Facial & Body Fat Grafting Los Angeles, Torrance, South Bay California How does the face and body age? One of the telltale signs of aging is the loss of fullness in the face and the body. As we age, our facial structures and body seem to droop which inevitably creates a flattened appearance. This produces droopy skin and fat. Understanding this concept helps surgeons address the body and face much more effectively. What can be achieved with Facial & Body Fat Grafting and who is a good candidate? Fat grafting can benefit anyone who is noticing aging changes in their body or face. Because it is a minimally invasive procedure, most every person is a good candidate. Additionally, we all have some small areas of excess fat that we would like to trim down. Aging causes the human body to lose volume under the skin. As you lose this subcutaneous (under skin) support, your skin begins to sag as there is no foundation for it to be nice and tight anymore. The vast majority of soft tissue underneath skin is fat, therefore it is logical to rejuvenate your face and body by replacing the fat lost. Fat grafting has been performed safely for centuries. Modern technology has allowed us to be even more precise with where we can redistribute the fat for a patient. Anywhere from the eyelids, cheeks, temple region, lips, jawline, onto the entire body (ie/ gluteal, butt augmentation) are good areas for fat grafting. Additionally, because we are using your own body's fat to supplement, there will be no reaction from a "foreign" substance that sometimes can be associated with artificial implants (from fillers to saline/silicone implants). Therefore fat can last much longer in the body and face without the side effects or complications from other types of implants. It is quite often that grafted fat can last for decades as opposed to other types of volume enhancing fillers which sometimes only last a few months. Fat grafting can significantly reduce wrinkles, sagging skin or a depressed appearance on the face or body giving a much more youthful appearance. What procedures may be combined with Facial & Body Fat Grafting? During your consultation, Dr. Liu will assess the loss of volume and downward descent of your face and body. He will also evaluate the skin/fat you may have to determine whether any additional suggestions can be made to fully enhance the areas of concern. Dr. Liu is very careful about maintaining the balance of your features as to not over-accentuate one feature over the other. Natural beauty is ensuring a proportional balance in one's facial and body features and shape. Many patients elect to have SmartLipoTM or liposuction in concurrence with the facial & body fat grafting as we are already harvesting fat out of a particular area of the body. It would not be much more of a procedure to have the residual excess from the harvest area removed as well. What type of anesthesia is used for this procedure? The surgery is performed under light sedation with local anesthesia and takes about 1-2 hours to perform. It is a relatively shorter surgery without need for general anesthesia (unless combined with other procedures such as a facelift). What is the recovery like? Most patients experience minimal discomfort after the procedure. Discoloration is minimal. Majority of the swelling will generally improve over 5-7 days, but it will take several weeks for all the swelling to resolve. Most individuals will be able to return to work and social activities within 7 days although some swelling will still be present. Why should you choose Dr. Alex Liu? Although many (plastic, dermatological, cosmetic, oral-maxillary, otolaryngologist) surgeons today perform surgery, very few actually limit their practice to specialize in just cosmetic surgery. Dr. Liu limits 100% of his surgery to focus on cosmetic procedures of the face and body. This is why Dr. Liu was voted (Daily Breeze, BestofLA) as the TOP cosmetic surgeon. Dr. Liu has a global patient base, attracting patients from all over the country and internationally. Dr. Liu specializes in only a few select procedures where he is considered an expert in. Therefore you will have the confidence of knowing that his expertise is as specialized as one can be for your procedure. I am interested! What do I do next? If you are considering this procedure we encourage you to schedule a consultation with Dr. Liu. During this visit he will listen to your concerns and discuss your options. He will tell you whether you are a suitable candidate for this procedure and inform you of the potential risks of the procedure. There is a great variety patients' faces and bodies and each procedure must be custom tailored for the patient to get the best possible result. As this procedure can change a person's appearance, it is important to be properly evaluated to make sure that a person's features still stay balanced and symmetric to their face and body. You will also have a chance to view before and after photo albums of his patients who have undergone procedures similar to what you are considering. To view before and after photos, please click here Facial & Body Fat Grafting Helpful Links to learn more about the brow lift procedure: www.wikipedia.org www.emedicine.com