Fat Transfer in Ludhiana & Chandigarh, Punjab

Fat Transfer is a safer and a more 'natural' process of augmenting and enhancing the body features. Following are few inherent advantages of fat transfer:

No Chances of Allergy

Since autologous fat (from your own body) is used as opposed to artificial dermal fillers, chances are that the infection will not be there as similar tissues and skin is used as fillers. This ensures that the chances of infection are very low.

Long Lasting Results

The results of fat transfer are natural looking, long lasting and more permanent. This is a much safer method than the conventional modes of augmentation. 65% of injected fat is reabsorbed into the body within a few months of fat transfer while the rest 35% lasts for years.

Non-Invasive

This intervention is non-invasive for achieving facial rejuvenation. Hence this versatile intervention is gaining popularity in case of face augmentation.

Safer than Conventional and Modern Methods

The traditional methods using bovine fillers and modern methods using hyaluronic acid still carry a chance of infection or reaction in some patients. With this natural fat transfer method the patients can be assured of no or very mild reaction or allergies.

Toning of the Donor part

The donor site is the one which has excess fat and it, therefore, gets relatively toned in the process of extracting fat from it.

Cost Effective

Many patients feel that fat transfer combined with any other procedure like BOTOX or liposuction is much more cost effective than any of these procedures alone.

Fat transfer is usually a safe and non-allergic procedure with very rare and minimal side effects. Minor risks or side effects that are possible are as follows:

• Soreness and swelling may persist for a couple of days in some cases.
• The face or lips of the patient may reabsorb all or most the fat injected in rarest of cases.
• Allergic reaction to anesthesia may be accompanied.
• The process may be time consuming to prepare fat before injecting it.
• Multiple sessions may be needed to get the desired breast or buttock size.

This is an outpatient surgery. The patients need not stay overnight in the hospital. This versatile surgery may take from a couple of minutes to as much as 3 hours depending on the intensity of the procedure. A small surgery may take an hour while a larger procedure like buttock augmentation may take around 4 hours.

The process of fat transfer involves minimal scarring. The scars are fairly small and discreet. The cannulas are used to inject fat and leave almost visible scars.

There are various body parts which can get the desired shape or contour with fat transfer:

Facial Fat Transfer

Facial creases like laugh lines, smile lines, crow’s feet, acne scars, sunken cheeks or lips canbe repaired and filled with fat transfer. Fat can be removed from abdomen, thighs or any other areas and injected into the face. The cosmetic surgeon grafts this extracted fat to repair any indentations and minimize forehead wrinkles.

Buttock Augmentation

For a full, rounded buttock, autologous fat can be injected into the area to give it a more firm shape. This is a safer procedure for buttock augmentation.

Hand Rejuvenation

To add volume, rejuvenate wrinkled areas, and cover the skeleton vessels and tendons or to improve the skin quality, fat grafting is a useful procedure.

Breast Implants

Instead of artificial fillers, fat grafting is a more natural process to enhance the breast shape. Even after conventional breast implant, if any irregularity is left, fat grafting can help rectify the irregularity or asymmetry after the breast implant.

Breast Augmentation

For natural looking enhanced breasts, breast augmentation can be done using autologous fat and give the desired volume. If the breast is in good shape and volume needs to be added, fat grafting is the best procedure.

Fat transfer is a relatively safer option for transferring accumulated fat to the desired spot. It can be a process of one sitting or a series of multiple sittings. This is a three-stage process:

Harvesting

This stage aims at fat extraction. With local anesthesia the surgeon will extract the fat with a small incision from the selected spot using a cannula. The cannula is connected to a sterile syringe which extracts fat carefully.

Purification

The surgeon has to process and purify the fat cells for transfer to syringes so that they can be injected. Centrifuge procedure helps to spin the fat and the filtration process helps to remove impurities. This helps in the filtration and purification process.

Placement

The surgeon then inserts the cannula into desired spot with an incision. The needle is inserted several times injecting fat until the desired volume is achieved. The grafted area is bandaged or dressed.

These three stages ensure full safety and sterility making the process risk-free. The patient gets the desired volumes with the most natural-looking results.

The surgeon and his team will give you the directions and precautions after the surgery. The site from where the fat has been extracted and the site which has been enhanced have to be taken care of. Recovery from fat injections varies from patient to patient. Following are few noteworthy points:

• Mild bruises and swelling will last for one to two weeks.
• You may resume work within a fortnight.
• The effect of surgical fat transfer takes usually six months to show final results and effectiveness.
• Do not smoke for at least two weeks prior to the surgery and three weeks after the surgery. Smoking or chewing tobacco can delay the recovery process by inhibiting blood circulation.
• Prohibit taking any anti-inflammatory tablets two weeks before and two weeks after the surgery without notifying the surgeon.
• Follow the prescription and intake of antibiotics judiciously.
• The surgeon may recommend cool, clean compresses or ice packs in case of face surgery.
• Avoid vigorous exercise for minimum three weeks after the surgery.

The recovery isn't a long or complicated process. You have to abide by the dos and don’ts prescribed by the surgeon.

For the fat grafting to be successful, the surgeon should be highly experienced and skilled and should have full knowledge of the technique. Following are the parameters which will help you judge the best cosmetic surgeon:

Education and Credentials

The surgeon should be well-educated and qualified in the field. Apart from the basic education the surgeon should be a member of reputed society of plastic surgeons like ASPS (American Society of Plastic Surgeons). This will assure that the doctor is highly trained and qualified as he is board certified.

Experience

The number of years of experience and the successful number of cases of cosmetic surgeries performed is a measure of how well qualified the surgeon is. The more the number of cosmetic surgeries performed, higher would be the acumen and precision in the field.

Testimonials

Testimonials and word-of-mouth plays a very crucial role in forming an opinion. Meeting the previous clients who had similar interventions and their experience with the surgeon and the clinic go a long way in helping you choose the ideal surgeon.

The surgeon's Approach

The initial comfort, surgeon's approach and the attitude are very important in aesthetic surgeries. If the surgeon is empathetic and understands the requirement of the patient well, the patient is satisfied. A well maintained and hygienic clinic along with a friendly and cooperative staff is what a patient needs.

Comparison of Before and After Pictures

The surgeon should be able to show before and after pictures of previous patients to be able to draw references. Also an estimated ‘after’ picture can be stipulated to give an idea to the patient as to how the surgery will look like.

Fat transfer aims at accomplishing spot fat reduction in specific areas which have stubborn fat. This stubborn fat doesn’t usually budge with exercise and diet. However, fat transfer does not aim at weight reduction. The basic goal is body contouring.

Fat transfer targets the specific spots and is considered permanent. Some of the fat that is injected is absorbed by the body. So the final result can be obtained within a span of 6 months which shows what proportion of the fat is not resolved by the body.

The survival of the fat and longevity is contingent on the surgeon's skills, the precision in harvesting and purification process and the area where the fat is placed. When successfully done, the injected fat starts receiving blood supply and the required nourishment appropriately from the body, the results of the surgery are then permanent.

The costs vary from the procedure requisite and the reputation of the surgeon. The costs include initial consultation (which is usually free), the main surgical procedure and the post-discharge care costs.

You may compare the costs of your surgeon with few other fellow surgeons to understand the differences.

The grafted cells can expand when the patient gains weight causing expansion in the treated areas. It is advisable that the patient is careful in not gaining or losing too much weight after the surgical intervention.