The development of blunt liposuction by Illouz [1] in 1978 ushered in a new era in body sculpting. For the first time it
had become possible to dependably remove large amounts of subcutaneous fat and decrease saddlebags and bulges to provide a
smoother contour.
Refinements in liposuction techniques have made it possible to dramatically resculpt the subsurface plane and improve body
contour virtually from head to toe [2–4].
Mark Gilliland first performed abdominal etching by removing specific grooves of subcutaneous fat to accentuate the appearance
of the abdominal musculature [5–8]. We have developed a new cannula for precision etching. This technique has been used in
25 patients with good results and has resulted in only one complication, which was the result of placing one of the horizontal
etching lines at the level of the umbilicus. This created an unseemly fold that is best avoided.
Key words: Body sculpting—Abdominal etching—Contour improvement—Liposuction—Lipoplasty