How Soon After a Full Face Fat Graft Can I Safely Get my Touch-up?

If your swelling decreases further and if some fat recipient areas lose more fat, then you may wish to wait longer so that secondary procedures will address all the areas of your concern once more fat disappears. However, if the focal area of depressions is significant, you can do repeat injections in three to four months after the procedure.

I agree with Dr. Lam.  Fat transfers can change over time and can be sensitive to weight gain and loss.  I would give it at least 6 months before doing more, unless at 6 months you are still very sunken in and hollow.  Talk to your plastic surgeon about it, but in general you will notice more changes and more volume as time goes on.

Best,

Nima Shemirani

I normally wait three to six months between fat transfer secessions to be able to more accurately judge the result of the first procedure. However, there is no reason, physiologically, that you need to wait that long so you may certainly have it repeated at 3-4 months.

Dear Jennifer,
I would recommend you to wait at least 4 months post op to have the second set of fat grafting. By then most of swelling has subsided and new transferred fat can survive. Talk to your surgeon as well to see what his criteria are for second phase of fat grafting. I usually mix Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) with fat to help fat survival during fat transfer procedure.

Hi Jennifer,

Best to wait at least 5 to 6 months after fat transfer to the face before having a touch up.  At 5 to 6 months, the fat that is present will likely be permanent.  Good luck and be well.

Dr. P

At only 5 weeks since surgery you would still have quite a ways to go before seeing your final results. I always tell my fat grafting patients to expect their facial swelling to improve over the course of about 6 months. Then from about 6 months to 18 months after the grafting procedure, the fat grafts that have survived will then "blossom" as their new blood supply takes hold.

Certaily some patient benefit from a touch-up, but I would suggest waiting at least 1 year before considering such a procedure. The concern would be that repeating the procedure too soon could lead to over correction and/or disruption of the originally grafted fat.

If you watch the accompanying video, you will see that I have come up with a unique way of understanding quality fat transfers.  If done well, they get blood supply and get better over a period of a year to two.  This is very similar to the trajectory of a hair transplant.  When the hair graft gains blood supply it begins to improve and improve.  That is what I see with my fat transfers but this is not always the case with physicians who cannot get fat to stay.  You must ask your physician this question but I differ from most of my colleagues in my understanding of a fat transfer.

best,

Dr. Sam Lam
Dallas, TX

I think 3 months is too soon.  What I tell my patients after microfat injection is that what they see at 4 months, should be permanent.  If there are some deficits after that,then we will schedule another injection.  They are aware before the first injection that they may require several injections. 

There is no harm in repeating the fat injection any time after the 1st procedure. My routine is to wait at least a month to see the sort of final result of the 1st injection. So in your case 4 months is definitely okay.