Fat Grafting and Facial Contouring

Fat injection procedures, also called fat transfer or fat grafting, are surgical procedures in which fat tissue is transferred from one part of the body to another after being harvested from a suitable area on the body. The surgical goal is to improve and/or volumize the area where the fat is injected. Surgical techniques used include the removal of fat tissue by liposuction, processing and purification of the harvested fat and injection of the purified fat tissue into target areas.

If the steps of a fat grafting surgery are to be mentioned, the first step is the harvesting of the fat from the patient. To begin the procedure, a small incision is made in order to remove the fat by liposuction cannulain a donor area previously decided by the patient and their doctor. After the fat is carefully removed, it is preserved until it is time to process and purify it.

After the patient’s fat tissue is harvested, the fat will be prepared by cleansing the elements that may impair its purity and then transferred to small syringes so that it can be injected. For preparing and filtering the fat, the fat is put in a centrifuge in order to remove the elements that may impair its purity.

After enough fat has been harvested and purified, the fat injection is ready to be performed. Fat grafts are injected into target areas using syringes such as dermal fillers.

While fat transfers can be made to many areas such as the chin, cheeks, cheekbones, lips, temples, forehead, they can also be performed on various parts on the body that can benefit from fat transfer such as the buttocks and breasts.

Fat can be transferred into the parts of the face where there is loss of volume as well as to the parts which can benefit from an enhancement. This can provide a much fresher, younger and better proportioned appearance. It can also improve creases and wrinkles. Also as fat tissue contains stem cells, it can also help rejuvenate and nourish the skin. Tightening effects in general can also be created with volume added to the correct areas in the face.

On the body, suitable candidates can acheive augmentation as well as an improvement in shape such as the breasts and buttocks.

The ideal candidates for fat grafting procedures are patients with good general health who have donor areas with sufficient amount of harvestable fat. Although it is imporant that the patient is in good health and has sufficient fat reserves, it is important that the patient does not have any blood circulation problems. Circulatory problems can be caused by medical conditions or smoking.