Fat grafting with ultrasound for safety?

Question

Hello, I was wondering why no doctors are using ultrasound guidance for facial fat grafting? It seems there are still risks of injecting into a vein/causing embolism that can be easily reduced by implementing this safety measure. If it prevents catastrophic outcomes, why is noone using it?

John L. Burns Jr., MD · Answer

It would be difficult to find a hand held device with the sensitivity to clearly see tiny blood vessels.  I use a microcannula to inject which is blunt tipped and does not penetrate or cannulate blood vessels.

Randal Haworth, MD, FACS · Answer

Ultrasounds in my opinion make you rely too much on a machine and not on common sense and experience. And of course, basic safety measures. Ultrasound may be good for somebody who injects according to a color-by-number approach in which they are instructed to inject at point A, point B, Point C and so on. If that practitioner is not gonna question where they are going to inject and just follow the prescribe formula, then it at be wise for those types of injectors to use an ultrasounds before they put the filler in.

Fat grafting with ultrasound for safety?

Answers (2)