Lip and Cheek Augmentation with Fat Grafting

Serving Patients in Cleveland and Lyndhurst, OH

Fat grafting is a spinoff from liposuction. The procedure has been around for many years but has been popularized more recently by Dr. Coleman, a plastic surgeon in New York. Dr. Green uses Dr. Coleman’s techniques and instruments to do fat grafting and has excellent success in achieving a permanent “take” of fat grafts. Not all of the fat that is grafted survives but with careful technique enough fat can be induced to survive in its new environment so that one can add volume and fullness to deficient areas, borrowing from somewhere where there is an excess. Dr. Green prepares the fat graft for the face with a centrifuge,  to remove the extra fluid that is not wanted. The fat is injected with special blunt needles into the desired location. Very small amounts of fat are injected at a time to increase the chance of survival of the grafted fat. The technique can be used almost anywhere depending on the need.

This technique can be used on the face in a similar fashion to other injectable substances such as Collagen or Restylane with the advantage that the material is your own tissue and it lasts permanently. Also the fat can be injected at a deeper level than the synthetic injectable agents. Common usages include lip augmentation and cheek augmentation as well as obliteration of the nasolabial fold. Fat grafting on the face is often a very limited procedure and can be done under local anesthesia in the office, limiting the financial costs significantly. More extensive fat grafting would need to be done in a Surgery Center under general anesthesia.

Another area that is popular for fat grafting is the buttocks. (Also known as the Brazillian Butt Lift) This requires a larger volume of fat and is usually combined with significant liposuction of the abdomen or hips etc.. This is usually done under general anesthesia. The principles are the same and the fat is removed with liposuction and injected with blunt needles to minimize bleeding and to optimize the survival of the transferred fatty tissue.

Recovery from a fat grafting is usually simple and rapid although there may be some swelling immediately after the procedure. The swelling generally does not last long.