FACIAL GRAFTING

WHY CHOOSE FAT GRAFTING?

As you age, your face can change dramatically. Unfortunately, facial aging means more than wrinkles and dark spots but also the loss of elasticity in the skin which can cause parts of your face to look hollow and empty. This depletion of volume can contribute to an older and more tired appearance. If you have started to see hollow spaces under your eyes and cheeks, sunken facial features, wrinkles, marionette lines, thinning lips and/or smile lines, then fat grafting may be a good procedure for you.

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TRANSFERRING FAT TO THE EYES

The majority of our patients notice a dramatic increase in how their eyes look. This improved appearance is often accompanied by a feeling of tightness in upper or lower eyelid skin that may last a few weeks or months. Bags and bulges are significantly reduced. Patient may sometimes experience slight corrections in their eyesight, or regain some of their lost peripheral vision after removing excess skin that fully or partially covered the eye. 

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Those who have sunken hollows underneath their eyes can benefit by having a fat transfer procedure in conjunction with a chemical peel. This combination will provide more youthful contours from the cheek area to the eyelashes. In most cases, a loss in volume is also accompanied by cheek tissues that gravitate away from the outer rim of the orbital or cheek bone. For the past 10 years or so, fat transfer procedures to plump under eye hollows has been all the rage, and may provide exceptional results when combined with a mid-face lift or chemical peel.

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BENEFITS OF FAT GRAFTING

• All natural

• Minimally invasive

• Long-lasting results

• Quick and easy recovery

 

WHO IS A GOOD CANDIDATE FOR FAT GRAFTING?

If you want to gain a more youthful facial appearance and fill in areas of your face that have lost volume, you may be a candidate for fat grafting. To ensure you are a good candidate for this procedure, Dr. English will ask you to complete a health questionnaire and will also ask you about any medications you are taking. If you are interested in facial liposuction or any other facial surgery procedures, it is important to be in good overall health, refrain from smoking and avoid excessive sun exposure before and after your surgery. Dr. English will require pre-operative blood work.

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HOW IS FAT GRAFTING PERFORMED?

At English Plastic and Cosmetic Surgery Center, fat grafting surgery is typically carried out under light anesthesia and is performed at our accredited surgical facility. Fat grafting involves removing fat from a donor area such as the thighs, abdomen and/or buttocks and injecting that fat into targeted areas of the face. Only tiny amounts of fat are removed, so it is important to not equate fat grafting with liposuction. Before the donor fat is injected, it is gently hand-harvested and put through a purification process. Grafted fat has a richer blood supply for survival, so the results are smoother and long-lasting.

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WHAT IS THE RECOVERY TIME FOR FAT GRAFTING?

Once your fat transfer is complete, you may have some slight swelling or bruising in the treated areas of the face as well as at the donor site. The swelling typically only lasts three to five days. You can expect to return to work and your normal daily activities within a couple days of your fat transfer procedure.