Fat injections - fact injection surgery

Fat injection surgery is a procedure used to help reduce the appearance of acne scarring or wrinkles that have resulted from aging.  With the help of this technique, fat is removed from one part of the body and then moved to another part of the body in order to enhance certain features, to correct defects and to improve the contour of the area.  This is accomplished by replenishing the collagen layer in the skin and evening out the wrinkles.

Understanding Fat Injections

In order to perform a fat injection procedure, the surgeon must first remove fat from an area of the body referred to as the donor site.  The donor site is most commonly located at the thigh, the buttocks or the abdomen.  Removing fat from the donor site involves cleansing the area and then extracting the fat through liposuction.  The fat is then cleansed in saline before it is injected into the target site, which is most commonly the lips, the cheeks, the area around the mouth, the area around the cheeks or the area around the eyes.  The injection into the target site is typically performed with a syringe, though other methods may be used if necessary.

Fat injection procedures generally take about one and a half hours to complete.  Once the procedure is complete, the results may last for more than one year.  In some cases, however, the results may last for as little as three months. Therefore, it may be necessary to have the procedure repeated.

Risks Associated with Fat Injection Surgery

When undergoing any type of surgical procedure, there are certain risks involved.  Some of these include:

• Bleeding
• Blood clots
• Bruising
• Infection
• Negative reaction to anesthesia
• Scarring
• Swelling

Some of the potential complications that are specifically associated with receiving a fat injection include:

• Asymmetry in the area where the fat was injected, as the fat may appear uneven in some places
• Weight gain, which can occur in the area where the fat was injected because the fat cells continue to function in the same manner in their new location.

Although there are very few risks associated with fat injection surgery, it is still important to understand the risks before moving on with the procedure.  In addition, it is important to realize that multiple injections may be necessary before the desired results are reached, so patients must be prepared to make several visits to the surgeon before the entire process can be completed.