Toronto Facial Fat Grafting (Face Fat Transfer)

What is The Cost of a Facial Fat Grafting?

Facial fat grafting surgery performed by The Toronto Plastic Surgeons starts at $7,999. Depending on the number of areas to harvest from and treat, the procedure can be more costly.

How Long Does it Take to Recover From a Facial Fat Grafting?

The facial fat grafting recovery procedure can take between 10-21 days.

How Long Does a Facial Fat Grafting Take?

Facial fat grafting takes approximately 1.5 hours.

What is Facial Fat Grafting?

Micro fat transplantation or facial fat grafting is an injection procedure that takes harvested fat cells from one area of the body, which has excess fat. Before transplantation, the fat cells are prepared through centrifugation, separating the fat cells and the stem cells from unwanted elements, such as blood serum and local anesthesia.

Facial fat grafting helps restore lost volume and shape and can diminish wrinkles and depressions in the skin. It is a good option for contouring, shaping, and plumping up problem areas on the face such as the cheeks and lips.

Micro fat transfer can also be administered to fill hollows around the eyes, temples, cheeks, and to contour the jawline.

Am I a Good Candidate for Facial Fat Grafting?

Individuals who wish to add volume to their face and have excess fat in other areas are ideal candidates for face fat grafting. These patients ideally have skin indentations, deep wrinkles, grooves, folds, or areas of soft tissue depressions. Someone who desires to enhance their lips is an ideal candidate, as well.

Facial Fat Grafting Benefits

Shape and contour lost facial volume

Restoring volume in your cheeks and filling hollow areas under your eyes is attainable with facial fat grafting. Not only can it reshape areas such as your chin, but it will also leave you with a youthful and incredibly natural look.

Reduce wrinkles and dullness in the skin

As we age, collagen and elastin begin to break down, creating fine lines and deep wrinkles and laxity in the face. With facial fat grafting, you can revitalize the youthful plumpness without the need for invasive surgery! 

Enlarge and enhance lips

Fat grafting is an excellent, long-lasting alternative to dermal fillers. Roughly 50% of the fat injected into your lips will survive, creating permanent, beautiful lips that will age naturally.

Reduce fat in other areas

When harvesting the fat, the Toronto Plastic Surgeons utilize liposuction techniques in areas with troublesome fat pockets such as the lower abdomen.

Facial Fat Grafting Risks and Complications?

As with any procedure, facial fat grafting has risks, although very rare. The best thing to do is to select a trusted, experienced surgeon to minimize the likelihood of complications. The team at the Toronto Plastic Surgeons has years of experience performing Facial fat grafting. Significant complications are uncommon and, in the rare event they occur, are expertly managed.

• Bleeding or bruising at the injection site: In rare cases, the procedure may result in bruising that can last several days. Any discomfort can be significantly diminished using prescribed medication.
• Irregularities in the surface, contours, or firmness of the skin: In cases where patients do not obtain the results they were looking for, a follow-up procedure can be scheduled to ensure adequate facial contour.
• Damage to blood vessels (infrequent): The best way to avoid or minimize complications is to choose a face grafting surgeon with years of experience performing facial fat grafting.
• Less survival than hoped for: Toronto Plastic Surgeons have a high degree of success in facial fat grafting. In most areas of the face, between 30% and 60% of the facial fat grafts will survive.

Facial fat grafting generally is not performed on those patients with medical illnesses, suppressed immune systems or who frequently take blood-thinners. Speak with Dr. Bell, or members of their team, for additional information on whether Facial fat grafting would be right for you.

Why The Toronto Plastic Surgeons?

The Toronto Plastic Surgeons state-of-the-art facility is home to Dr, Bell, one of the best facial cosmetic plastic surgery experts in the world, who ensure all facial fat grafting procedures have the best results. From pre-consultation to post-op care, our team will ensure all steps of the process are seamless, customizing the results to reflect your unique aesthetic.

Fat Grafting for Men in Toronto

Fat grafting refers to an injection procedure that transplants fat from one area of the body to another area that the patient would like to fill out and volumize. 

Typically, the procedure is performed in the face, as an optimal way to fill out the shape and contour of a patient’s facial features. Facial fat grafting is very popular amongst those who want to restore the lost volume and shape of a youthful face. In the face, fat grafting can be used for various purposes, from intensifying the plumpness of the lips to repairing skin indentations. Also, facial fat grafting is commonly used to reduce wrinkles and fill out hollows around the eyes, temples, cheeks, and jawlines.

Fat grafting boasts a number of advantages. For one, it is incredibly cost-efficient, as pricing generally starts at $6,999. It can create contour improvements in the donor sites as well as volume improvements in the recipient site. In addition, given the scope and extent of the surgery, it is almost surprising that the procedure boasts a short recovery period of only 10-21 days. Finally, unlike dermal fillers, the results of a fat grafting procedure are permanent.

The outcome of a fat grafting procedure is similar for both men and women. However, there can be differences with regards to where the donor fat is harvested. With women, fat is typically harvested from the hip, outer thigh, or abdomen with the benefit of a slimmer silhouette. For men, fat is usually harvested from the “love handle” or “spare tire” areas. Also, the procedure usually has different goals for men and women; whereas women might undergo a fat grafting procedure to enhance their feminine attributes, men tend to use the procedure to add definition to their already-masculine shape.

With respect to a fat grafting procedure, the Toronto Plastic Surgeons utilize a minimally-invasive approach to reduce the risk of complications. Book a consultation today and find out why the Toronto Plastic Surgeons is the place to go for all your fat grafting needs!

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Facial Fat Grafting Alternatives

The best non-invasive alternative to facial fat grafting is facial shaping using “off-the-shape” sugar gel, HA gel, Juvederm, Revanesse, Restylane or Teosyal. The advantage of using these Dermal Soft tissue fillers is that there is no donor site, less facial swelling and bruising and the effects are immediate. The disadvantage of gel dermal fillers for facial shaping is they last about 9-14 months, whereas, facial fat grafting, if the fat cells “take” and survive, can last for years.

How is Facial Fat Grafting Performed?

A small needle is used to harvest fat graft material. Once the harvest is completed, the fat grafts are then prepared. The preparation process includes centrifugation and separation of the fat cells and the stem cells (also found in the fat tissue) from unwanted elements, such as blood serum and local anesthesia.

Once the local anesthetic is administered, the fat grafts are expertly placed using a multiple-level, blunt microcannula technique pioneered by Toronto Plastic Surgeons founder Dr. Mulholland, and is performed by Dr. Bell. The typical survival of fat grafting volume is 50-70% of the fat grafts injected.

Preparing for Facial Fat Grafting

The facial fat grafting procedure begins with a consultation with the Toronto Plastic Surgeons team, where the trouble areas are discussed and examined. Dr. Bell will recommend the areas of the face that will benefit from facial fat grafting and fat facial transplantation, walking you through the entire procedure and post-op care.

What to Expect Post Facial Fat Grafting Surgery

After a micro fat transfer, patients will experience some bruising and swelling for 10-21 days. If the procedure was to rectify the loss of facial fat volume, patients who show good improvement following the treatment may require another session or multiple sessions every 3-5 years.

As patients age, they will lose their non-grafted facial fat as well as the grafted facial fat. Repeat procedures every few years may be required.

Facial Fat Grafting Recovery

Day 1: When you return home, we ask that you leave any surgical dressing on. You may use ice or cold compresses for any bruising or swelling that occurs.

Day 2-3: You may experience slight aches. This will be the height of any bruising and swelling.

Day 4: Remove any remaining dressing and take a shower. Clean the area with hydrogen peroxide followed by an antibiotic ointment. Repeat 2 to 3 times per day.

Day 21:  A follow-up appointment with Toronto Plastic Surgeons.

6 Months: Final facial volume is achieved.

Facial Fat Grafting FAQ

Is Getting a Facial Fat Grafting Painful?

The injection of fat is not painful at all, and you’ll need minimal local anesthesia or simple analgesia afterward. Harvesting the fat, customarily from the stomach or thighs, will require local anesthesia. If you are worried about the pain, you can always have sedation or a general anesthetic.

How Long Will The Results Last?

During facial fat grafting, extra fat will be injected to counterbalance cells that will not survive the transfer and will be reabsorbed by the body. After about six months, the fat that remains should be permanent, providing you with long-lasting youthful plumpness.

Should I get a Facelift, Implants or Facial Fat Grafting?

There are different candidacy requirements for each procedure to restore facial volume, which will be assessed during your consultation. Facial fat transfer patients must have adequate fat to harvest and should be at a stable weight before undergoing treatment. Fillers are very low risk, and the candidacy requirements for these treatments are not very demanding. The advantages of a facelift are invisible scars and a beautiful, natural restoration of an oval appearance to the midface and cheek.