Do you wish your breasts were more symmetrical? Slightly larger? You may be interested in undergoing a mastopexy into order to restore attractive lift and volume to your breast; you may, alternatively, want to reduce the size of your breasts. If you are looking to achieve your ideal, natural-feeling breast size and contour, you now have the option of transferring your own, healthy fat into targeted areas of your breast. Fat grafting is a safe, effective way to improve the appearance of your breasts, all with your own body’s tissue!

A fat transfer is an all-around ideal procedure: not only does a fat transfer contour your breast, liposuction will be performed to collect adequate fat for your transfer from another area of your body. This liposuction will effectively slim and smooth the donor area, which will improve the contour of your body overall, in addition to the improvements that are made to your breast. If you would like to increase the size of your breasts, but maintain their natural look and feel, a fat graft is a great way to increase your breasts by one cup size. If you would like to receive a breast lift, a fat transfer is a great way to restore lost upper breast volume during a mastopexy. Similarly, if you want to address breast asymmetry, whether as a stand alone treatment or to improve the results accomplished with a breast implant or breast reduction, a fat graft will accomplish natural-looking, impressive results.

To learn more about if a fat graft to your breast is the right procedure for you, call The Gillian Institute today to schedule your private consultation.

About Fat Transfer for Breast

If you would like to increase your breasts by roughly one cup size, restore lost breast volume, or address breast asymmetry, a fat graft may be the ideal procedure for you. During a fat graft for breast procedure, Dr. Short carefully injects small amounts of your own fat into targeted areas of the breast in order to guarantee optimum acceptance of the transferred fat. Fat grafting is a good choice for patients who want even, volumized, attractively-shaped breasts that maintain a natural feel. While incisions made during a mastopexy or augmentation with implants can leave scarring on the breast, a fat transfer to the breast leaves minimal to no scarring.

In order to obtain the fat for transfer, Dr. Short will perform liposuction on a select area of your body which has adequate fat for the procedure. She will make minuscule incisions in the donor area. Using a slim cannula and tumescent liposuction, she will safely and gently collect the fat for transfer. The fat is kept in a sealed, sterile environment, while the unwanted materials are drained from the fat, making it ideal for re-injection. Dr. Short will strategically insert your fat into the targeted areas of the breast, making sure not to overfill in any one location to ensure the most fat is accepted by the body as possible. A fat graft may not be the right choice for every patient seeking a breast augmentation. For example, a fat graft alone will not address breast sagging or issues of skin laxity. To learn more about what fat grafting with a breast augmentation can do for you, we invite you to schedule a private consultation with Dr. Short at The Gillian Institute.

Benefits of Fat Transfer for Breast

A fat graft to the breast achieves the following impressive outcomes for our patients:

  • Natural look and feel of the breast.
  • Restore symmetry of the breasts.
  • Correct imperfections in breast tissue, which may have resulted from the removal of cancerous or other malignant tissue, or be created by extant implant dimpling.
  • Safe breast augmentation. The procedure increases your breast size with your own fat, which is kept in a sealed, hygienic environment and is processed for re-injection. This option is ideal for patients who only want to increase their breast by roughly one cup size.
  • Benefit of two procedures in one. A fat graft can not only improve the size and shape of your breast, it also requires Dr. Short to perform liposuction on a targeted area of your body, so that she can collect your fat for the transfer. Patients often decide to have fat taken from their thighs, abdomen, or love handles, which gives them the added benefit of a smoother, slimmer figure, in addition to their larger, more attractively-shaped breasts.
  • Minimal scarring. Due to the fact that fat is injected into the breast, the transfer does not leave scars on the breast. There may be minimal scarring as a result of the small incisions made at the fat donor site.
  • Long-lasting results. Unlike implants, which generally should be renewed every 8 to 10 years, any results achieved with a fat graft can last safely in the breast for decades.

Breast Transfer Procedures for the Breast

The results of a fat transfer to the breast will not only feel natural, they will also last for years to come! It is important to remember that the body typically does not accept all the transferred fat from a fat graft: some fat will undergo fat cell apoptosis (fat cell death), after which it will be safely and naturally eliminated from your body. Most doctors report that they can achieve 60 to 70% acceptance of patients’ transferred fat: thanks to Dr. Short’s careful injection methods, she successfully achieves acceptance of up to 80% of patients’ grafted fat!

FAT TRANSFER FOR AUGMENTATION

If you are a patient who is interested in adding roughly one cup size to your breasts, a fat graft can accomplish attractive, natural-feeling breast augmentation. An augmentation with breast fat alone is a good option for patients who are interested in going from a B to a C, due to the fact that an adequate amount of fat is already present in the breast. This is important, as the fat will need other healthy fat to adhere to. A fat transfer may also be incorporated into a breast augmentation achieved with an implant, in order to correct breast asymmetry.

FAT TRANSFER FOR ASYMMETRY

A fat graft is a great solution for patients who have differently sized breasts, or for patients who would like more volume added to the sides of their breasts. Similarly, Dr. Short can use fat grafting to fill in dents in the breast that may have been caused by the excision of tissue, or to correct rippling caused by previous implant work.

FAT TRANSFER FOR BREAST LIFT

Patients who would like to address breast sagging and loss of volume can opt to receive fat transfer during their mastopexy. In addition to removing excess skin during the breast lift, Dr. Short will inject your transferred fat into the upper region of the breast to restore the volume that has diminished due to aging, gravity and hormones.

FAT TRANSFER FOR BREAST REDUCTION

Depending on the patient’s desired outcomes, a fat transfer may help to achieve ideal breast shape after a breast reduction, but it may also be used to remove fat from the breast itself. This transferred fat may be distributed within the breast, or grafted to another part of the patient’s body where the contour can be improved.

Candidates

Ideal candidates for a fat graft for the breast are non-smokers, at a healthy, stable weight, and maintain an overall balanced diet and active lifestyle. If you have asymmetrical breasts, divots in your breast tissue, or wish you could increase the size of your breast by one size and still maintain the natural feel of your breast tissue, you may be a good candidate for a fat graft. An ideal candidate for a breast augmentation achieved solely with a fat transfer will have at least a size B cup, as there will already be adequate fat present to allow the transferred fat to take hold.

Best candidates will approach their procedure with an open, positive mindset. It is a misconception that slimmer patients cannot undergo a fat transfer for breast. We recommend that all patients who are interested in a fat graft during their procedure schedule a consultation with Dr. Short: she has the level of experience and skill necessary to determine if she will be able to collect enough donor fat tissue from you to determine if a fat graft for the breast is right for you.

Consultation

Dr. Short takes great care to tailor her fat grafts for breast to the goals of her patients, as well as to the aesthetic and physiological needs of their unique bodies. When you come to The Gillian Institute for your consultation, Dr. Short will go over your medical history, medication use, and overall lifestyle. She will perform a physical exam, as well as discuss the possible outcomes of your fat graft for breast asymmetry, breast augmentation, or breast contouring with you. Once Dr. Short has a good understanding of your goals for your fat transfer, she will create an individualized treatment plan with you.

Dr. Short will go over all options available to you during your private consultation. Patients who are looking for a greater degree of breast augmentation may be best candidates for a breast implant with a fat transfer to achieve their ideal breast shape and size. Dr. Short is happy to answer any questions you have during your consultation at The Gillian Institute. If you would like to learn more about what a fat graft can do for your breasts or other body contouring needs, call our helpful staff to schedule your appointment today!

How is Fat Grafting for Breast Performed?

Most patients undergo their fat graft for breast procedure under general anesthesia. The details of your fat grafting procedure will vary depending on the donor site that you and Dr. Short decide upon, and what results you want to accomplish with your fat graft. The length of your procedure will depend on the extent of work that you will be receiving on your breast.

Dr. Short will first harvest the fat for transfer by performing liposuction on the predetermined area of your body. Patients most often choose their thighs, flanks, or abdomen for their donor site. Your fat will be carefully collected using tumescent fluid and a slim cannula. Your fat will be briefly allowed to sit, so that the unwanted fluids may drain away. What will be left will be a safely contained, viable source of fat for transfer. Your fat transfer may be performed in conjunction with a breast augmentation with a breast implant, a breast reduction, breast lift, or as its own cosmetic procedure.

Taking care to target the desired area of the breast, Dr. Short will inject no more than one cc of fat at a time into any of area of the breast. She makes sure her injection makes a slim tunnel into the breast fat, which allows as much of the transferred fat to touch and adhere to the existing fat as possible. The positioning of the transferred fat will depend on the patient’s desired results. For example, fat that is transferred in conjunction with a mastopexy procedure will be injected predominately into the upper chest wall, in order to restore lost breast volume and elevation.

Recovery

Dr. Short recommends that her patients arrange for a friend or family member to drive them home after their fat graft for breast augmentation, as patients will not be able to drive themselves home. It is not uncommon for patients to feel sore or fatigued for up to a week after their fat transfer to their breasts.

Patients’ breasts are usually swollen and bruised after the procedure, but these conditions improve within one to two weeks. Swelling and bruising that occurs at the fat donation site will also improve within two weeks, and will be completely resolved in six weeks, depending on the extent of liposuction performed. Patients report that they experience breast “fullness” or discomfort, rather than pain after their procedure. Every patient will receive individualized instructions regarding their recovery, including approved over-the-counter methods of relieving their discomfort.

While every patient’s body is different, most patients who undergo a fat transfer as part of a procedure for the breast are usually able to return to work within four to seven days. Most patients are able to safely return to cardiovascular exercise within three weeks of their surgery.

Heavy lifting should be avoided until roughly six weeks following your procedure.

You will receive a light surgical bra to wear after your procedure. Avoid putting pressure on your breasts for up to four weeks following your fat transfer. Patients should avoid sleeping on their stomachs.

Results

As your swelling and bruising subside, you will notice that your breasts are fuller, rounder, and more proportionate to each other. If you received a breast lift with Dr. Short, you will also enjoy a lifted, more youthful position of your breasts, achieved in part because of the transferred fat at the top of the breast. Due to the fact that not all of the transferred fat will be absorbed by the body, patients will see their final results after six months. Your breasts will not only have a more attractive size and shape, the transferred fat will feel natural, like your own breast tissue.

The results achieved with a fat graft for the breast are not only remarkable, they are long-lasting. Dr. Short has patients who received fat grafts from her decades ago: they tell her that they still enjoy their results to this day!

Cost

The price of your fat graft to your breast will depend on the type of procedure that will be performed, as well as the extent of liposuction that will be necessary to achieve your desired results. Once you have completed your consultation with Dr. Short, she will create an individually-tailored treatment plan that both achieves what is appropriate for your body and satisfies your goals for your appearance. You will receive a cost breakdown that reflects this unique plan.

Interested in learning more about the impressive results of fat grafting, for the breast or any other body and facial contouring procedure? We invite you to schedule your personalized, private consultation at The Gillian Institute today!