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Facial fat transfer is a regenerative facial rejuvenation procedure that restores youthful facial volume using your body’s own purified fat cells. Dr. Fred performs facial fat transfer in South Jersey and New Jersey to naturally enhance areas such as the cheeks, temples, jawline, lips, and under-eyes. By strategically transferring living fat cells, facial fat grafting can soften hollowing, improve facial contour, and create long-lasting rejuvenation without relying solely on synthetic fillers.
Fat transfer procedures involve removing fat from a donor site, such as the abdomen or inner thighs, and redistributing it to an area lacking volume. These procedures enhance areas across the body, including the buttocks, cheeks, and breasts. Much like synthetic fillers or implants, fat transfers augment the treated site to provide a fuller, more youthful appearance.
Facial fat transfers, also known as facial fat injections or facial fat grafting, primarily focus on injections to the cheeks, lips, jawline, and the area around the eyes. They provide natural-looking results using only a little amount of expertly distributed fat.
See the transformative results of otoplasty performed by Dr. Coville.
While younger faces benefit from evenly distributed fat across the face, many areas begin to lose volume over time. We used to think all facial aging was due to skin sagging. Now we understand one of the most important reasons your face will begin to look older: age-related volume loss. All those animated expressions we make while talking, laughing, eating, and crying wear down the tissues of our faces. We lose a good deal of facial fat and even bone as we age. In effect, our faces deflate more than they sag as we mature.
One of the reasons facial fat transfer has remained such a powerful rejuvenation procedure is that it restores volume using your own living tissue. Unlike temporary fillers, facial fat grafting provides soft, natural-looking enhancement while also supporting overall facial balance. For many patients throughout South Jersey and New Jersey, facial fat transfer offers a more comprehensive approach to facial rejuvenation than simply treating isolated lines or folds.
Benefits of facial fat transfer in South Jersey may include:
At our South Jersey office, every facial fat transfer procedure performed by Dr. Fred is customized to the patient’s anatomy, areas of volume loss, and long-term aesthetic goals.
Restore youthful fullness and improve facial support.
Reduce hollowing and tired-looking contours beneath the eyes.
Correct temporal hollowing and improve overall facial balance.
Enhance contour and structural definition.
Create soft, natural enhancement using your body’s own tissue.
Improve deeper folds caused by age-related volume loss.
Prior to your procedure, you will undergo a consultation session in our New Jersey office, where you will have the opportunity to meet our team and ask any questions about the process. Together with Dr. Fred, you can explore your treatment options and begin to draft your customized facial fat grafting procedure.
It is important to groom the area where fat will be harvested 24 hours before your procedure. If you are prone to cold sore flare-ups, medication may need to be applied to the treatment areas prior to the procedure.
Upon arriving at our facility, a local anesthetic will be applied to the donor site and treatment area. Oral sedatives and nitrous oxide gas are also available if needed. While patients are typically awake during facial fat transfers, traditional anesthesia can be used upon request in our outpatient surgery center. You can speak with Dr. Fred about your anesthetic preferences during your initial consultation.
Dr. Fred will begin your procedure by harvesting a small amount of fat from your donor site. Depending on the amount of fat you have and your specific preferences, the inner thighs, inner knees, lower abdomen, or flanks make good donor sites for the fat to be transferred. The fat is then cleaned using a specialized process known as decanting and centrifugation to remove damaged fat cells unlikely to survive the grafting process. The remaining whole cells are then ready for reinjection.
During the third and final step of the process, fat cells are injected into the targeted areas. To ensure a higher fat survival rate, small droplets of fat are slowly injected into the subcutaneous tissue, the innermost layer of skin.
Facial fat transfer and dermal fillers both restore facial volume, but they do so in very different ways.
While fillers use synthetic materials to temporarily replace lost volume, fat transfer uses your own living fat cells. This often creates a softer, more natural feel and can provide significantly longer-lasting improvement. Facial fat grafting may be ideal for patients who:
For some patients, fillers remain an excellent option for small refinements or maintenance. During your consultation in Linwood, NJ, Dr. Fred will help determine which approach best suits your goals.
Before undergoing a fat transfer, patients should strive to attain a stable weight that they will be able to maintain in the future. This ensures the recovery process will go smoothly and your results will remain ideal over time. In order to perform the procedure, patients must first have enough body fat to harvest safely. If not, it will be impossible to perform the transplant.
In short, a patient must meet the following minimum criteria to pursue facial fat grafting:
The procedure is considered a safe and well-established procedure when performed by an experienced plastic surgeon. Because the treatment uses your own fat, there is no risk of allergic reaction to synthetic materials. However, as with any cosmetic procedure, there are potential risks, which may include:
With more than 25 years of experience and over 14,000 plastic surgery procedures performed, Dr. Fred utilizes meticulous fat grafting techniques designed to maximize fat survival, minimize complications, and create natural-looking facial rejuvenation.
Successful facial fat transfers rely on a combination of technical skills that take years to perfect. The talent and expertise of your injector directly impact your final results, which is why every procedure performed at Cornerstone is carried out by Dr. Fred himself. He has extensive experience performing fat transfer procedures gleaned from his world travels and working with talented, innovative cosmetic surgeons throughout his career, and was one of the early adopters of these techniques.
As an expert in facial rejuvenation, Dr. Fred takes great pride in helping his patients restore and optimize their facial structure, bringing back that healthy, youthful glow.
The recovery process following a fat transfer procedure typically requires 7-10 days of rest at home. For a portion of this time, you will need to minimize your movement and rest in bed. Place an extra pillow behind you while you sleep to keep your head elevated.
During the recovery process, avoid applying pressure to the area where fat has been injected, as this can damage fat cells and impact your final results.
Bruising and swelling are typical parts of the recovery process, and while they may last for as long as one month, both typically subside within a few days. Applying cold compresses to the treated area will help reduce any swelling or discomfort. You may also need to take medication to manage your pain.
Most patients return to work after 2 weeks of recovery with little to no sign of the procedure being performed. Final results can take up to 6 months to become fully apparent.
While final results are visible 3-6 months after the procedure, noticeable results should slowly begin to appear as swelling subsides during the first 10 days of recovery. As the healing process progresses, you should notice changes in your face, particularly around the treatment site, including:
Unlike synthetic facial fillers, which last for 6-18 months, the results of facial fat transfers last indefinitely. Fat that survives the grafting process reintegrates with the blood supply and tissues as if it had been there all along.
A portion of transferred fat naturally reabsorbs during the healing process. However, the fat cells that successfully establish blood supply and survive become living tissue in their new location.
Because of this, results are considered long-lasting to permanent facial rejuvenation procedure. Unlike fillers that gradually dissolve over time, surviving fat cells continue to behave like normal fat cells for years to come.
Dr. Fred’s advanced harvesting, purification, and placement techniques are designed to support optimal fat survival and natural-looking results.
The cost of facial fat transfer depends on several factors, including the amount of fat being transferred, the number of treatment areas, and whether the procedure is combined with other facial rejuvenation treatments. During your consultation at Cornerstone Plastic Surgery in Linwood, NJ, Dr. Fred will create a personalized treatment plan and discuss all associated costs in detail.
Yes. Because your own living fat cells are used, facial fat transfer often creates softer and more natural-looking volume than synthetic fillers.
While some transferred fat is naturally reabsorbed, surviving fat cells can remain permanently integrated into the tissue for long-lasting rejuvenation.
Incisions used for fat harvesting and injection are very small and typically heal discreetly.
Patients experiencing facial hollowing, volume loss, or age-related deflation may benefit from facial fat transfer at various ages, depending on their anatomy and goals.
A percentage of transferred fat naturally survives permanently after healing. Dr. Fred strategically accounts for this during treatment planning.
When performed by an experienced plastic surgeon, facial fat transfer is considered a safe and effective facial rejuvenation procedure using your body’s own tissue.
Yes. Facial fat grafting can restore structure and definition in male patients while maintaining masculine facial contours.
Written By: Dr. Frederick Coville Frederick A. Coville, Cornerstone Plastic Surgery’s Owner and Medical Director
Dr. Fred Coville, is a renowned Aesthetic and Reconstructive Plastic Surgeon. He proudly extends his services to Toms River, Atlantic County, Cape May County, Ocean County, South Jersey and the greater Philadelphia area. With a distinguished career spanning 25 years, Dr. Coville is a trusted professional delivering personalized and natural-looking results. His expertise caters to clients in locations such as Atlantic City, Trenton, Toms River, Vineland, Bridgeton, Hammonton, Cape May, and Cherry Hill.
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