Facial lipofilling

Facial lipofilling/ fat grafting +/- Nano fat

Facial lipofilling or fat grafting is a procedure, which aims to improve your facial volume and contour including the volume of your lips if need be.

To undergo this procedure is a very personal decision; make sure this is what YOU want and not what someone else in encouraging you to have done!!  You would most likely benefit from facial lipofilling if you were unhappy with the loss of volume or asymmetry of your facial features. Alternatively you may have always less prominent facial fat and would like to have more pronounced facial features. This procedure is also suitable for augmenting your lips or smoothening deeper folds and wrinkles. It is also considered a safer option than hyaluronic acid for tear trough deformity correction. Please be aware that one procedure may not be adequate and a second or even a third procedure may be necessary to achieve the result you want.

Nano fat grafting follows a similar principle but varies in that it aims to improve skin quality rather than add volume. It can be particularly helpful in hard to treat areas such as dark circles around the eyes or smokers lines.

Apart from a detailed medical history, your facial features and skin quality will also be taken into consideration. You will also be evaluated for potential fat harvesting sites. This could be your tummy, thighs or anywhere that you feel is hard to shift.

During the consultation advantages and limitations of facial fat grafting /lipofilling will be discussed. It is important that you understand all aspects of your planned procedure and if unsure make sure to ask questions.

The procedure can be usually carried out under local anaesthesia depending on the extent of lipofilling required. Initially fat is harvested –liposuction- with the help of specially designed harvesting cannulas and processed, ready for grafting. The collected processed fat is then finely grafted using another specially designed cannula by means of serial injections into your facial fatty tissue to achieve a more harmonious facial contour. This step is limited by the amount of existing fatty pads. Over time some loss of variable amount of transferred fat is expected. This may be any where between 20-40%.

For the sake of improving skin quality in certain areas your surgeon may also opt to treat you with Nano fat as well. This is the term used to imply serial superficial, skin deep, injections of a fluid comprised of broken down fat cells. It can be considered as a kind of mesotherapy using your own wholesomeness!

Apart from possible risks associated with local/ general anaesthesia, as with any surgery there is always a risk of bleeding, asymmetry as well as infection. More particularly you may experience a degree of fat reabsorption hence the possible need for a repeat fat grafting but you should know that what remains of the grafted fat will remain for good.  Although very rare due to the nature of this procedure you should also be aware of the risk of DVT and pulmonary embolism, particularly fat embolism.

You may leave the hospital after a few hours of recovery following lipofilling if you have had the procedure done under local anaesthesia. Otherwise you will be discharged the following day. Your face will be slightly swollen and will remain so for the first 2-3 weeks, the swelling subsiding gradually. This DOES NOT mean that the fat has reabsorbed, although in majority a certain degree of resorption is also expected.  Pain and discomfort is typically associated with the body region having undergone liposuction. Your surgeon will prescribe painkillers and any other medication deemed necessary for you. The compression garment provided will have to be worn for 4-6 weeks. During the first two weeks you should avoid strenuous activity. Sutures are removed after a week. Following surgery you are expected to return to us for follow up visits after a week and then again at 3 months.