Overview

Fat grafting is a process in which fat is harvested from one area in the body (such as tummy or thighs), and transferred into other areas that are lacking in volume (face, breasts, dorsum of hand, buttocks). Fat grafting can be used to replace tissue lost due to aging, trauma, or disease, as well as to improve the contour and rejuvenate the face, hands, breast, buttock and body. Recent studies have found that fatty tissue has been found not only contain fat cells, but also a group of cells call adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs). ADSCs may be induced to differentiate into many different cell types, induce blood vessel formation, ameliorate fibrosis and scarring, and also promote wound healing.

Performed properly in healthy patients, fat grafting is a safe and well tolerated procedure and can produce natural-looking and long-lasting results.

Uses

1. To replace volume loss in the face such as in the cheeks and temples
2. To augment the lips and chin
3. To augment the volume and increase the size of the breasts
4. To augment the volume and lift the saggy buttocks
5. To rejuvenate the dorsum of the hand that is wrinkled and guttered
6. To improve contour of depressed scars
7. To treat irregularities of body and face contour

Preoperative Preparation

• Treat and stabilize all existing medical conditions, if any.
• Stop smoking at least one week before surgery
• Stop one week before surgery
  -  All supplements that contain vitamin E, ginseng, ginko, garlic, fish oil and other ingredients that encourage bleeding during surgery
  -  Medicine that exacerbate bleeding during operation such as aspirin, NSAIDs and warfarin. You may first need to consult the physician who prescribed the medicine

Surgery

Duration of Surgery: depends on areas of treatment, average 1 to 3 hours
Anaesthesia: Local anaesthesia for small areas such as face and hand. General anaesthesia may be used for large areas such as breasts and buttocks.
When to Go Home after Surgery: Go home the same day
Back to Work: 3-7 days
Technique: Fat grafting involves a 3-staged process performed in a single session: fat harvesting, fat purification and fat placement.

1. Fat harvesting: A site is selected to harvest the fat (usually tummy or thighs). A small incision (around 3-5mm) is made to remove the fat with a cannula using liposuction technique.

2. Fat purification: The harvested fat is purified and prepared for transfer. Sedimentation, filtration, centrifugation or in combination of these is used for this purpose.

3. Fat placement: A small cannula is inserted into the area to be treated to place the fat. Each time the cannula is withdrawn, small parcels of fat are placed in targeted tissue plane. This process is repeated until the intended volume of fat is injected and desired results are obtained.


Recovery

• There may be some swelling or bruising during the first few days to a week
•  By the second week or third, most of the swelling should have subsided. Application of makeup can be used to camouflage any residual swelling or bruises.
•  After the swelling and bruises subside, part of the transferred fat may undergo partial reabsorption. Final results may only appear after 3 to 6 months

Note

A point to note is that part of the transferred fat will undergo partial reabsorption an. In many cases the remaining fat is enough to produce satisfactory results. However if the amount of fat that has been absorbed is large, then additional fat transfer may be required to replace the fat that has been absorbed in order to maintain the desired results. If a subsequent fat transfer is required, then the procedure is usually performed 6 months after the previous procedure.