Breast Augmentation with Fat Grafting
Fat grafting is a way to enlarge breasts by up to one cup size without introducing an artificial substance into the body. Fat is removed from fat deposits in the body such as the hips, abdomen, and thighs and placed someplace else in order to plump that area up. Traditionally this procedure has been used to smooth wrinkles and to plump the lips and cheeks. Recently, however, cosmetic surgeons have begun to use this procedure in breast augmentations. This is a new procedure and there are not a lot of safety statistics that have been done. Physicians are still conducting research on the fat grafting procedure.
A newer technique, fat grafting with stem cells, allows for the fat taken from other parts of the body to be enriched with stem cells before it is used to augment the breasts. The added stem cells allow for the fat to be retained by the body, therefore, increasing the breast size.
Recent studies show that the risks for this procedure are generally very low. Reported side effects include infection, bleeding, and volume loss. Cases of extreme complications causing death are extremely rare.
There are many different advantages to choosing this procedure for breast augmentation. Many doctors believe that this procedure provides longer lasting results than traditional breast implants. Also, since the breast is being augmented with fat from the patient’s own body, there is a lower chance for the body rejecting it like with traditional silicone transplants.
While many medical professionals consider this procedure to have a lot of potential, but there are still some limitations. The first is that it only allows for an augmentation of up to one cup size unlike current synthetic implants. Synthetic implants are also very predictable in how much they will increase the breast size, whereas fat grafting is still relatively unpredictable in what the final outcome will be. Some medical professionals only believe that fat grafting should be used for breast reconstruction only. Others professionals are concerned that the fat grafted into the breast could calcify and obscure breast cancer detection. Each calcified area would have to be individually checked to rule out the possibility of breast cancer. There are even more concerns that women at risk for breast cancer may have the increased possibility of breast cancer if they use the stem cell method. Many doctors agree that fat grafting for breast augmentation is not right for everyone.
