AWAKE LIPOSUCTION, OUR TECHNIQUE
FormSculpt is BodyLuxe’s approach to liposuction using tumescent local anesthesia, allowing you to remain awake and communicate with Dr. Farrugia throughout the procedure. It can be planned for one targeted area or as a more connected 360-degree contouring treatment. Medication for comfort and anxiety is available when appropriate.
FormSculpt at a glance
- Best for: Reshaping localized areas of fat and improving the transitions between neighboring areas.
- How it is performed: Tumescent local anesthesia is used so you can remain awake and communicate, with individualized comfort medication when appropriate.
- Your options: Treat one targeted area or plan connected 360-degree contouring around the midsection.
- Your next step: Meet with Dr. Farrugia to discuss your goals, anatomy, options and personalized quote.
What is FormSculpt?
FormSculpt is our name for a thoughtful, awake approach to liposuction. Some patients want to refine one area, while others benefit from treating connected areas together so the overall contour looks balanced.
FormSculpt 360 and targeted FormSculpt
Targeted FormSculpt focuses on one or several selected areas. FormSculpt 360 considers the abdomen, waist, flanks and selected back regions as a connected contour. The exact areas are chosen with you and listed clearly before surgery; the name “360” does not automatically include every possible area.
Treatment areas
FormSculpt 360 areas
Upper and lower abdomen
Waist and flanks
Selected back regions identified in the individualized written treatment plan
Targeted FormSculpt areas
Upper arms
Inner thighs
Knees
Submental chin, neck and jawline contouring
Armpit or front bra-roll extensions when clinically appropriate and specifically included in the treatment plan
These are examples, not packages. During your consultation, we will help identify which areas are most likely to make a meaningful difference for your proportions and goals.
FormSculpt results
Individual results vary.
Targeted abdominal FormSculpt liposuction
Abdominal FormSculpt result. Individual results vary.
Why patients choose BodyLuxe for FormSculpt
Daniel J Farrugia, MD PhD FACS meets with you, evaluates your anatomy and goals, creates the treatment plan, performs the preoperative markings and personally performs the liposuction. The BodyLuxe nursing team supports your preparation, comfort and aftercare, while Dr. Farrugia remains involved throughout follow-up.
Who may be a candidate?
FormSculpt may be a good fit if you are in overall good health and want to reshape localized fat rather than lose weight. Your anatomy, skin, abdominal wall, medications, prior procedures and goals all help determine what liposuction can realistically accomplish.
Your consultation gives you time to show us what you would like to change and ask questions without pressure. If liposuction alone is unlikely to address your concern well, Dr. Farrugia may recommend staging treatment, considering another option or not proceeding.
From consultation to follow-up
Your visit begins with a conversation about your goals and medical history. Our nursing team helps with photographs, preparation, comfort and routine aftercare so you know what to expect at each step.
Dr. Farrugia evaluates whether FormSculpt fits your anatomy and goals, creates the plan with you, performs the markings and personally performs the procedure.
After surgery, the BodyLuxe team guides your day-to-day recovery and Dr. Farrugia remains involved in follow-up and any concern that needs medical or surgical judgment.
Recovery: what patients usually experience
Recovery is different for everyone. The number of areas treated, your health, your work and whether procedures are combined all affect how much time and support you may need.
Patients are encouraged to begin short, frequent walks after surgery as directed. Soreness, bruising, swelling, firmness, temporary numbness and some drainage from access sites may occur early.
Compression garments are worn according to individualized postoperative instructions, commonly for several weeks. Compression should be supportive but should not cause focal pressure, severe or increasing pain, marked numbness, blistering, skin discoloration or another sign of possible pressure injury. Patients should contact BodyLuxe if those findings occur.
Some patients with desk-based work may return within several days to approximately one week. Others need one to two weeks or longer. Physical work, extensive treatment and combined procedures generally require additional time.
Light walking is different from exercise. Heavy lifting, strenuous exercise and high-impact activity resume only after clearance and may remain restricted for several weeks.
Swelling may increase during the first several days and then gradually improve. Firmness, altered sensation and residual swelling can persist for weeks or months. Early contour changes may become visible as swelling decreases, but the result should not be judged during the early postoperative period.
A more meaningful contour assessment commonly occurs around three to six months. Maturation may take longer after extensive treatment, prior liposuction or uneven swelling.
Where FormSculpt helps and when another approach may fit better
Visceral fat
FormSculpt removes subcutaneous fat that can be reached beneath the skin. It does not remove intra-abdominal or visceral fat. A protruding abdomen caused substantially by visceral fat may not flatten with liposuction, and weight management or other medical care may be more appropriate.
Skin laxity
Liposuction removes fat but does not remove substantial excess skin. Skin retraction varies with age, tissue quality, stretch marks, prior weight change, pregnancy and individual healing. Loose skin may remain, become more apparent after deflation, or require a separate procedure.
Muscle separation and the abdominal wall
Liposuction does not repair rectus diastasis, abdominal-wall laxity or a hernia. A patient whose abdominal contour is substantially caused by muscle separation or structural abdominal-wall changes may require another operation or referral.
Previous liposuction and scarring
Previous liposuction, abdominal surgery and internal scar tissue can make dissection and contouring more difficult and less predictable. They can increase procedural complexity, limit the amount that can reasonably be treated, increase the likelihood of residual irregularity and make staging or declining treatment appropriate.
When we may recommend more than one session
Treatment may be staged when the requested surface area, anticipated total lipoaspirate, body size, prior surgery, scar tissue, procedural duration, local-anesthetic considerations or combined procedures make one session inappropriate.
When skin-removal surgery may be a better fit
Excisional surgery may be more appropriate when substantial loose skin, an overhanging fold, poor skin recoil, major post-weight-loss laxity or abdominal-wall repair is the dominant issue. Liposuction is not a substitute for a tummy tuck or another skin-excision procedure when fat removal alone is unlikely to address the patient’s concern.
Body size and individualized planning
There is no single BMI cutoff. Body size can affect treatment planning, whether staging is helpful and overall cost. We will explain honestly what those factors mean for you.
Risks and safety
Liposuction is surgery, and it deserves an honest conversation about risk. Expected temporary effects can include soreness, bruising, swelling, drainage, firmness, temporary numbness or altered sensation, and temporary contour changes from swelling.
Possible complications and undesirable outcomes include bleeding or hematoma; seroma or another fluid collection; infection; delayed wound healing; visible or unfavorable scarring; pigmentation change; persistent swelling; persistent numbness, altered sensation or pain; contour irregularity, waviness or asymmetry; under-correction or over-correction; residual localized fat; loose, rippled or irregular skin; cellulite that remains or becomes more apparent; skin injury, impaired blood supply or tissue necrosis; injury to nerves, blood vessels, muscles or deeper structures; medication reaction; local-anesthetic toxicity; fluid or physiologic imbalance; deep-vein thrombosis or pulmonary embolism; cardiopulmonary complications; fat embolic complications; need for additional treatment or revision surgery; and an outcome that does not meet the patient’s expectations.
Before surgery, Dr. Farrugia will review the risks most relevant to your health and treatment plan, answer your questions and explain when to contact us. This overview supports, but does not replace, that conversation and informed consent.
FormSculpt is designed for contouring rather than weight loss. It cannot remove visceral fat, repair muscle separation, eliminate cellulite, guarantee skin tightening, prevent future weight gain or stop changes caused by aging, pregnancy or weight fluctuation.
Questions patients often ask
What is FormSculpt?
FormSculpt is BodyLuxe’s approach to liposuction using tumescent local anesthesia while you remain awake and able to communicate.
Are patients awake during FormSculpt liposuction?
Yes. Patients typically remain awake and able to communicate. Tumescent local anesthesia numbs the treatment area, and medication for anxiety and comfort may be used when appropriate.
What is the difference between FormSculpt 360 and targeted FormSculpt?
Targeted FormSculpt treats one or several selected areas. FormSculpt 360 plans connected areas around the abdomen, waist, flanks and selected back regions together. Your plan and quote will list exactly what is included.
Can FormSculpt treat one area instead of Lipo 360?
Yes. Targeted FormSculpt can focus on one area or a small group of connected areas when that approach fits your anatomy and goals.
Who may be a candidate for FormSculpt?
Good candidates are generally healthy, have localized areas they would like to reshape and understand what liposuction can and cannot change. Dr. Farrugia will evaluate your individual health, anatomy and goals.
Is FormSculpt a weight-loss procedure?
No. FormSculpt is intended to contour localized deposits of subcutaneous fat rather than treat obesity or produce weight loss.
Is financing available?
Pay over 2 years with zero interest using Cherry Payments or CareCredit (for eligible clients). Terms apply.
When can I return to work after FormSculpt?
Some patients with desk-based work may return within several days to approximately one week. Others need one to two weeks or longer. Physical work, extensive treatment and combined procedures generally require additional time.
When can FormSculpt results be evaluated?
A more meaningful contour assessment commonly occurs around three to six months. Final settling may take longer after extensive treatment, prior liposuction or uneven swelling.
Meet Dr. Farrugia and take the next step
Daniel J Farrugia, MD PhD FACS is certified by the American Board of Surgery and focuses his practice on cosmetic body contouring and fat transfer. He will meet with you personally to discuss what you want to change and whether FormSculpt is a good match.
Clinically reviewed and approved by Daniel J Farrugia, MD PhD FACS
Last clinically reviewed: August 8, 2026
BodyLuxe is located at 875 N. Michigan Avenue, Suite 3620, Chicago, Illinois 60611. Call (312) 999-5505 or request a consultation online to start the conversation.
Schedule your FormSculpt consultationThis page provides general educational information. It is not a substitute for a personal medical evaluation, individualized medical advice, informed consent or postoperative instructions.