Why transfer fat to the face?

Fat obtained by liposuction can be grafted to the breasts, buttocks or anywhere in the body, but the commonest, and by far the most important area, is the face. But why the face?

Gravity was thought to be the major factor in facial ageing, with all soft facial tissue descending vertically as a result of thinning and sagging of retaining ligaments. In recent years, surgeons have now understood that the majority of the volume loss actually occurs at the bone and deep fat compartment level, which causes the ligaments loosen and the superficial layers to sag since the existing bony structures are no longer there to support them.

Fat is therefore an excellent volumizing resource to restore both structure and volume to the face. The ligaments face and skin in the mid face can be lifted back upwards, to rest on these restored structures.

Whilst fillers deliver a similar action in the early stages of ageing, such solutions are only temporary corrections given the dissolvable nature of dermal filler. By contrast the patients own fat is not only permanent, but it is often enriched with stem cells, meaning it can permanently replace volume and have regenerative effects on the overlying skin.

Some common treatment areas in the face include

+ Fat transfer to the cheek to restore volume lost by the resorption of bony and fat deposits with the passage of time, and restore the prominence of the cheek bone structure
+ Fat transfer under the eyebrows to lift both them and the upper eyelids, thus restoring the brow and opening the eye. This technique is now a standard adjunct to blepharoplasty (upper eyelid reduction)
+ Fat grafting of the ageing hollowness of the temple and adjacent forehead to restore that youthful shape.
+ Fat grafting to the pointed chin of older people to restore tissue loss and correct the shape

Fat grafting (fat transfer) of the face can be carried out as a procedure on its own or combined with other procedures on the face, such as face and neck lifting and blepharoplasty (upper and lower eyelid reduction). A useful thought is to consider fat grafting if you are having liposuction elsewhere since this fat can be usefully employed elsewhere in the body, and not simply thrown away.

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