I've heard about a procedure where my body fat can be transferred or injected on my under eye area for dark circles and hollowness. Is this safe, and will results be permanent?
Fat injections around the eyes have to be done very carefully. There have been reports of emboli causing blindness. FUrthermore, the fat injection will probably not improve the dark circles if it is due to pigment changes. It can help depressions but can also result in lumpiness.
In my hands fat injections to the area around the eyes is the best option for correction.
Fat has the same color and the same texture as the fat which it is replacing. Whether or not it is permanent depends on whether the fat cells are alive and concentrated when re-injected back into the patient. The current methods inject about 3.4 million cells per ML. A new technique called Viafill will be out in April that will allow for approximately 28 million cells per ml to be injected. We would expect that to last much longer.
Nabila,
Fat grafting is a very effective procedure for any area that needs volume replacement. However, the skin around the eye is very thin and obtaining good results takes considerable training and skill. My best advice is for you to go to someone with extensive experience in fat grafting and periorbital injections.
David Shafer, MD
Shafer Plastic Surgery
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