What Can Be Done About This Strange Dent on my Leg? (photo)

Question

I've had this strange dent on my leg for as long as I can remember (noticed around the age of 8 or 9). I don't even know what the dent is, but when you feel it it seems like there is a hole in my leg fat or muscle or something. I went to my GP and she didn't know what it was either, just told me not to worry about it, but it is very large and prevents me from wanting to wear shorts. Anyway, I want to know what is this dent? Could I get fat transfer to permanently correct this dent? If not, what?

Armando Soto, MD, FACS · Answer

Hi there-

	Most likely, the cause of the dent you are seeing was a blunt trauma to the area in your childhood. Injuries like this are very common, and lead to soft tissue deformities as they heal, but can be corrected to very good outcomes through fat grafting techniques.

	This would involve liposuction from an area where you may want to reduce your contour, with placement of that fat into the dent to plump it up. Occasionally, the procedure needs to be repeated to achieve the patient's goals.

	Find a reputable Board Certified Plastic Surgeon that you like and feel you can trust and visit for a consultation.

Young R. Cho, MD, PhD · Answer

I have been very pleased with Sculptra as a way to fill out buttock indentations.  I find that the procedure requires little to no downtime and is office based.  I have done minor dimples to full buttock augmentations, albeit the latter is for people who want a modest augmentation and with little fat to donate.  At times, if the indentation is associated with a scar, then subcision or a scar release may also be warranted.

Stephen Bresnick, MD · Answer

Fat can be easily transferred from a donor area such as the tummy or thighs and injected into an area needing volume, such as a dent, ripple or other concavity.  The procedure is easily done under local anesthesia and is quite successful.

	Sometimes, several procedures need to be done because only a portion of the fat transferred tends to stay long term.  However, what makes this procedure so good is the lack of scarring and permanence!    Fat transfer can also be done to fill out the face, wrinkes, hollow areas, enchance breasts, enlarge the buttocks, and many other uses.

Joseph M. Perlman, MD · Answer

This indention could be from an insect bite or minor trauma that you had as a child that left a contracted scar. A small amount of fat could be harvested from your hips or abdomen and deposited into the pocket. Usually, you over correct about 50% because only about 50% of your graft will take. How long the graft lasts is unpredictable but small graphs like this often last indefinitely.

Barry L. Eppley, MD, DMD · Answer

Fat injection would be the best approach to a limited area of subcutaneous fat thinning. A slight overcorrection would be done, accounting for some injected fat resorption. Some fat would be harvested from inside your belly button and then re-injected into the leg defect.

What Can Be Done About This Strange Dent on my Leg? (photo)

Answers (5)

Answer: Fat grafting would be the answer

Answer: Fat grafting would be the answer

Answer: Fat Injection for Leg Dent

Answer: Fat Injection for Leg Dent

Recommended reading

Everything you need to know about Facial Fat Transfer

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What Can Be Done About This Strange Dent on my Leg? (photo)

Answers (5)

Answer: Fat grafting would be the answer

Answer: Fat grafting would be the answer

Answer: Fat Injection for Leg Dent

Answer: Fat Injection for Leg Dent

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Recommended reading

Everything you need to know about Facial Fat Transfer

Our mission is to create a world where every investment in modern beauty is Worth It.