What is the difference between facial fat grafting and fillers? When is each one used?

For fat grafting, fat is obtained from places where the fat layer is thick and the site is less noticeable after harvesting, such as the abdomen or the inner thigh, and it is injected after going through a purification step. Filler uses a manufactured product, so there is no harvesting step.

Grafted fat establishes itself by receiving a blood supply in its new location, and this is called graft take. Fat that does not establish itself is absorbed by the body, so the volume immediately after surgery is not the final result, and it settles over about 1 month.

Filler is absorbed by the body and gradually diminishes between 6 months and 2 years depending on the product. Hyaluronic acid filler can be reversed with a dissolving agent.

It is rare for the face to lose volume in only one spot, so filling only one hollow area can instead make the step to the neighboring area more noticeable. When volume needs to be distributed across several areas together, we usually talk about fat grafting, and when refining the shape of a small area such as the lips or nose, we usually talk about filler.

At Pretty Body and Line Clinic, we look at the contours of your face in the consultation and first decide the distribution, how much goes where. Areas with thin skin such as under the eyes show even a small difference in injection depth, so we plan them separately from other areas.

Fat grafting is an operation that involves harvesting, so at Pretty Body and Line Clinic it is done under sedation even when a small amount is placed in one or two spots on the face, and the director, who is a board-certified anesthesiologist, handles both the procedure and the anesthesia. If there is a separate area you want reduced, it can be done together with liposuction in a single operation.