Difference Between Fat Grafting and Fat Injection?

A composite fat graft utilizes a pieces of fat which is harvested from another body area and placed into a defect-the fat is transferred intact.
Fat injection uses fat that has been removed by liposuction, treated, and injected as an emulsification consisting of fat cells.
Both procedures work and are accepted techniques.
However, in my experience, the injected fat cells, I presume because many are injured during processing and injection and because the injection is a blind procedure, often appear lumpy, and often need to be repeated. I find the composite graft can be more accurately placed and the survival of the graft more easily predicted.

Fat grafting is the same thing as fat injection.  Grafting is a term used in plastic surgery when tissue is taken from one place and transferred to another and then it is allowed to heal in place.  The healing depends on the ability of this transferred tissue to survive long enough until new blood vessels are formed to provide blood supply, oxygen, and nutrients to this transferred or grafted tissue.

Fat injection is a more descriptive term for the same thing, as the fat is actually injected into the target areas, in the process of fat grafting.

Sincerely,

Martin Jugenburg, MD

When the fat is processed  and injected correctly , fat grafting (fat injections) not only provides volume to fill in wrinkles, but it also helps the skin to become more radiant and youthful.

To read more about fat grafting and learn why the skin become radiant, please watch my video on facial fat grafting below.

Ricardo Rodriguez, MD

Baltimore, Maryland