Have you heard of EMSCULPT? It’s one of the latest additions to the lineup of non-invasive body contouring procedures introduced during the past several years. At our Harrisburg, PA practice, I often consult with patients who aren’t sure whether liposuction or EMSCULPT is best for their concerns.
In this blog post, I’ll explore if EMSCULPT lives up to the attention it’s generated in recent months and compare it to traditional liposuction, including the number of treatments needed and areas of the body that can be treated.
EMSCULPT vs. Liposuction: A Side-by-Side Comparison
EMSCULPT is cleared by the FDA to build muscle mass and burn fat by causing thousands of involuntary abdominal muscle contractions to simulate an intense core workout. When the makers of a device promise that you can burn fat and build muscle in a 30-minute nonsurgical treatment, people notice. But there’s a bit more to the EMSCULPT story, especially when compared to liposuction.
Number of Treatments
- EMSCULPT: This option uses a technology called high-intensity electromagnetic energy to tone muscle and minimize excess fat. But to get the results you may have heard about requires at least 4 half-hour treatment sessions that need to be scheduled 2 or 3 days apart. After those initial treatments, additional procedures are needed once every 3 to 6 months to maintain the results. The costs start to add up. And even though clinical studies do show some fat reduction, the outcomes aren’t necessarily predictable.
- Liposuction: On the other hand, liposuction is a time-tested procedure that removes fat, and the results are immediately noticeable after a single procedure. Those results remain if you maintain a healthy lifestyle.
Areas of Treatments
- EMSCULPT: If you’re looking to tone your abdomen or buttocks, EMSCULPT is an option. Those are the only areas the device is cleared by the FDA to treat.
- Liposuction: This tried-and-true procedure can be used virtually anywhere, including the neck, upper arms, thighs, and hips. The different types of liposuction give plastic surgeons the ability to customize treatments using different technologies and smaller or larger cannulas (the tubes used to suction fat from the body).
Treatment Candidates
- EMSCULPT: Patients typically have very small pockets of fat that can often be reduced through exercise and a healthy diet. The procedure burns fat by simulating the muscle contractions that occur during sit-ups.
- Liposuction: Many more women and men can benefit from liposuction because it works great for patients who want to remove fat that remains despite exercise and dieting.
The table below summarizes the comparison:
| Liposuction | EMSCULPT | |
| Number of Treatments Needed | 1 | 4 initially, then touch-up treatments every 3 to 6 months |
| Treatment Areas | Face, under the chin, neck, upper arms, back, chest, abdomen, flanks, thighs, waist, hips, buttocks, and more | Abdomen and buttocks |
| Who Can Benefit | Nearly anyone in good health with areas of excess fat | Those with excess fat in the abdomen or buttocks |
From this comparison, it’s clear that liposuction is usually the better option by far. The results produced by liposuction are easy to see in our gallery of before-and-after photos and the photos below.
Not Quite Ready for a Surgical Procedure?
If you’re looking for a nonsurgical alternative to liposuction, you might consider noninvasive procedures that focus solely on fat reduction like CoolSculpting® or SculpSure®. They require fewer treatments, suit a broader range of people, and can treat more areas than EMSCULPT. They have also been in use for longer.
If you have stubborn areas of fat and want to know if liposuction can help, contact us using the online form to request a consultation. Or call us at (717) 728-1700 to schedule an appointment at our plastic surgery practice in Harrisburg, PA.
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