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A safe, beautiful and more natural way to boost facial volume and contours. Youthful faces are often characterized with full and healthy-looking volume and contours. Unfortunately time can take away our natural vibrance and volume. Facial fat transfer surgery at Illuminate Plastic Surgery helps to restore your volume, while artfully contouring the face back to youth. It’s a two-in-one procedure that removes unwanted fat from another part of your body and uses that fat to create volume in your face.
1 Hour
7-10 Days
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Outpatient
Facial fat grafting is a longer lasting alternative to other types of dermal fillers. Not only can this procedure aid in wrinkle reduction, it also improves the contours of your face. During fat transfer surgery, unwanted fat from one area of your body is harvested using liposuction and then cleansed, processed and injected into volume-deficient areas of the face. This procedure can be performed alone, or during other facial rejuvenating surgeries and body surgeries. To learn more and experience this treatment for yourself, schedule your appointment today.
Using what you have to restore youthful features. A facial fat transfer in San Jose or Palo Alto is essentially two surgeries in one, combining liposuction to remove the fat where it is unwanted and then relocate these stem-cell-rich fat cells under the skin for enhanced volume and definition. As the first step of facial fat transfer Palo Alto & San Jose plastic surgeons Dr. David Boudreault and Dr. Brittany Leader offer a consultation to address your specific goals and determine the best course to achieve safe, satisfying and long-lasting results. Surgery begins with liposuction of excess fat from areas of the body known for accumulating excess adipose tissue, and follows with strategic and artful injection into the face for a natural facial augmentation. The entire process takes about 1-2 hours. The results are considered permanent by about six months.
At Illuminate in San Jose or Palo Alto facial fat transfer is an excellent choice for those interested in correcting deep folds or sunken areas on the face. The injections of fat can smooth irregularities and improve the quality of your overlying skin, as well as enhance volume in the lips, cheeks, and chin. It can even contour the cheekbones, jawline, and temples.
You are a great candidate for this procedure if you are an adult who is generally in good health. The main criteria includes a desire for enhanced facial volume, and available body fat at donor sites.
While fat transfer surgery is mostly safe, it nevertheless requires advanced surgical skills and an eye for artistry. Drs. David Boudreault and Brittany Leader take the time to set expectations and design a procedure that will give you the best results.
The Illuminate team will carefully review your medical history and involve you in the surgery planning process. For a period of time before and after your surgery, you will be instructed to suspend the use of any supplements or medications (such as aspirin) that may elevate bleeding and bruising. During your pre-operative appointment, our surgeons will also give you specific instructions to maximize your body’s ability to recuperate.
Facial fat transfers are performed by Dr. Boudreault and Dr. Leader at our AAAASF accredited surgery centers in Palo Alto and San Jose. The treatment is typically performed under general anesthesia. Your doctor uses liposuction to collect the fat from your abdomen, thighs, or other areas of unwanted fat. The collected fat will then be processed by centrifuging and filtering to result in purified liquid fat. Once ready, this pure liquid fatty tissue will be aesthetically injected into the areas of your face where more fullness is desired. This is done through multiple small injections to ensure even distribution and proper integration with your facial tissue. This entire process will take one to two hours to complete.
Patients will report feeling sore after treatment, but this can easily be managed by over-the-counter pain medication. Additionally, you may experience bruising and swelling, which will diminish after a few days to weeks. You may resume light activity the day after the procedure, but it is important to avoid strenuous activity until your face fully heals. Social activities can resume after about one week.
It will take some time for your face to fully heal from the procedure. Initially, your face will appear swollen and puffy, but this will begin to diminish after the fifth day post-op. Swelling will gradually subside over a few weeks. Minor residual swelling is not uncommon. However, you can expect complete results and your natural-looking, rejuvenated appearance to shine through by about six months.
Acclaimed San Jose & Palo Alto plastic surgeons Drs. David Boudreault and Brittany Leader are genuine experts in facial fat transfer and use only the most innovative techniques and technologies. They’ll listen to you and present a plan that offers optimal results. Schedule a consultation today to learn more about this incredibly natural way to improve your look and experience greater self-confidence.
While uncommon with facial fat grafting, all surgeries carry risks, including but not limited to:
Facial fat transfer surgery is an excellent option for individuals who have lost facial volume. Because it uses your body’s own tissue to boost volume, it is often a better and safer choice than other types of facial fillers. It also delivers permanent results.
Major swelling will subside within 2-3 weeks, but any minor residual swelling will continue to go down over a few more months. After about six months, the transfer should be fully settled and you can look forward to loving your new look!
Once the fat has settled in its final form, the results from fat grafting are considered permanent. Although a facial fat transfer cannot stop the aging process, it can certainly turn back the hands of time of the telltale signs.
That’s what we’re here for! By trusting Drs. David Boudreault and Brittany Leader and because you are using your own body fat to restore volume, you can have peace of mind that your results will be very natural-looking and in line with your desired goals.
In some cases, facial fat transfer surgery can also be a more natural-looking alternative to dermal fillers to soften the appearance of eyebags or sunken eyes. Upon consultation, we can help you to determine if you are a good candidate.
Since facial fat transfer surgery is classified as a cosmetic procedure, your insurance will not cover the cost.
The average cost of a Palo Alto or San Jose facial fat transfer is $6,000-$7,000. Your amount however depends on the amount of fat that is harvested and transferred. Estimates include all fees, such as anesthesia, facility fees, and any follow-up appointments. If you would like to spread the payments into smaller monthly increments over time, we are happy to offer flexible payment plans through CareCredit and Alphaeon. Many of our patients will choose to apply for credit cards with longer terms at 0% interest, so they can enjoy their results without costs upfront.
At Illuminate we’re with you during every step of your journey toward greater self-confidence. Schedule a consultation with us today and let Illuminate’s expert team listen to your concerns and guide you through treatments and procedures to help you reach your individual goals. We look forward to seeing you and celebrating your renewed appearance and realized potential.
