Facelift Q&A

85%

WORTH IT RATING

315 Reviews

Ask a Question

View Before and Afters

Average Facelift Cost: $11,225

Learn about Facelift

1,209 people and 807 doctors are talking about Facelift

Get Free Email Updates

Any Advantage to Fat Transfer During Facelift Vs Injecting at a Later Date?

asked 2 years ago by jenny22 in San Diego, CA
Latest answer by E. Ronald Finger, MD
Question viewed 1,042 times
Tags: technique

I am considering autologous fat transfer to face as part of facelift surgery, as recommended by one facial plastic surgeon. However, another plastic surgeon believes once tissue is elevated by facelift procedure alone, I may not need the fat augmentation to my cheeks. My question is not what to do, but if doing fat grafting/injection at a later date is likely to "take" as well. (I've heard fat grafting has better success rates if done during surgery.) Thank you in advance for your comments.

22 answers to Any Advantage to Fat Transfer During Facelift Vs Injecting at a Later Date?

Fat transfer with facelift

I prefer to perform grafting at the same time as the facelift, in areas NOT undermined by the facelift. What is to keep the graft there when it is placed between two skin flaps? What is to prevent the fat injection grafts from shifting or moving? The answer is nothing. Grafting into areas NOT undermined are effective. Grafting into areas of the facelift that ARE undermined is less effective because the grafts can move.

Brent Moelleken, MD
Beverly Hills Plastic Surgeon

www.drbrent.com

Fat transfer can be done with or without a facelift.

The results will be the same. It is usually done at the same time so that you have only one recovery time and it is cheaper.

Toby Mayer, MD
Beverly Hills Facial Plastic Surgeon

www.bevhills.com

Fat grafting with facelift is all about volume

I don't buy the argument that the take of the fat grafts is better after the facelift as opposed to during the procedure. Fat grafting and the other things that are done under the skin during a facelift are an important part of reshaping the face. People tend to think of facelifts as just pulling on skin, but it is a 3-dimensional concept. That is one of the keys to having it look natural. If you save it for a later date, then the appearance after the facelift and before the grafts is... more

Richard Baxter, MD
Seattle Plastic Surgeon

baxterplasticsurgery.com

Facial lipoinjections and facelifts

Fat injections to the face is a wonderful adjunct to many Facelift procedures. While Facelift surgery will reposition the soft tissues of the face to counteract the effects of gravity, the procedure alone will not volumize the face to a more youthful appearance. Fat grafting is generally performed at the time of face lifts simply because of surgical convenience. Facial fat grafting is also performed as an independent procedure. Fat graft survival has little to do with whether the procedure... more

Philip S. Schoenfeld, MD
Chevy Chase Facial Plastic Surgeon

Fat grafting to the face is a great idea at the time of the face lift

The reason for the fat grafting at the time of the face lift is to replace natural loss fat from the face. The process involve grafting the fat to the deep layers that not undermine with the face lift. The main advantage of the grafting the fat at time of face lift is that you get a 3 dimentional lift and less lateral pull. Fat grafting results depend on the surgeon' experience.

Kamran Khoobehi, MD
New Orleans Plastic Surgeon

Fat Transfer During Facelift Vs Injecting at a Later Date?

Fat grafting can be inconsistant under the best of conditions. The keys to successful fat grafting are: acquiring the fat with low suction pressure, properly preparing the fat for grafting, and micro-droplet injections. The reason of the latter is that small grafts are more likely to get a good blood supply before they dissolve than large grafts. So adequate blood supply is paramount for the fat grafts to survive. This leads us back to the question of fat grafting during... more

E. Ronald Finger, MD
Savannah Plastic Surgeon

www.fingerandassociates.com

Facelifting and fat grafting/transfer

Fat grafting/transfer is an excellent procedure to have along with a facelift. As we age we lose volume in our faces and a facelift can only do so much to restore that loss through repositioning the fat in the cheeks and jowl area. In the typical facelift patient, many areas remain after lifting that need volume resoration such as the malar areas, nasolabial folds and marionette lines, jawline and others. I perform fat grafting after the facelft is completed but at... more

Gregory Branham, MD
Saint Louis Facial Plastic Surgeon

Fat Graft to the Face and Face Lift Surgery

I prefer to perform fat grafting to the face at the same time as the facelift. Performing facial fat grafting at the same time as a facelift saves the patient an additional surgery, recovery time, and money. There is no survival advantage for the fat if it is grafted or injected into the face at the time of surgery or at a later date. However, it is important for the fat that is injected at the time of surgery to be injected in areas that have not been aggressively... more

Jaime Perez MD
Tampa Plastic Surgeon

Fat Grafting with Facelift

Fat grafting at the time of the facelift will avoid the need for a second procedure. The success rate is the same as long as fat is not placed under skin elevated during the facelift.

Richard W. Fleming, MD
Beverly Hills Facial Plastic Surgeon

Fat Grafting During Facelift

Facial fat grafting requires several important factors to be done well. First, it must be small product injected. Next, it should be placed into multiple planes. Third it needs to stay where it's placed and finally it needs blood supply. I will only add fat, during a facelift, to areas not undermined. This limits it to areas such as temporal hollowing. I perform SMAS elevation and extensive SMAS facelifts and these procedures often correct facial fullness issues. I would do these two... more

Christopher L. Hess, MD
Fairfax Plastic Surgeon

Fat grafting is part of facelift surgery

The rejuvenation of the face includes the surgery, volumizing the deflated face and skin resurfacing with skin care and/or laser. This multidimensional approach allows the plastic surgeon to get the best results possible for the patient. Each of these procedures can be done separately. Fat grafting is commonly done with facelift surgery to restore volume. Autologous fat is often taken from the tummy/hip areas and used as micro fat transfers to the face. By performing fat transfer at the... more

Andrew Turk, MD
Naples Plastic Surgeon

Prefer to do fat transfer during facelift

I personally prefer doing fat transfer at the time of the facelift operation. But either is acceptable. I will throw another choice in to the mix. Why not during and after 3 months saved (frozen fat) be injected as a touch up? Regards .

Darryl J. Blinski, MD
Miami Plastic Surgeon

Any Advantage to Fat Transfer During Facelift Vs Injecting at a Later Date?

The fat cells obtained and transferred during the facelift surgery are alive and through certain process will cause the stem cells to produce new fat cells. This will lead to long term survival of these cells. Of course, this process is technique and operator dependent. The fat that is frozen are non-viable dead cells and used as fillers. However, major portion of these tissues are broken down by the body and removed.

Mohsen Tavoussi, MD, DO
Huntington Beach Facial Plastic Surgeon

Fat transfer is good if you need it

The first thing to consider is if you need more fat in certain areas of the face. Most people have had some fatty fullness loss that needs to be restored. The timing is not important as to the overall success of the transfer but it is nice to do all of the facial procedures together. Consider the final look you want to have and then determine if fat transfer is required to get this look. Best Wishes Dr. Peterson

Marcus L. Peterson, MD
Saint George Plastic Surgeon

Fat grafting can enhance the results of your facelift surgery

Fat grafting works beautifully to enhance the results of facelift surgery -- fuller lips, smoothed wrinkle lines, and improved facial contours. The fat should "take" equally well at the time of the facelift surgery or if done at a second procedure. I personally believe it would be in your best interest to have the fat grafting at the time of your facelift. Your surgeon should be able to judge the proper placement and amounts of fat to be injected, the cost will be less, and there... more

Michael D. Yates, MD
Huntsville Plastic Surgeon

Get an assessment for facial contouring

Dear Jenny, There are areas of the face which have volume loss with age. It is important for the facial shape and rejuvenation that volume is added to these areas with micro fat grafting. It is best to assess the volumes that need to be added prior to the surgery with an accurate assessment with the planned facial shape change. There is a chance that more fat may need to be added to some of the areas after the combined face lifing and micro fat grafting. I routinely combine the fat grafting... more

Trevor M. Born, MD
Toronto Plastic Surgeon

Fat grafting can add volume to areas of the face

The bottom line is it probably does not matter when the fat grafting is done. In my opinion it has no added relevance in the survival of the fat. The technique of fat augmentation is what affects the take of the fat graft the most. The main reason to do it at the same time would be to only have one recovery process in place. Adding fat as part of a facelift procedure can enhance the results especially if the right amount of fat is added to areas that have lost volume as a result of the aging... more

Scott Trimas, MD
Jacksonville Facial Plastic Surgeon

Fat grafting good together with facelift.

Hi. It makes sense to have fat grafting or fat injections at the same time that you have your facelift. I don't think the take is better. It's just that you can visualize the final result while you are still operating.

George J. Beraka, MD
Manhattan Plastic Surgeon

Fat grafting to the face is an integral part of essentially all my facial rejuvenation procedures.

Fat grafting to the face is a very significant addition to facial rejuvenation over the past few years. While it doesn't matter wether it is done at the time of face lifting and other procedures or as a subsequent procedure, it makes sense to do it at the same time. One of the most important considerations is the experience of the surgeon. While not extremely difficult, it does require a special knowledge of the techniques used and an aesthetic sense of what a youthful face should look... more

Carl W. "Rick" Lentz III, MD
Daytona Beach Plastic Surgeon

No inherent benefit to having fat grafting at the time of the facelift other than convenience.

Jenny Grafted fat can be very helpful. It can be done at the time of the facelift but this does not help with the survival of the grafted fat. However it does let you recover just one time. I disagrgee with the plastic surgeon who advised you that you may not need fat grafting once everything is lifted. There is nothing like volume. The combination is probably being recommended because the surgeon who advised it also feels you need volume. If you are not sure about this, certainly the... more

Kenneth D. Steinsapir, MD
Los Angeles Oculoplastic Surgeon

Fat transfer during or after a Facelift

I agree with Dr. Rand. The likelihood of fat grafting to survive is NOT higher if done at the time of the Facelift. The only reason for doing it at the same time is to save you some money AND for the convenience of doing it under ONE anesthesia session and recovery period. Dr. P. Aldea

Peter A. Aldea, MD
Memphis Plastic Surgeon

The "take" of facial fat grafts is not higher during a facelift

The only reason to do the fat grafts at the time of the facelift is for the convenience of one recovery. There is no scientific evidence, and it doesn't make biological sense, to say that the "take" of the graft would be better if done during rather than after a facelift.