The Cost of Liposuction in St. Louis
Your initial consultation with Dr. Wright is free, at which time you may get a sense of the procedures you would like.
There is no universal fee structure for liposuction. The cost of liposuction of course varies, depending on several factors: the number of areas treated, the type of area treated (on the body), the amount of fat to be removed from those areas, etc. There are also regional variations in the cost of liposuction. Usually the liposuction cost per body area decreases if more than one area of the body is treated, since it is relatively easier and more efficient to treat more than one area in a session than it is to treat areas at separate times.
Amount of fat to be removed affects the cost: Liposuction is not a quick procedure. It takes considerable time to perform. Therefore if a lot of fat needs to be removed, it takes considerably longer and the cost increases.
Because Dr. Wright only performs Tumescent Liposuction totally by local anesthesia, there is no cost for general anesthesia, the fee for an anesthesiologist, or for hospital use. No hospital stay is required. So those fees do not apply. There are no separate facility fees, hospital fees, or fees for post-operative visits.
When comparing doctors to have a liposuction procedure completed, ask about other costs, charges, or fees. There are lots of ways of figuring liposuction prices, so (if you have your liposuction performed elsewhere) you will want to ask about what other costs, charges, or fees you may incur before, during or after your liposuction procedure. These fees or charges may be billed by your doctor, or even billed by some other person/entity/hospital. These could include: garments, tests, operating room time, anesthesiologist time, incidental charges for medications, etc. There may or may not be substantial fees for incidental items. If there are, it is not necessarily the case that these are meant to drive the price higher without your realizing it. Rather, your doctor has probably tried to make your entire package cost within reason, and there are simply different ways of pricing the liposuction procedure relative to the office visits, supplies, garments, other incidentals and etcetera. Just as there are different ways of pricing any service. Presumably, if the cost of the procedure is lower, incidentals may be higher, and vice versa.
Also, you should arrive at an understanding of how your doctor counts the areas to be treated, if number of areas is used to figure the cost of liposuction. Usually the upper and lower abdomen are counted as two different areas. The waist and hips are separate areas. The lateral (“saddlebag,” or outer thigh. front (anterior), back (posterior), and inside (medial) thighs can all be large areas and are usually counted separately. This can be a little confusing, so there are some examples in the links below. Since it would be very unusual to require liposuction on one side of the body but not the other, the left and right thighs (or whatever area is in question), would not likely be counted as separate areas by your doctor. But you should ask.
The important thing for you is to be able to accurately anticipate what your total cost for the liposuction procedure will be in advance, so that you don’t get any unwelcome surprises.
Liposuction Financing / Cosmetic Surgery Financing: Liposuction financing is available and arrangements can usually be made through the doctor’s office or we can point you to sources for cosmetic surgery financing. CareCredit is a very useful program for financing cosmetic surgery procedures, allowing you to make payments as you would with a credit card for your treatments.
The following table is merely a rough estimate of possible fees based on a survey of offices nationwide.
Abdomen, Upper and Lower $3,000-$7,500
Back, female $1,500-$4,000
Breasts, male $3,000 – $5,000
Buttocks $1,500 – $4,500
Chin, Cheek, Jowls, Neck $2,000-$4,500
Hips, Waist $1,600 – $5,000
Outer Thighs $1,600 – $5,000
Cost of Liposuction is an important factor when considering liposuction. However the quality of liposuction is more important than the cost of liposuction. Liposuction is a surgical procedure and attention should be paid to the reputation of the doctor performing the procedure and his or her safety concerns and proficiency.
If the ultimate goal of liposuction is to have a happy patient, then the surgeon’s expertise and experience are probably more important than the price. Price is important, but it is not the most important. Be careful not to put your body on the “Discount Rack”.
Lowest Price Can Be Most Expensive
Choosing a surgeon based on the lowest price might ultimately be the most expensive choice if the initial cosmetic results are so bad that another surgeon must be paid to repair the work of the first surg Cost of Liposuction is an important factor when considering liposuction. However the quality of liposuction is more important than the cost of liposuction. If the ultimate goal of liposuction is to have a happy patient, then the surgeon’s expertise and experience are probably more important than the price. Price is important, but it is not the most important. Be careful not to put your body on the “Discount Rack”.
Among the most common undesirable outcomes of liposuction are 1) incomplete liposuction with very little evidence that liposuction was actually done, 2) excessive liposuction producing an unnatural or disfigured appearance, 3) irregular and uneven results with unsightly depressions in the skin, and 4) large scars that reveal that the patient has had liposuction. Caveat emptor (Buyer beware).
