Tranexamic Acid Benefits To High Definition Body Contouring

Since high-definition body contouring may involve 360-degree body contouring, it can require higher volumes of liposuction, resulting in significant blood loss. Several measures are taken to ensure that blood loss is not excessive, including administering tranexamic acid at the beginning of surgical procedures that may involve more generous blood loss. Today, the administration of tranexamic acid has become a mainstay of cosmetic surgery.

Tranexamic acid promotes clot formation by blocking a protein lysine from binding onto plasminogen. Plasminogen is a molecule that triggers the fibrinolytic cascade that breaks down clots. When Tranexamic acid is added to the intravenous fluids, it will block the activity of plasminogen, thus hindering the breakdown of clots and thus promote hemostasis. Blocking plasminogen activity will reduce blood loss in the adipose tissue regardless of the surgical technique implemented for fat extraction.

The current standard dosing in the United States includes an intravenous dose of 10mg/kg per dose mixed with 100 ml of normal saline and administered over 10 minutes. A single dose is usually given at the beginning of the case and another at the end of surgery if operative times extend to 4 hours.

Although this dose is given to make the blood less oozy, it has not been shown to increase the risk of deep venous thrombosis. Deep venous thrombosis describes the creation of potentially detrimental clots in the legs that can travel to your heart and lungs.

Fortunately, studies have proven definitively that tranexamic acid does not increase the risk of a DVT! Interestingly, in South America, tranexamic acid is mixed in the tumescent solution at a dosage of 1 gram per 1000cc of lactated ringers.

This modification has been done to improve overall efficacy by localizing it at the location of the liposuction where tranexamic acid benefits to high-definition body contouring can be appreciated.

Minimizing blood loss during liposuction is very important during high-volume liposuction cases. As such tranexamic acid benefits to high-definition body contouring are clear. The typical drop in hemoglobin up to 2 to 3 g/dl following high-definition 360 body contouring has been observed in prospective studies performed in the clinical setting. High levels of blood loss are expected in revision cases where scar tissue accumulation is observed or in patients following bariatric surgery. Such blood cases make the management of blood loss and fluid hydration critical.

As such, tranexamic acid administration is proving helpful in decreasing overall blood loss during high-definition body contouring cases. Future studies in aesthetic surgery are needed to define the exact benefit of tranexamic acid in limiting blood loss.