Fat Transfers
This procedure involves harvesting fat from one area of the body and utilizing it to sculpt another area where volume has been lost. Many of the changes associated with aging are now known to be due to loss of fat restoration, which creates a more youthful appearance.
Frequently Asked Questions:
Q: How does fat injection differ from synthetic facial fillers?
A: Autologous fat is your own tissue. For that reason, it is possible to remain as a living implant when moved from one area of your body to another. This has been attempted for many years in plastic surgery but in most cases was minimally successful. What has changed is the method by which fat is harvested, cleaned, and transferred to its new position. Fine instrumentation to allow microinjection of small volumes of fat allows tremendous results.
Q: In what areas are fat grafts utilized?
A: Fat can be utilized as an adjunct to face lifting or eyelid surgery. In many cases, it is better to inject fat to the cheek rather than remove fat deposits from eyelid, which may be a normal component of anatomy. It is the improper decent of facial fat that gives the sculpt nice appearance.Fat transfers may also be used in the lips, cheeks, or chin to enhance fullness.
Q: Do fat transfers hurt?
A: In most cases fat transfers can be performed under local anesthesia in an hour or less. Some bruising may occur but this is usually minimal.
Q: Can fat be transferred to the buttock or breast?
A: Fat transfers have been used utilized successfully in augmentation of the buttocks. Due to the trauma involved in sitting, multiple injections can be required and results are less predictable than other areas. In terms of breast, fat injections had been looked unfavorably in the past due to possible interference with mammography. Advances in mammographic techniques now make this potentially feasible and early studies have shown some promise. However, at this time fat transfer to the breast are not an accepted method of augmentation.