Fat Grafting in Metairie, LA
At Aesthetic Surgical Associates, we provide structural fat grafting as a natural yet highly effective solution against facial aging and volume depletion. The face may lose its youthful fullness over time, causing sagging, hollowness, wrinkling, and a general tired appearance. With advanced medicine methods, however, we are able to restore volume and revitalize facial contours without synthetic fillers.
Our triple board-certified plastic surgeon, Dr. Stephen E. Metzinger, remains Metairie’s only specialist in this expertise. With advanced training and dedication to artistic accuracy, he has restored smoother, more youthful-looking facial features to countless patients with their own fat. Never settling for anything less than state-of-the-art care, we strive to assist each patient in aging with grace and confidence.
Our triple board-certified plastic surgeon, Dr. Stephen E. Metzinger, remains Metairie’s only specialist in this expertise. With advanced training and dedication to artistic accuracy, he has restored smoother, more youthful-looking facial features to countless patients with their own fat. Never settling for anything less than state-of-the-art care, we strive to assist each patient in aging with grace and confidence.
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
What is
Fat Grafting?
Fat grafting, also referred to as a structural fat transfer procedure, is a facial rejuvenation treatment where youthful volume in the face is restored using a patient’s own fat tissue. Throughout this procedure, Dr. Metzinger uses liposuction to delicately collect fat from regions like the thighs or abdomen. After purification, he strategically injects the fat into depleted facial areas (cheeks, temples, under-eye hollows, or nasolabial folds) to restore the volume lost during the aging process.
This procedure aims to soften wrinkles, raise sagging skin, and enhance overall facial harmony with the body’s own natural material. It is quite popular among patients because it refreshes the face and provides gentle contouring to the donor area. Results are enduring and can be further improved by combining fat grafting with other facial procedures like facelifts or eyelid surgery.
This procedure aims to soften wrinkles, raise sagging skin, and enhance overall facial harmony with the body’s own natural material. It is quite popular among patients because it refreshes the face and provides gentle contouring to the donor area. Results are enduring and can be further improved by combining fat grafting with other facial procedures like facelifts or eyelid surgery.
Areas Typically Treated with Fat Grafting
By transferring purified fat from one area of the body to another, Dr. Metzinger is able to restore youthful definition and enhance skin texture with long-term results. Frequently treated locations area of the body are:
Cheeks: Loss of volume in cheeks causes sunken and hollow cheeks. Grafting fat sback in makes things look young and full again – which lifts the face up.
Under-Eye Hollows: Transferring fat beneath the tear troughs diminishes dark circles and shadows, improves overall brightness, and eliminates their tired, sunken appearance.
Nasolabial Folds and Marionette Lines: Precise fat work can soften deep lines by the nose and mouth, making a patient’s face look more relaxed with less “wear-and-tear.”
Temples: Temples also become concave with age. But fat transplantation can restore them, creating balance in the upper face and symmetry to the face overall.
Jawline and Chin: Volume augmentation of the chin or jawline can enhance facial balance and add subtle definition, particularly in those with soft or receding lower facial features.
Initial
Consultation and Testing
Initial Consultation and Testing
At the initial consultation, Dr. Metzinger thoroughly assesses the patient’s facial structure to decide whether structural fat transfer will provide the desired results. He identifies which areas require additional volume, evaluates possible fat donor sites, and considers overall proportions. Photographs are sometimes taken so that he can plan this plastic surgery more accurately or show how successful it has been afterward. The surgeon also talks in detail with the patient about what they are hoping for from surgery—making sure these goals are feasible given medical knowledge and outlining realistic expectations.
Afterward, the patient will have an extensive medical examination to make sure that they are well enough for surgery. This usually involves blood tests and checking their medications and general health. Depending on the patient’s risk factors, further tests might also be needed. Only healthy tissue is used for reinjection. Structural fat grafting has a few medical contraindications, such as:
Blood clotting disorders
Active infections
Uncontrolled diabetes
Autoimmune diseases
A history of poor wound healing
What to Expect from a Fat Grafting Procedure?
Before the procedure is started, Dr. Metzinger will review photographs and go over the desired results with the patient. The targeted areas on the face and areas where fat will be harvested are marked. Typically, fat cells are removed from areas around the thighs or abdomen. Many patients expect that the removal of this fat is done through liposuction, but this process is too damaging to the cells and usually destroys them.
The actual procedure can be performed as a single procedure or in combination with a number of other approaches to improve the appearance of your face. Fat grafting is typically conducted under a local anesthetic, meaning that a patient will not be unconscious for the surgery, but the targeted area will be numbed.
In order to harvest the cells for use in grafting, the tissue must be carefully removed to make sure that it is not damaged. Once it is removed, the cells are gently washed and prepared for injection. Microdroplets of these fat cells are then injected into the areas that are targeted for improvement.
The average fat grafting surgery usually takes somewhere around two hours but can vary based on the patient’s need.
Add-On to
Fat Transfer Procedure
Add-On to Fat Transfer Procedure
Structural fat grafting is a great procedure to help reduce the signs of aging, but depending on the results that a patient wants, it may be an ideal time to coordinate an additional procedure at the same time. Many of our patients opt for other procedures, such as neck lifts, facelifts, or skin resurfacing procedures.
Facelift
A facelift addresses loose skin and muscles in the mid-to-lower face and neck by tightening them. When fat grafting is added, it can lift sagging tissue while restoring volume to hollow cheeks and temples—delivering a firmer, fuller, more youthful look that also has better balance and definition.
Blepharoplasty (Eyelid Surgery)
When blepharoplasty is paired with facial fat grafting, it refreshes the eyes, not only by banishing surplus skin and fat from the lids but also by ironing out hollows underneath. This two-pronged strategy can do away with a weary or older look, brightening a patient’s gaze and enhancing how well all facial features work together.
Recovery After Fat Grafting
Immediate Recovery
After the operation, patients will relax in our cozy facility until the anesthesia subsides. At this point, Dr. Metzinger and our staff will keep a close eye on the patient as part of our effort to confirm that everything is going well. Patients can expect some mild pain as well as bruising and swelling around both the donor area and the recipient area — this is par for the course. We provide medication and post-operative care instructions to make the early recovery process as comfortable as possible.
Initial Weeks
During the initial two to three weeks post-treatment, patients can expect a progressive reduction in swelling and bruising.We recommend they steer clear of vigorous exercise and elevate treated areas whenever feasible. To promote healing and minimize fluid retention, compression garments may need to be worn on donor sites. Light activity and plenty of fluids are also important for convalescence – we suggest walking and drinking water.
Long-Term Results
It may require weeks to months for the ultimate results to become fully apparent. This is because swelling goes down, and the transferred fat establishes itself. Results vary and depend on how much fat will survive the transferring process. The body will naturally reabsorb some of the fat, but most of it will remain in place. Once they have healed completely from surgery (which also helps with skin texture over time), those who lead healthy lives can expect to enjoy their youthful looks for even longer than usual: up to a decade or maybe more.
Who Should Consider Fat Grafting?
Patients who may be good candidates for fat grafting are those who have lost volume in their face but have extra fat elsewhere in their bodies. Here are some additional key points to consider:
Facial Volume Loss
People with excess fat, sunken cheeks, hollow temples, or under-eye hollows often do well with fat grafting because it adds volume. This plastic surgery can make them look younger.
Wrinkles and Skin Laxity
Those who have fine lines, skin creases, or drooping may choose this procedure to improve skin texture and tighten things up a bit.
Adequate Fat Reserves
Because fat must be removed from one part of the body before being processed and injected somewhere else, patients need to have sufficient unwanted fat reserves for a successful outcome.
Stable Weight
Patients must be at or near their ideal weight and have no plans to gain or lose a significant amount. Weight fluctuations can impact graft results.
Non-smokers
Patients who smoke may experience a delay in healing and lower rates of fat graft survival. Those who do not smoke or are open to quitting before the operation might be better candidates.
Desire for Natural Results
Fat grafting is often preferred by patients seeking natural-looking enhancement without synthetic fillers or implants, as it provides subtle results that can last a long time.
During your consultation, Dr. Metzinger will carefully evaluate your facial structure, discuss your aesthetic goals, and determine if chin enhancement surgery is the most appropriate solution for your desired outcome.
Benefits of Fat Grafting
Restoring Volume Naturally
By harnessing the power of a patient’s own body, fat grafting can reverse volume loss in places such as the under-eyes, cheeks, temples, and lips. This will give them a soft feel that looks completely natural. In other words, it will blend right in with how those areas already are—not like artificial fillers can sometimes do.
Help Regain a Youthful Face Shape
Fat grafting can help smooth wrinkles, lift skin, and bring back a youthful appearance by filling in areas that have become sunken or hollow over time or after weight loss. This treatment is especially effective on laugh lines, marionette lines (the creases that run from the corners of the mouth down to the chin), and tear troughs (the hollow area under the eyes).
Better Skin Quality
When fat is transferred, it brings with it stem cells that can improve the quality of skin: texture, tone, and overall condition. In fact, some people find they have a more glowing complexion, which is firmer as well – particularly if used alongside other treatments for rejuvenation.
Two-in-One Advantage of Body Contouring
While improving facial appearance, fat obtained via gentle liposuction from areas such as the flanks, thighs, or abdomen also allows for body contouring in the donor sites themselves.
Results That Endure
While temporary dermal fillers must be redone regularly, the effects of fat grafting can last a lifetime. Indeed, some of the grafted fat will become a permanent part of the area, meaning that—provided a patient looks after their weight—the added volume may never disappear.
Increased Confidence
Fat grafting rejuvenates the face and eliminates signs of aging, boosting self-esteem substantially. Patients frequently sense that they appear more appealing and energetic. In social situations and at work, they carry themselves with new confidence.
Cost of Fat Grafting
in Metairie, LA
The average cost of fat grafting in Metairie, LA, ranges between $4,000 and $15,000, depending on the complexity and number of treatment areas. The price generally covers everything: the surgeon’s fee, anesthesia, expenses for using the operating room, liposuction to remove fat, a process to purify the fat, and any check-up appointments afterward. Other things that might have an impact on price are if a patient decides to have fat injections plus another cosmetic surgery like a facelift, eyelid operation, or even breast implant placement. It is recommended to meet with Dr. Metzinger for a consultation to get an accurate estimate for a fat grafting procedure.
Why Choose Aesthetic Surgical Associates for Fat Grafting in Metairie, LA?
At Aesthetic Surgical Associates, we take great care of patients thanks to the expertise of Dr. Stephen E. Metzinger. He has been working in cosmetic facial surgery for many years and understands how to make sure patients look better – not different – after treatment. Cosmetic facial surgery patients can feel confident placing themselves in the capable hands of our surgeon. We want everyone who comes here to feel good about the way they look. No two people are identical, which is why each patient gets a special treatment plan designed just for them.
