Fat Transfer and Breast Lifts. Can I Do These At The Same Time?

Yes, Fat can be transferred at the same time as the breast lift - that is how I do it most often.Any woman who is healthyWomen with sufficient body fat for the procedureWomen considering breast augmentation who wish to be one cup size larger or lessWomen who have had breast augmentation or reconstruction but who lack fullness or have contour concerns. Fat transfer can further enhance and reshape your breasts while smoothing out visible or palpable edges of breast implants. This will disguise implant rippling and wrinkling.Women with normal mammographySee below links for more information

Hi,

In my opinion the risks and complications associated with fat transfer to breasts out weigh the benefits. In my experience large volume fat transfers (as those needed for breasts or buttocks) have a high unsatisfaction rate due to fat necrosis and fat calcification causing irregular contours on skin. My question to you is why would you want something that may or may not give you the results you want (with additional complications) if there is a new technique that will give you upper pole fullness without an implant and No vertical scar? Look into the Ultimate Breast Lift technique. It's a new class of lifting technique that does not require a vertical scar regardless of size or degree of sagginess. It has also perfected the inner cone technique with straps to provide a long term lift and perky round breasts. Breasts resemble implants with minimal scars.

Best wishes,

Dr. H

Yes, it can be done. The requirement is for you to have enough fat to be transferred. It's been shown in multiple clinical studies that 53-65% of the transplanted fat stays long term. This is irregardless of stem cell use or enhancment. The fat is placed mainly in the upper poles of the breasts and cleavage area. The lower pole lift and tightening is done by the breast lift procedure (I prefer a short vertical scar technique). The potential mammographic changes that could happen from fat grafts, like calcifications, can be easily distinquished from the microcalcifications which are suspicious for breast cancer. Remember, when we do breast lifts, reductions or augmentations, the same changes happen to the breasts as with fat transfer alone.

the answer to your question regarding fat grafting of the breasts at the same setting as a breast lift is that it can be done safely and well.  I have performed this combination of procedures several times and am offering breast fat grafting in certain cases.  It must be understood that the fat grafting should be limited to relatively small volumes compared with buttock fat grafting.  Patients can benefit from this procedure when a breast lift is desired and fat can be utilized as an alternative to augmentation with an implant, in order to add some fullness, firmness especially in the superior aspect of the breast.

Yes they can, be careful who you choose to perform a procedure like this. This technique is very user dependent and can have lots of pitfalls if not done properly. I would recommend you consult with a surgeon who has performed these procedures on a regular basis and can discuss the pros and cons of the procedure. Good luck!

The issue of fat grafting is new for most plastic surgeons an some are concerned about the predictability, mammogram and long term results. The results of the combine lift/fat is better that the Lift/implant. I have done more than 270 cases of fat grafting for the last 6 years . Please check my web site for examples. There are few plastic surgeons that are good at fat grafting like Dr.Delvecchio in Boston. The concerns about mammogram and cancer are answered and the lead article in our journal for month of may was about it.

The problem with fat transfer is that the fat does not reliably take, especially with transfer of the volumes usually used for breast enhancement.  Reliability can be improved with the use of your own stem cells, but this is not recommended for breast treatment since we don't know what these active cells do to breast cancer developement.

Fat transfer can complicate mammography due to calcifications, though this has not proved to be a big impediment to cancer screening.

Fat transfer usually requires a few revisions due to uneven absorption, so I prefer to use implants (both for cost and reliability).

Finding a surgeon should involve looking for Board Certification by the American Board of Plastic Surgery and being sure to see a complete portfolio of pre- and post-op results.