loss of skin elasticity.

A thigh lift procedure is not a “one procedure fits all” surgery. There are a variety of thigh lift procedures available to patients that allow a surgeon to operate according to the specific needs of the patient. Some of the various types of thigh lift procedures include:

Inner Thigh Lift – Specifically for the inner thigh. The incision is made where the thigh meets the pubic area.
Medial Thigh Lift – Removes and reduces extra skin and fat in the upper portion of the inner thigh. The incision is made in the groin area.
Bilateral Thigh Lift – Tightens skin on the outside and the front of the leg. Sometimes referred to as an Outer Thigh Lift. The incision is made at the top of the leg.

Steps Involved in a Thigh Lift

A thigh lift is a pretty straightforward procedure which includes the following steps:

Anesthesia - This step involves the administration of an anesthetic agent to minimize discomfort. A general anesthetic agent is mostly the anesthesia of choice for this procedure.
Incision - The incision pattern used during the procedure varies based on the area or areas to be treated, degree of correction and patient and surgeon preference. The incision options include:
Inner thigh lift incision - This involves making an incision in the groin which extends downward and is wrapped around the back of the thigh. Another technique removes excess skin from the groin down to the knee using an incision along the inseam.
Outer thigh lift incision - This involves making an incision which extends from the groin to areas around the hip and across the back. This makes it possible to improve the contours of the outer thigh. Advanced techniques usually allow incisions to be placed in strategic locations where they can be hidden by most types of clothing and swimsuits. However, the incisions created by the surgeon can be extensive.
Closing the incisions – A thigh lift procedure ends with the closing of the incisions. Deep sutures within underlying tissues help to form and support the newly shaped contours. Sutures, skin adhesive tapes or clips may be used to close the skin incisions.

Studies about Thigh Lift Procedures

According to a study in “Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery” (the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons), "Wound complications in medial thighplasty are common, but most are minor and can be managed without reoperation," according to ASPS member surgeon, Dr. Jeffrey Adam Gusenoff.

Dr. Gusenoff and his colleagues at the University of Pittsburgh took the results of medical thigh lifts in 106 patients with massive weight loss (90 women; 16 men; Average age of 45 years). The results showed 68\\% of the patients experienced some form of complications following the surgery.

The most common complications arising from the procedure studied by the group included fluid collection and problems with wound closures and healing. While most of these issues were brought under control without further surgery, 6\\% of the patients did require further surgery due to complications following their procedures.

Possible Thigh Lift Complications

While the list below is not intended to be a comprehensive rundown of possible complications following thigh lift surgery, it will give you a better idea of what to look for following a thigh lift procedure: