If I Gain Weight After Transferred Fat to Forehead, Will the Fat on my Forehead Grow As Well?

Dear Ruth,


I prefer to harvest fat from areas that have not been touched by liposuction, it is cleaner and there is less variability for take

If you gain weight, and the place we take the fat from is prone to changes in your weight (i.e. if you gain weight in your waist first, and we take fat from the waist), then it can grow once it is in the face


Best regards,

Nima Shemirani

    Previous areas of liposuction can be utilized if there is sufficient fat.  The fat that does live will be susceptible to the same metabolic rules as the rest of the fat on the body.  I have transferred fat to foreheads after traumatic injuries and for developmental deformities.  Find a plastic surgeon with ELITE credentials who performs hundreds of fat grafting procedures each year.  Kenneth Hughes, MD Los Angeles, CA

Fat transfer is excellent option to increase facial volume. There are areas on the face that are more forgiving than others. If you are considering fat grafting to eyebrow and temple region, it is a more forgiving area, which I routinely do.

However, the middle of the forehead is less forgiving because there is not a lot of subcutaneous fat to begin with, and with the underlying bone, irregularities will be much more visible.

This is an area that I generally do not do fat grafting unless there is an irregularity already that I am trying to address with filling.

As far as stored fat goes:  we will store fat for up to a year in a medical grade subzero [-80 degrees celsius] freezer. It is our feeling that the longer the fat is stored, the less it is viable long term. As mentioned, our understanding of fat transfer and stability is still evolving and no scientific studies have illustrated well how much fat stays behind, and how long stored fat is viable.

Weight change can affect the fat transfer results, though the fluctuations would have to be significant. Ideally, I would recommend fat transfer to occur at a weight when you are most stable. This will minimize risks of undercorrection and overcorrection.

Yes, the transferred fat will grow with weight gain as has been shown to occur by several plastic surgeons. 

You should assume that may happen. Fat grafting to the face is a good option for people whose weight is stable and not expected to change significantly. Even in those cases, there is some risk of hypertrophy. At your age you may want to consider something non-permanent.  Consult with a specialist to get all your options.

Dear Ruth24530,

Fat transfer is an excellent, all natural way to restore or enhance soft tissue volume (eg. face, breasts, buttocks, etc).

Fat transfer is generally considered safe, but like all procedures, there are potential risks, including but limited to fat resorption and fat necrosis.

When you gain or lose weight, your fat cells can enlarge or shrink, including transferred fat. Fortunately, significant deformities due to weight gain after fat transfer are pretty rare, but they have been reported to occur. The best solution to minimize this risk is to maintain a normal and healthy weight.

On a final note, our scientific understanding of fat transfer is rapidly growing but still incomplete. Be ware of marketing hype, and please see an experienced, Board Certified Plastic Surgeon who is highly skilled, meticulous, thoughtful, and artistic.

Warmest wishes,

Larry Fan, MD

San Francisco, CA USA