If you’ve been told your pain, swelling, or disproportionate fat is just weight gain—you’re not alone. Lipedema is a real medical condition and we are here to offer real solutions to help you feel better in
Lipedema surgery removes diseased fat to relieve pain, improve mobility, and restore body proportion.
Most patients resume light activity within a week, with ongoing support for swelling and healing.
Less pain, more freedom of movement, and a body that finally feels like yours again.
Excess fat in the legs and arms can limit movement. Surgical treatment can ease joint pressure and help you move more freely.
By removing diseased fat tissue, this surgery can relieve the daily aching, burning, and heaviness that many patients live with for years.
Lipedema creates disproportion between the upper and lower body. Surgery can help restore balance, making your body feel more aligned with how you’ve always seen yourself.
Lifelong preservation of mobility and stability is critically dependent on controlling inflammation in addition to surgical treatment.
Water-jet liposuction can really make a life-changing difference for women suffering from lipedema. Often mis-diagnosed or not recognized as a real disease, lipedema is characterized as abnormal, out-of-proportion fat deposits most commonly on the thighs and legs of women.
During lipedema liposuction surgery, Dr. Ditesheim makes small incisions in the affected areas to allow a cannula tube to go beneath the skin and target excess, inflamed fat cells. The cannula liquefies the fat cells and vacuums it away from the body without damaging nearby veins and lymphatic system structures. Typically, the incisions necessary for lipedema surgery are minor and will heal independently like standard liposuction incisions.
In some cases, lipedema surgery may include surgical excision of loose skin that may form due to fat removal and poor skin elasticity. However, patients will have a longer recovery and more noticeable scarring after surgery if this step is necessary to enhance the lower body contours.
Gaining weight on your thighs, calves, and buttocks is a common experience for many women, especially during periods of considerable hormone fluctuations. However, some women develop significantly abnormal fat accumulation in these areas, often accompanied by swelling, discomfort, and impaired mobility, diagnosed as lipedema. When the condition’s symptoms are too severe for at-home management, the next step is to visit our lipedema surgery center in Charlotte.
Our lipedema surgical solutions use liposuction techniques to remove excess fat buildup from the lower body while surgically removing loose skin tissue if necessary. However, since the surgical approach is highly individualized and symptoms of lipedema can vary between patients, a consultation is required ahead of time. Schedule a consultation with the medical team at Ditesheim Cosmetic Surgery to discuss your symptoms, medical history, and possible treatment approach with licensed lipedema liposuction surgeon Dr. Ditesheim.
“I recently visited Dr. Ditesheim regarding my lipedema and I cannot express enough how wonderful my experience was. He and his staff were incredibly attentive and welcoming. They treated me with kindness and courtesy, making me feel comfortable throughout my visit.”
“It is clear that both, the doctor and the staff, genuinely care about their patients well- being. I highly recommend Dr. Ditesheim and his team to anyone looking for a compassionate, knowledgable, and professional healthcare experience. I cannot thank them enough for their outstanding service!”
“I am delighted to recommend Dr. Ditesheim for his exceptional care and professionalism...I am truly grateful for the outstanding care I received and highly recommend him to anyone seeking a knowledgeable and compassionate physician.”
At Ditesheim Cosmetic Surgery, your consultation is more than a conversation — it’s a process built around you. In just three clear steps, we listen to your goals, evaluate your needs, and present surgery plan options designed to fit your lifestyle, body, and vision.
Meet with our team to talk through your goals, concerns, and vision—no pressure, just support.
We’ll walk you through the possibilities and explain what’s realistic for your body and lifestyle.
Your treatment plan is fully customized around you—designed to deliver results that feel natural and lasting.
Meet with our team to talk through your goals, concerns, and vision—no pressure, just support.
We’ll walk you through the possibilities and explain what’s realistic for your body and lifestyle.
Your treatment plan is fully customized around you—designed to deliver results that feel natural and lasting.
Yes, on our website there is a page dedicated to Lipedema before and after photos including the patient stage and amount of fat removed:
https://empowermd.com/results/womens-body-gallery/
Dr. Ditesheim is a certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery and a fellow of the American College of Surgeons. He trained in general and plastic surgery at Vanderbilt, Wake Forest and Harvard Universities. He has been in private practice for 28 years. His office is in Charlotte, NC. His speciality is body contouring plastic surgery, and has performed several thousand body contouring and liposuction procedures. He is passionate about helping to restore confidence and integrity for people struggling with lipedema. Though surgical treatment is not curative, removing lipedema tissue can change lives.
Yes, Tammy, our patient coordinator will be glad to set up a virtual consultation on TouchMD, an app that lets us communicate confidentially. [email protected]
In office or virtual consultations are $250, confirmed with a credit card. Prior to the consultation you will be able to upload photos of the problem lipedema areas and any pertinent medical information. Dr. Ditesheim will meet with you personally and will want to understand your motivations, functional limitations and priority of areas to treat. At the close of the consultation, you will make a plan together for treatment. All cost information and arrangements for surgery will be discussed in detail.
All surgical procedures are performed at our on-site surgical facility, Blakeney Surgical Center, Charlotte, NC. This is a AAAASF accredited surgical facility for general anesthesia. If you are coming from out of town, you are encouraged to stay in Charlotte overnight with an adult caretaker.
Yes. With Water liposuction, patients have the option of staying awake and treating one area under local (tumescent) anesthesia. The limitations of awake liposuction are that you may find the surgery too uncomfortable, may be too anxious or want more fatty tissue removed. There is a limit how much fatty lipedema tissue can be removed with local anesthesia, usually 3-4lb. This is compared with 10-15lb with general anesthesia.
Our strategy is to safely remove as much fatty lipedema tissue in one surgical procedure. Each patient can determine which areas to prioritize. Dr. Ditesheim will be interested in knowing what areas are most painful or bruise easily, if there is functional limitation with walking or stairs and if there are difficulties with dressing (wearing shirts or pants or shoes).
Dr. Ditesheim preferentially use Water liposuction (also Water-jet liposuction, Aquashape, Body-jet) as the pulsed water jet is very effective in removing the lipedema fatty tissue. Two advantages of Water Liposuction: 1. Because no heat energy is used, water liposuction is “gentler” on the surrounding tissues. 2. The water-jet, by continuously infusing adrenaline throughout the procedure, minimizes blood loss, permitting a greater amount of fatty tissue to be removed. We do use Vaser (ultrasonic) and Power (vibratory) liposuction for body contouring procedures, but prefer Water Liposuction for lipedema treatment.
We will support patients in their efforts to obtain insurance reimbursement, as this is a restorative, reconstructive procedure for most all patients. Our office will not file insurance, as all fees are patient responsible. We will be glad to write supporting medical documentation to facilitate insurance reimbursement. We do not have a participating contract with any insurance company.
