There are a number of ways to carry out a facelift – the right approach will depend on your physiology, the results you’d like to achieve and your personal preferences.
Fat grafting, also known as ‘surgical fat transfer’ and ‘lipomodelling’ is becoming increasingly popular as a way to rejuvenate the face and a desirable alternative to facial fillers made of Botulinum toxin. Many people opt for the fat grafting facelift for this reason but also because they like the idea of their own body tissue being used.
With a fat grafting facelift, fat is removed from an area of the body and used to plump out the facial features, reducing the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. Concentrating on the temples and forehead, cheeks and chin in particular, this can be a highly effective way to restore a youthful appearance.
Natural ageing often leads to a loss of tissue and volume, with many patients complaining about sunken cheekbones which are ageing in themselves but cause other problems, like making under-eye bags even more prominent and enhancing the appearance of a downturned mouth.
Fat grafting in facelifting involves using small cuts in the skin so that fat can be sucked out. The cuts are repaired with stitches and the fat is prepared (ie the blood is removed) for injection in the new site. The removal and reinsertion of fat happen in the same procedure, there’s just a short pause between the two parts of your treatment but you will be kept comfortable throughout by our expert team.
Injecting fat in this way is relatively quick and simple and there’s no need for stitches. Most patients can be treated using a local anaesthetic and go home straight away, though a general anaesthetic and an overnight stay in our hospital may be needed if you are having fat transferred into numerous sites simultaneously.
Like any facelift procedure, you should expect to be bruised and swollen for a few weeks after surgery, but your recovery should be faster than a traditional facelift. You will need to be driven home from the hospital and take it easy in the first few days, though our expert team will give you tailored guidance on how to have a smooth recovery.
What to do next
If you are considering face lift surgery, you can find out about our various approaches here.
Of course, the nature of surgery and the human body means that no plastic surgery practice can guarantee what results can be achieved though we will do everything we can to give you the information you need to decide if surgery is the right option for you.
The first step is to attend an initial consultation with a member of our experienced team. They will take the time to understand what you want to achieve – a shared vision is extremely important as we will be able to tell you if your expectations are achievable.