The History of Liposuction, Part 1

Liposuction, the use of suction to remove fat tissue from the body, is usually seen as a relatively new type of cosmetic surgery. However, the procedure was actually first attempted in the 1920s! We’re going to take an interesting look at the history and development of liposuction, from those early tried in the Roaring ‘20s right up until the present day use of lasers and other futuristic techniques. As we do we’ll see just how for liposuction has come in less than a century.

The first known stab at liposuction happened, as many beauty innovations do, in France. Dr. Charles Dujarier developed a technique in which he used an intrauterine curette to remove fat deposits under the skin. Unfortunately, medical sanitation being what it was back then, when he attempted to use this method to reshape a famous dancer’s legs, gangrene was the result. This tragic incident set the procedure back for many, many years.

Fast forward to 1974. Dr. Giorgio Fischer was a gynecologist working with his physician father Arpad at a clinic in Italy. Dr. Fischer the elder was already a pioneer in cosmetic surgery, being the first to offer the service in the country (once he got permission from the Vatican, of course). Giorgio continued in his father’s footsteps by inventing the first modern liposuction procedure. He was the first to use a curette attached to a suction device in order to remove fat.

The next advance in liposuction took place just a few years later with physician Dr Yves-Gerard Illouz. He introduced a device called a cannula, which was smaller and therefore less obtrusive. He also developed the technique of pumping fluid into the fatty tissue before removal. The procedure resulted in higher liposuction success rates and a lower chance of negative side effects.

Stay tuned to this space as we move past 1982 and into the modern era of liposuction!