Breast Fat Injection 101

Breast injection. Breast enlargement by injecting fat is a hot topic.   Dr. Lee Thornton, Medical Advisor for The Plastic Surgery Channel talks about breast injections.

What is a breast injection?

Fat injection or grafting has broad applications in cosmetic surgery. Fat injected into areas requiring volume-enhancement produces safe, long-lasting, and natural-appearing results as volume is replaced to tissues where fat is diminished.  Breast injections with fat for small contour irregularities has been well accepted; however breast injection for cosmetic enlargement is more controversial.

What are the advantages of breast injections?

There are several potential advantages to this method of breast augmentation. These include:

1. obviating the need for an implant which may require additional surgery in the future
2. the ability to sculpt the breast more precisely than with implants by adding the fat only where more fullness is needed
3. a very natural appearance and feel due to using the patients own fat.
4. a reduction in  fat in unwanted areas with liposuction in order to use it to add volume to the breasts.

Nevertheless, the overall safety of breast injections has yet to be proven and more importantly the majority of breast augmentation patients desire more enlargement than fat injection can provide.  Additionally,  many patients also do not have enough fat in other areas to make injections a viable option.

If you would like to know more about breast injections be sure to choose a surgeon certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery who is familiar with this technique and explore The Plastic Surgery Channel educational videos for a wealth of information by experts in the field of Plastic Surgery.