- A fat transfer breast augmentation procedure uses the body’s own fat to augment and rejuvenate the breasts
- The best candidates are women who want natural-looking breasts and an increase in breast size by one cup or less
- Using a patient’s own body fat is considered to be safe as this does not trigger an immune response or cause significant reactions
- Results can be permanent, but injected fat can react to weight fluctuations and negatively impact results
Fat transfer, or fat grafting breast augmentation, is a cosmetic surgery that increases breast size and enhances breast shape. This procedure withdraws the patient’s fat tissue through liposuction and then reinjects it into their breasts.
Traditional breast augmentation procedures typically use breast inserts, which carries a risk of implant rejection. Fat transfer breast augmentation avoids this risk by using the patient’s own fat tissue.
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What Is Fat Transfer Breast Augmentation?
Fat transfer breast augmentation is a surgical procedure that uses liposuction to extract fat from an area of the body such as the thighs, abdomen, buttocks or back. The surgeon then performs the breast augmentation by injecting the fat into the breasts.
As only a small amount of fat is used, results are natural-looking. This procedure is ideal for those who only want a slight increase in volume and shape.
Is Fat Transfer Breast Augmentation Safe?
Fat transfer breast augmentation is considered overall minimally invasive and safe.
Fat is a readily available tissue that does not trigger an immune response, has little to no risk of rejection and doesn’t cause significant donor site morbidity when harvested. Therefore, using your own fat in a breast augmentation is the safest and most natural filling material.
In addition, there is less risk for allergic reactions or other complications that are associated with breast implants; however, there is a risk of fat embolism with fat grafts.
Ideal Candidate
Consider the following to ensure you are an ideal candidate for this surgery:
- You’re looking for natural-looking results that will enhance your breast shape, symmetry and volume: If you’re unhappy with the appearance of your breasts due to mild-to-moderate volume loss from pregnancy, aging or weight loss and are looking for natural restoration
- You’re in good physical shape and overall health: It’s important to be physically fit with no underlying health conditions as this lowers the risk of complications; consult your surgeon to ensure you are eligible
- You want a procedure that will enlarge your breasts by only one cup size or less: Fat transfer breast augmentation does not provide a dramatic change to breast size
- You have areas of the body that have excess body fat: Fat transfer breast augmentation requires liposuction
Pros and Cons of Fat Transfer Breast Augmentation
In order to determine if fat transfer breast augmentation is right for you, it’s essential to consider the pros and cons of this surgery.
Pros
- This procedure uses your own body fat which is the safest, natural filling material for breast augmentation compared to other breast augmentation options; this also means a low to no risk for allergic reactions
- Using your own fat tissue results in breasts that will look and feel natural
- Recovery time is usually less than breast augmentations that use implants
- There are virtually no scars from fat injections
- There are no risks of complications associated with breast implants including rippling, long-term breast thinning and implant ruptures
- You’ll have the benefit of removing unwanted fat from your body
- No necessary maintenance as compared to breast implants
Cons
- Patients who want a significant increase in breast size will not achieve their desired results with fat transferring
- Optional touch-up injections may be required to retain your improved shape as there is a risk of fat loss over time
- Liposuction causes minimal but visible scarring; there may be some donor site contour irregularity depending upon the quality of the donor site tissue
- Fat transferring could cause calcification in the breast, interfering with breast cancer screenings
- The cost of fat transfer is typically higher than a traditional breast augmentation that uses implants
- Rare cases of fat embolism can occur
How Much Fat Transfer Breast Augmentation Cost?
The cost of fat transfer breast augmentation at Advanced Cosmetic Surgery depends on multiple factors. Each patient is different and the price can vary depending on their specific needs. The cost of surgery will generally include anesthesia, the surgeon’s fee, any necessary pre and postoperative appointments with providers, compression garments, scar gels and vitamins. If you’re interested in learning more about our pricing, don’t hesitate to contact us.
Preparing for Surgery
Fat transfer breast augmentation is considered a major surgery and therefore requires preparation before the day of operation. Your surgeon may request your bloodwork be done before your appointment so they can ensure all your levels are optimal.
You will need to avoid consuming the following for two weeks before your surgery:
- Alcohol
- Nicotine
- Aspirin and ibuprofen
- Herbal supplements
The Night Before Surgery
You will need to fast for 12 hours beginning the evening before your surgery, and follow any specific instructions that your surgeon will provide for you to prepare for the following morning.
Recovery
Once your surgery is completed, a compression garment or elastic bandages will be applied to cover the treatment areas. These are used to compress the skin to your new body contours and control swelling.
The majority of patients complete their fat transfer in outpatient facilities; you’ll be able to return home the same day, usually within 1–2 hours post operation.
Most patients are typically ready to return to work and daily activities within a few days; however, experiences vary. Swelling of injection and liposuction insertion areas will subside in about 3–6 weeks.
Your surgeon will provide you with specific instructions that may include caring for the surgical site, medications to help manage your pain, particular concerns to watch out for and when to follow up with your surgeon.
Do Results Last?
After recovery, the results can last for years post surgery. However, the dilemma with grafting fat tissue is the fat loss and unpredictable resorption. Patients may need multiple injections to keep desirable results in the event the fat reabsorbs.
In addition, the transferred fat cells that survive respond to weight fluctuations; they will expand with weight gain and shrink with weight loss. If you lose a certain amount of weight, you could also lose your results.
Risks
Although this procedure is considered safe and has a high success rate, studies have shown there are still risks involved. As well, this procedure may require the patient to be under anesthesia, which adds another level of risk.
Some complications connected to fat transfer breast augmentation surgeries include:
- Fat necrosis, which is defined as the death of fat cells. This risk is the highest among fat transfer patients and occurs due to a lack of oxygenated blood to the transferred fat cells during the transfer process, causing the cells to die. These dying fat cells pose a hazard because they can form cysts, lumps and bubbles in breast tissue
- Infection in the incision area can occur, even though there is a relatively low risk
- Fat embolism, although rare, occurs when the injected fat enters the bloodstream or causes changes to blood pressure and oxygenation, compromising safety if severe enough
Takeaway
Fat transfer breast augmentation is an ideal route you can take to obtain the improvements you want. Fat grafts can typically help you achieve natural-looking results with less recovery time than traditional breast augmentation surgery.
If you think fat transfer breast augmentation surgery is right for you, phone us at 864-252-4090 or contact us to book a free consultation session with a highly renowned surgeon.
