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Fat Transfer to Face: I am 52 - Prefer Answers from People Who Have Had This Done in Dallas, TX

By TexasMsgirl on 13 Feb 2013

My face seems to be shrinking and I am considering a very small chin implant. One plastic surgeon said that he did not believe that I really need it. --since my face can only take a very small one.. ... It would be more noticeable to my profile vs. from the front- he says. Another plastic surgeon said it would improve my look.. -&, according to the 3d photoshopped pictures, it would look great. This doctor also said that he would use fat transfers to my face. I thought that sounded wonderful, but I have many questions about that.--& this is what this post is about, at this time. I have seen many woman in Dallas looking very strange, so even though I see before/after pictures how does one know that you will not look bumpy, blown-up, or strange. The pictures in the doctor's office look wonderful, but I never see people that are my age in these pictures... and also, what they look like after 5 or 8 years... or so? So, do they look more wrinkly when the fat is absorbed? I do not want to feel like I need to continually add fat every 3 or 5 years ... I want to know if I will look worse later... if I were to add the fat to my face... than if I would do nothing to my face? - we are all hoping to improve or we would not be doing this.. but, I want to hear feedback from patients or relatives of patients. I have no one else to ask...add more fat in my face later? If the fat is absorbed, do you feel like it is a waste of money? Do you believe your face is more wrinkly after a couple of years, once the fat is absorbed?-- than you would have been if you did not have this procedure? Also, I have learned from a plastic surgeon's nurse that sometimes if you gain weight in your body, your face may blow up a lot more because of a fat transfer procedure. -is this true? Could I get some feedback from people who know, please? Also, I would benefit from people in Dallas answering this post.. because I do not plan on going out of town to have this done... There should be a capable doctor or 2 that can perform this procedure locally? -So, information from doctors in the area is much appreciated! Thank you!

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notsogood (RealFriend) 21 May 2013

The dr who did the FT was Fadi Chahin, in Beverly Hills CA. The ocular plastic surgeon who did surgery on my eyes to repair the damage from the FT done by Chahin, is Dr. Michael Groth, also in Beverly Hills CA. I don't know anyone named Iam.

filler queen 21 May 2013

"Dr Rohrich says that people online are not the same thing and cannot be compared to his procedure." People online are the same thing - real people who have gone to "reputable" doctors and had FT, which is the same procedure you're talking about. It's good that you're doing your research. Good luck to you and best wishes!

filler queen 20 May 2013

Why would anyone ever have FT after reading all the stories on here? I've never heard of anyone who was happy with the results. My FT has been an unmitigated nightmare with no solution in sight. At the very least, have them do fillers first to see the best chance scenario of how it might look. Don't worry about the extra money; you will spend 20 times that on corrections if you have FT.

notsogood (RealFriend) 4 Apr 2013

I agree with the other posters here. Please do not risk FT. It is totally unpredictable and there are no easy fixes...many of us have been trying to find remedies without much success. It is often uneven from one side to another and peoples faces often end up distorted, with permanent lumps, bumps and scars. Please read all the negative reviews here to get an idea of just how badly this can go. Once done, you will never look the same, and the change is almost always for the worse. I have spent about $30,000 on trying to fix this with little success. You can never regain the money or the time lost from your life once it goes bad. Others have been fighting for solutions for nearly 10 years and spent thousands of dollars. If you feel compelled to do something, go with temporary fills. There are so many on the market now and they last much longer than they once used to. It is no big deal to go in for occasional fills...and it's a far, far cheaper option in the long run given the never ending money drain that FT repair will cost you. Not to mention destroying your social life for years...or worse permanently. At least with temp fills, if you don't like the look, its reversible or will ultimately go away on its own. There are so many bad results from FT that I am convinced it will one day be banned. I hope so. It's ruined a lot of lives. Please don't do this to yourself...the risk of ruining your face permanently is just too great. I wish I could turn back the clock to the day I did said yes to FT....its been a nightmare ever since. The problems it can cause will far exceed any benefit you hope to gain from it.

TexasMsgirl 25 Feb 2013

Thank you to the people that commented. I am sorry that you are not happy w/the results. I know how unpredictable things can be when one goes under the knife. I live in Dallas and some people look great.. and then some people --well- those others are what makes me nervous. I cannot really ask the different people what they have done or where- because I do not know them well enough. Each dr.. says that they are the best..?-but, I cannot go by that? Anyway... it's just so scary. thanks again

Toooomuchfat 26 Feb 2013

Don't do it.......

seekinginformation 22 Feb 2013

I will be 53 in a few days and have had fat transfer to my upper lip area and between my eyes. But I do not live in the Dallas area. I am from Kentucky. I had an accident last year which severely cut my lower lip area and chin. While doing scar revisions on these areas, I decided to have fat transfer to my upper lip. I was a smoker for many years and had wrinkles above my lips. And I have always been a frowner and had deep wrinkles between my eyes. These fat transfers were performed in September 2012. Small amounts of fat were removed from my abdomen and injected into those area. At first the fat transfer swells the area up and you hope that you will not be left with that much volume. And the area that the fat is taken from (my abdomen) was much more sore than the area it was injected into. I now have 2 small area of dimpled skin where fat was removed from eat side of my abdomen below the belly button area. Much of the fat transfer absorbed to where I look more natural. At first I felt like Daffy Duck. I have not gained any weight so I cannot tell you what the effects of that area. I do feel like I paid for fat transfer that was a loss because you are paying your surgeon and anesthesiiologist for their time and at least 1/2 of the fat transfer, if not more, will absorb. Along with fat transfer between the eyes, I had my corrugator muscle cut so I could not frown. Much to my surprise, this surgery was not successful and I was able to frown within 2 weeks. This surgeon now provides Botox injections to me, which is what I was trying to get away from. As we age our face becomes hollow and fat transfer seems the perfect way to add some volume. But I am not sure it is worth the small amount of change that you will see. And I am uncertain how many people have bad result. They certainly can't control how much will be absorbed or where the fat will adhere to and remain. I hope I have been helpful. I will check back frequently to see what information you have retrived and what decision you have made. Good luck.

Toooomuchfat 24 Feb 2013

Hi Seekinginformation I am on day 3 after my stem cell facelift. I have ruined my face. I actually work as a patient coordinator for a corporation that processes stemcells. I was ...... let's say....encouraged greatly, to have this procedure done. They even paid for it. I have...had.. been blessed with a great face. The Dr. that they hired was rude and I actually never met him before the procedure. So, he had no idea what I wanted or most important...didn't want. As I was laying there...wide awake...I just kept saying that " I like my cheekbones please don't touch my cheeks in any way." The only thing I wanted was a tiny tiny tiny bit to fill my laugh lines. That's when he started jabbing into the area around my nose. Not shallow injections like I now know he should have been doing...but deep injections. I remember saying "Please Dr. I don't want to have big cheeks or a fat face. I only weigh 98lbs." He replied " You are injecting fat into your face.....you are going to have a FAT face." He laughed. It was at that point that I saw his needle going up towards my eye area and I stopped him. I wish that I could share pictures. If someone will tell me how, I will post them. My family cried when they saw me. My smile is now turned completely upside down due to the weight of the fat that he injected. My face has no contour around my nose....I look like a baloon, with a droopy sad smile. I have seen miracles with the use of adipose stem cells. Esp. with knees, shoulders, spines, diabetes. REALLY..it has been amazing to see the results and the smiles on the faces of the patients that have lived in pain for so many years and now have relief for the first time. Having said that.....I cannot recommend this for anyone that is considering altering their face in anyway. It's your face!!!!! Funny thing....this was my argument to my superiors when they were insisting that I needed to do this in order to speak to others about it and keep my job. They said.."You are going to be the face of ______!" I don't want to say the name of the Corp. that I work for. Well...hindsite is always so clear, isn't it. I would much rather have my face back, then that job..which I will probably lose now anyway due to the way I look. Please listen to that small voice inside you and JUST SAY NO!!!

Carol11 24 Feb 2013

I am so very sorry. Some of it may go away within a few months. Many of us have suffered for years. Some of us fixed, some of us not. Either way, never the same. Oftern it can be fixed to an extent by an expert. Get a lawyer. Treaten to take it public. I as the others will say a prayer for you. Contact any of us if you need help.

Toooomuchfat 25 Feb 2013

Thank you Carol11. They say that empathy is "your pain in my heart". I guess you can't really feel someone elses pain unless you have experienced it yourself. I am grateful to have found this site. I have been on it all day and in the Q&A section read from Dr's that is can be reversable with lipo a steroids. Ick...but I will do whatever to see me again in the mirror.

TexasMsgirl 25 Feb 2013

I don't know if everyone can see my post- but, i wanted to make sure you receive a thank you> I am nervous that my face would have issues with lumpiness, too.

TexasMsgirl 25 Feb 2013

I wish you well. .. maybe it will get better. Can you send me pics? I can give you my email if you can't post them.

Toooomuchfat 26 Feb 2013

I have pics...send me your email and I will send them to you privately

Carol11 20 Feb 2013

I had a FT done under my eyes 3 yearsed ago by a PS that I knew and trusted. He ruined my face. I went from being beautiful to truly ugly. The fat lumped, caused scar tissue, did not take evenly and I had bags under my eyes. I wanted to die. I found a wonderful Dr. in Beverly Hills that corrected the problem for the most part. I now have ptosis (droopy eyes) caused by the first PS trying to fix his mistake. I wouldn't recommend this procedure as it is UNPREDICTABLE as to the outcome. Go back and look at other posts from prople who have lived the nightmare; "goodfacegonebad" and others. It has ruined famous peoples carriers.

Carol11 20 Feb 2013

"careers"

Kirsty at RealSelf (Community Manager) 14 Feb 2013

Hi there, welcome!

I have inlcuded a link below to a list of board certified surgeons who perform Fat Transfer in the Dallas, TX area. Just click on the link and then on each doctors name for more information. If they have any reviews you can also read those once you click on their names.

Dallas, TX Doctors

Hope this helps!

Kirsty

TexasMsgirl 20 May 2013

Well, Dr Rohrich of UT Southwestern, does it when he does his necklifts- if you need it. I was concerned and not sure about it... and he gave me patient of his. I saw pictures and she looks terrific. She loves it... He does it when you are asleep and he took the fat from her thighs. Dr Rohrich says that people online are not the same thing and cannot be compared to his procedure. After seeing this patient... I want to do it when he does my necklift. I have decided on a necklift... and hopefully will plain it in the fall... Feel free to provide any info on neck lifts or Dr Rohrich. Thank you

TexasMsgirl 20 May 2013

sorry for the misspellings... it is late. :)

notsogood (RealFriend) 20 May 2013

That's the same line I got...they all tell you everyone else is doing it wrong...but they have the best method. I was under anesthesia when I had mine done too, that is no anything special, just better for pain. My PS took it from my thighs, stomach and arms (I'm very thin so he had to take it from several places to get enough fat. Oh and that's the other thing they don't tell you...removing the fat leaves a rippling effect on your skin...sort of like tunnels...the worst is on my stomach. I'll never wear a 2 pc swimsuit again...or go sleeveless now either. I specifically asked my PS about that before the procedure...he assured me it would look great. Well it doesn't...not even close. And YES...whenever I gained a few pounds (even when you are very thin like me!) the fat they put in your face swells up...bags under your eyes, puffy eyelids...and chipmunk cheeks. Looks like you haven't slept in days and have been on a binge. Until I had it removed surgically...I had to constantly watch what I ate...then I looked sick cause I was too thin. It was horrible. The doctors that use FT, sell you on it big time...then when it goes bad, they just walk. Some women get worse from the fix. Having a FT procedure (of any method) is like gambling. 50/50 odds. And if you lose, you lose years out of your life, and a boatload of money trying to find a fix. Do you really have an extra $30,000 to fix it if it doesn't go well. That is what spent...not to mention hiding out for 2 years because I was a mess. These guys will tell you what you want to hear...don't fall for it! They give it fancier names like... "micro stem cell rejuvenation" and other such mumbo jumbo. It is all the same. They all make it sound so easy...and "risk free" Its just not true. The latest scam. Many of us fell for it for the same kind of "big sell". My current PS has had to stop accepting patients for Fat Transfer revisions because he has been swamped with repair work. It's that bad. There are so many other things you can do that will be far...far.. less risky...full blown surgery is far better than FT.

TexasMsgirl 21 May 2013

can you tell me what dr you used? I believe I have heard some negative results from dr lam's work

notsogood (RealFriend) 21 May 2013

Texas...I put my reply to you in regard to Iam in the wrong place. You'll find my response at the top of the page just under your review. Sorry for the confusion.