How Fat can Rejuvenate Your Face

Thursday, February 28th, 2019

Historically, facial rejuvenation has required surgical lifting techniques. While procedures such as blepharoplasty eyelid rejuvenation continue to be popular, fewer people are undergoing full facelift procedures these days. Instead, they are choosing minimally invasive procedures that achieve subtle but beautiful results. Fat grafting is a prime example. We are pleased to offer this service in our Highlands office to help our patients feel better about their appearance as they age. Here, we discuss the various ways in which fat can be used to refresh the face.

What is Fat Grafting?

To understand how fat grafting can benefit your appearance, it helps to know the details of this process. It is the most natural and long lasting way to restore the fat that is lost over time and is responsible for much of the signs of aging. This cosmetic procedure may be performed in the office using local anesthesia to numb the area of the body from which fat will be harvested and the area where it will be injected. Depending on the amount of fat we need and the amount of body fat present, we may select the neck, abdomen, or thighs as a donor site. After the area has been numbed, a minor liposuction procedure is performed to obtain the necessary amount needed for injection. The tissue that is aspirated is processed to separate out the fat and stem cells from other tissue and blood. The prepared cells are then placed in a syringe and meticulously injected into the face to achieve the desired amount of contouring or wrinkle reduction.

Fat can rejuvenate the face by enhancing the following areas:

Cheeks

Rounded cheeks with higher cheekbones are an indicator of youthful beauty. With age, the bony structure may degrade. This exacerbates the natural loss of fat resulting flattening of the contours of the mid-face. The insertion of living fat cells across the mid-face restores height, projection, and triangularity to make the mid-face appear younger.

Forehead and Temples

Men and women over the age of 40 may struggle to pinpoint where their cosmetic frustration originates. This can be particularly relevant to the upper face, where the temples can hollow over time and the brow may drop below the bony ridge orbital rim ridge on which it once sat. Fat cells can be injected directly at the temple area to restore fullness to the outer area of the eyes. Injections can also be administered across the brow line to lift the brow without surgery.

Under Eyes

Non-surgical eyelid rejuvenation removing the hollows under the eyes has become one of the most common areas treated with a filler and can achieve outstanding results. Fat injections can achieve the same results but they last longer. Typically, fat is introduced to the area below the eye, not into the eyelid itself, unless absolutely necessary. When inserted into the tear trough it decreases the appearance of under-eye puffiness, and when into hollows it decreases dark circles.

Are You a Candidate?

Most healthy adults who do not have severe gravitational problems are good candidates for facial rejuvenation with fat injections. To learn more about this simple, in office procedure, schedule a consultation at our Highlands office by calling (828) 526-3783.