The most common and popular fillers today are: such preparations retain a long-lasting effect, have good biocompatibility and, moreover, can replenish and retain the necessary moisture in the deep layers of the skin.

However, another popular material used in contouring even before the discovery of the magical properties of hyaluronic acid was... your own human fat.

The procedure for filling imperfections in appearance with fat is called lipofilling. In cosmetology it has other names - fat grafting or liposculpture.

People first started talking about fat grafting in America, about a hundred years ago, as the first natural rejuvenation procedure. During the procedure, adipose tissue is taken from the patient through miniature punctures (from “problem areas” - the abdomen, buttocks, thighs), processed in a centrifuge, cleaned of impurities and anesthetic, and with a thin needle injected into problem areas where there is not enough volume: in the cheeks or chin, into deep expression wrinkles.

In essence, lipofilling is very similar to the procedure - only with plasma lifting, the patient’s blood undergoes a similar treatment. This is the main advantage of both methods: rejuvenation is based on the patient’s own tissues and cells, which are not rejected by the body, shorten rehabilitation after the process and do not cause allergic reactions even in the most difficult cases.

Natural fat fillers dissolve for a long time, do not clump, and are almost invisible to the touch. The result is noticeable after 1-2 months, when 50% of the fat cells take root, filling in the depressions and wrinkles. The procedure should be repeated after approximately 6-12 months.

In which areas is lipofilling performed?

Indications for lipofilling are:

Deep wrinkles (nasolabial folds, tear grooves, expression lines on the forehead, crow's feet around the eyes);

Natural flaws in appearance (excessively sunken cheeks or cheekbones, deep-set eyes, necessity);

Age-related changes in the hands (protruding veins and tendons, wrinkles, blood vessels);

Scars and tissue defects after operations and injuries;

Small volume of the breasts (lipofilling can increase the breasts by about one size), legs or buttocks.

Which is better: lipolifting or hyaluronic acid?

The question is incorrect for the reason that the result of contouring in both cases depends solely on the patient’s body.

Some patients may not have enough adipose tissue in the amount required for transplantation, and then the best option for him is hyaluronic acid fillers.

Other patients may have an allergic reaction to hyaluronic acid and their only option is lipofilling.

Contour plastic surgery with hyaluronic acid takes less time, it is a simpler procedure, and the result is visible much faster - in about 2-3 days - whereas after lipofilling the effect will be noticeable only after a month. Fat cells take root slowly and not all of them, and often, to fill the missing volume, more procedures may be needed than with hyaluronic acid injections. However, engrafted fat cells can, in some cases, retain volume longer than hyaluronic fillers. However, some plastic surgeons and cosmetologists note that predicting exactly how fat will be absorbed is much more difficult than with hyaluronic fillers.

The overall effect of both procedures is approximately the same: wrinkles are smoothed out, the skin becomes younger, cosmetic defects are eliminated, and in general, no specialist can say that one method is significantly better or worse than the other.

First-hand opinion: honestly about lipofilling

Plastic surgeons often hear requests from patients: give me facial plastic surgery to look younger. But rejuvenation does not always require surgery - there are many alternative ways to correct the oval of the face, smooth out wrinkles, and give the face volume and radiance, like in youth. One of these methods is correction using the patient’s own fat cells, or lipofilling.

Pirus Vladimir Petrovich, plastic surgeon at the “Visit-Cosmetic” cosmetic surgery clinic, Master of Medicine. Full member of the All-Ukrainian Association of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons since 2002. Full member of the Russian Association of Plastic Surgeons since 2000. Representative of the French school of plastic surgeons in Ukraine.

Official certified international trainer of Allergan in contouring and botulinum therapy. Regular participant in international congresses and trainings on plastic surgery in near and far abroad.

How fat is better than hyaluronic acid

V.P.: Fat is not hydrophilic. It provides more permanent results. Fat can be taken free of charge and as much as is needed to achieve results, so if it is necessary to use large volumes, it has clear advantages over hyaluronic acid.

It cannot be perceived by the body as foreign, unlike materials of synthetic or biological origin.

What are the disadvantages of lipofilling

V.P.: In some cases, there is a need for repeated corrective procedures. It is more difficult to control the final volume. The donor area is additionally injured.

The possibility of using the technique in patients of asthenic type is limited. The procedure requires special conditions close to operating room conditions. The recovery period is slightly longer and the symptoms after the procedure are more pronounced.

V.P.: The goal of lipofilling is to restore lost or missing tissue volumes using exclusively the patient's own fat cells.

It can be used both as a rejuvenating and as an image procedure. The areas of application of lipofilling are very extensive: correction of the volume of the midface, periorbital area, facial oval, volume of the lips, nasolabial folds, correction of the contours and volume of the chest, buttocks, legs. lipofilling can also be used as a reconstructive procedure for the treatment and restoration of scar deformities and contractures, atrophies of various origins and asymmetry.

Recently, nanolipofilling has become especially popular. This is a special procedure that uses emulsified fat containing a large number of regenerative cellular factors - stem cell precursors.

Essentially, as a result of the procedure, the skin has a stimulating regenerative effect. The appearance and condition of the skin improves.

Nanolipofilling can be used in a complex of rejuvenating procedures for the dorsum of the hands, décolleté, and periorbital area. Of particular interest is the treatment of “dark circles” around the eyes.

What other procedures and operations can or even be recommended to combine lipofilling?

V.P.: Lipofilling is an excellent addition to operations such as blepharoplasty, facelift, and correction of atrophic changes in the mammary glands during re-endoprosthetics.

Modern global progressive trends in anti-aging facial surgery are such that most anti-aging facial surgeries are now practically impossible without lipofilling.

And this combination makes it possible to make them more effective and less aggressive. And the result is more harmonious and effective. In many cases, lipofilling gives excellent results as an independent procedure in patients with minor age-related changes.

If a repeat lipofilling procedure is planned, how soon can it be performed?

V.P.: Since some fat cells die during lipofilling (30-40%), a repeat corrective procedure is prescribed to the patient quite often to achieve an optimal result. It is believed that the best period for such correction is periods of 3 months or more.

What is the duration of the rehabilitation period after lipofilling? Necessary conditions that the patient must comply with

V.P.: Major noticeable symptoms, such as swelling or minor bruising, disappear after about 10-14 days.

During this period, it is strictly forbidden to do intense massage in the lipofilling area, or use warming procedures (sauna, bathhouse, among others). It is not recommended to travel by air for 5-7 days. Avoid strong alcohol, spicy foods and foods high in salt.

Smoking can significantly impair the survival of fat cells due to spasm of peripheral capillaries. The process of survival of fat cells is worsened by the use of local cold compresses and the wearing of compression postoperative bandages or underwear.

Is it possible to return time? It may seem to many that the answer to this question is obvious. In fact, when it comes to female beauty, anything is possible. After all, modern techniques and drugs make it possible to restore youth and attractiveness in a matter of minutes.

What is the essence of contour plastic surgery?

Facial contouring is a reliable method of combating age-related changes. The procedure consists of intradermal injections and is aimed not only at smoothing wrinkles, but also at correcting contours and is even one of the types. The main advantage of the method is the ability to correct individual areas.

Among the many advantages of contour plastic surgery are:

• the session is quick (30-60 minutes) and painless;
• the patient can return to normal life immediately after completion of the procedure;
• lack of rehabilitation period, marks and scars;
• rejuvenation;
• high level of efficiency;
• opportunity to correct the result.

At the same time, there are contraindications to the procedure:

• exacerbation of chronic diseases;
• blood clotting problems;
• pregnancy and lactation;
• intolerance to individual components of the product.

Today, in the field of aesthetic medicine, two techniques have gained particular popularity: fillers. What are the advantages and disadvantages of each of them?

Pros and cons of lipofilling

The body's fat cells are a natural filler for soft tissue that can merge with surrounding cells, improving and healing them. Fat transfer is a procedure that allows you to transfer fat from one part of the body to another. To do this, it is enough for the patient to have a reserve in the donor areas (on the lateral surface of the thighs and abdomen).

The procedure is especially popular in the following cases:

• irregular shape of cheeks, nose, cheekbones, lips;
• pronounced asymmetry;
• nasolabial folds, nasolacrimal grooves, deep wrinkles;
• sagging contours;
• curvature of the legs.

The main advantage of the technique is that the patient’s own fat acts as a filler. The disadvantages include the likelihood of not one hundred percent results after the first session. Sometimes, the cells take root by only 50%, so the effect may not meet the client’s expectations and the process will have to be repeated again.

Despite this, we can highlight the undeniable advantages of this technique:

• there is no risk of an allergic reaction;
• high level of cell compatibility;
• permanent result;
• the ability to carry out correction not only of the face, but also of other areas, for example, to do;
• possibility of correction by introducing additional volumes.

Pros and cons of fillers

Fillers are dermal fillers used in injection cosmetology to reduce the depth of nasolabial folds or wrinkles, as well as to add additional volume in certain areas (lips, cheeks, cheekbones). They can be based on calcium, polylactic acid, collagen, or be.

Benefits of using fillers:

• the composition of the administered drug improves the condition of the skin;
• low risk of complications;
• the process takes a little time;
• they do not injure tissue;
• the use of hyaluronic acid allows you to achieve a rejuvenating effect;
• if desired, the filler can be removed;
• the drug is eliminated from the body on its own.

The scope of use of the product is similar to the use of lipofilling: correction of features, smoothing of wrinkles, smoothing of relief, improvement of facial contours.

When to choose what?

Comparing lipofilling procedures and various fillers, the following can be highlighted.

Changing the shape of the lips is perhaps the most common cosmetic procedure recently. Women resort to her all the time, and this is not surprising. After all, the majority of the fair sex are confident that lip augmentation can solve many women’s problems. The main one is to feel attractive.

Video: injection lip augmentation: pros and cons

The main motives for augmentation cheiloplasty

• Firstly, not all women naturally have plump, appetizing and sensual lips that men like so much, especially since in recent decades full lips have become incredibly fashionable and “modern”. Many people want to correct the injustice of nature.

• Secondly, there are quite a few cases of injury or change in the shape of the lips for the worse, which leads to the need to restore their lost symmetry, make scars, scars and other imperfections invisible.
• Thirdly, with age, most women’s lips lose their natural beauty and seductive shape. Lips become thinner, paler, and lose their former volume. Their corners often droop, and wrinkles appear around the contour. I want to correct the situation, and this is understandable.
• Fourthly, many women think that changing the shape of their lips will not just turn them into beauties, but will make them feel more confident and significant, and will give originality and a touch of exoticism to their facial features.

Since women think so, cosmetologists can only meet them halfway.

However, doctors remind us of a number of circumstances that do not allow everyone to count on a lip augmentation procedure.

Contraindications to lip augmentation

• during pregnancy and breastfeeding;
• in case of inflammatory processes that affect the lips (herpes, acne);
• if the patient suffers from cancer;
• in case of epilepsy;
• with hemophilia (poor blood clotting);
• with increased sensitivity to components introduced into the lip area during injection.

If there are no contraindications to lip contouring, all that remains is to decide what shape and size of the lip you would like to have and what correction technique to use for this part of the face. All lip procedures are delicate, careful work, requiring artistic taste and extraordinary attention to every moment of the process. The result of the work of cosmetologists depends not only on the desires of the patient and his willingness to incur material losses. In many ways, the result of operations performed on the lips is determined by the artistic taste of the cosmetologist, his ability to take into account the principles of creating harmonious proportions of the face.

Modern methods of lip augmentation

There are two main directions (techniques) for changing the shape of the lips: filling the contour and the technique of vertical injections - injections that create the so-called “Parisian lips”.

Filling the contour with fillers

The first method of contouring involves creating volume using two factors: filler (a filler that provides the skin with a smooth texture) and artificial edema. The swelling increases in the first minutes after administration of the drug - and this effect lasts for about an hour. The swelling subsides completely only two days after completion of the procedure. The one who “sculpts” the contour of the lips must very carefully knead the necessary places one by one - for the sake of the correct distribution of the filler.

The success of this method of correction directly depends on the ability of the cosmetologist to maintain the symmetry of the filling process itself and the speed of completion of the operation. An experienced specialist always achieves an ideal result, and it is very good if he is able to observe the measure when working with the injected substance. An overly expressive outline may be perceived by others as unnatural.

At times, cosmetologists meet the patient’s desire to give the lips a hyper-accentuated contour. It is difficult to resist this desire, but it is possible. Women interested in exorbitant enlargement of their lips should be explained that the impression of artificiality in such cases always arises. It intensifies when trying to carry on a conversation or smile: the natural facial expressions of the lips may be noticeably disrupted.

Vertical injection technique: Parisian sponges

The method of vertical injections provides greater naturalness to the changes. At the same time, “Parisian lips” are formed - the lip augmentation agent is distributed in such a way that even with overcorrection the result is excellent. If the names of Monica Bellucci and Scarlett Johansson tell you anything, then it is their lip shape that is the ideal to which this contouring technique can lead.

The result of the work of specialists who adhere to the “Parisian” technology will be lips that have not lost their natural relief and look natural both in moments of rest and during facial movements. The effect of slight swelling in this case can be easily corrected - to the point that it will not be difficult to restore the original shape of the lips within 24 hours (to do this, it is enough to introduce an absorbable filler agent). The fact that lip augmentation can be corrected before and after is a big plus for this method of cosmetic procedures.

Which is better: lipofilling or hyaluronic acid injections?

The term “lipofilling” refers to the injection of fat cells removed from other areas of the patient’s body into the lips. This operation should only be performed by a plastic surgeon: the technique of the process is quite complex. The fat grafting procedure should be carried out under general anesthesia, since local anesthesia does not allow the cells of the injected tissue to successfully take root. Some cells usually do not survive, and it can be difficult to distribute fat evenly - hence the habit of doctors to inject more cells than necessary. The cost of lip augmentation in such a case turns out to be high, and even the specialists performing the operation hesitate to predict the exact shape of the lips. The length of the period when part of the face appears swollen is also depressing for patients.

Nothing similar is observed with injections of gels containing hyaluronic acid. The result of the work is noticeable within two days. When treating the desired areas with the appropriate preparation, it is much easier to correct the shape of the lips than with lipofilling. In order to prevent overcorrection, the gel is introduced gradually, trying to carefully distribute it under the skin, kneading the composition with your fingers. If after a few days there is a concern that the result is not quite what you would like, the injected excess filler can be easily removed. For this purpose, a neutralizer of the introduced composition, hyaluronidase, is used. It is administered using a cannula, an alternative to a needle. The cannula does not injure tissue and reduces swelling relatively quickly: within 12-24 hours.

The lip augmentation video confirms this information with many examples. Girls who are satisfied with the changes that have happened to them often become active participants in forums, on the pages of which they post photos of themselves before and after the procedure.

Which gel with hyaluronic acid to choose?

Natural and artificial gels are available. Both have different validity periods. Without a doubt, natural absorbable compounds are better than artificial ones. The question of how much it costs to enlarge lips using a gel containing hyaluronic acid is directly related to what kind of corrective composition you are willing to buy. Gels of natural origin are more expensive, but their validity is not too long. Temporary compositions maintain their shape for about a year, while long-term compositions last up to 3-5 years. Of course, everything is relative. A girl who is used to kissing often will not be able to maintain the shape of her corrected lips for a long time: regular massage while kissing shortens the duration of the gel.

As for artificial injections, although they provide a long-lasting effect (according to many, eternal), they can hardly still be classified as safe: no one knows how polymers that have been in the human body for many years will behave. The opinion that the use of gels with artificial fillers is a time bomb is not without foundation. It makes sense to think about the question of whether it is worth saving on your own health and whether you need to correct the shape of your lips at all.

If the opinion of people who have tried to solve the issue discussed here is important to you, reviews of lip augmentation can be found in women's magazines and on forums. Perhaps they will help you make the right choice. Lip correction is not classified by anyone as a procedure hazardous to health. But if you are going to do it, then do it in good conditions, with the participation of real professionals and without the desire to save money on the choice of drugs used for this process.

Imagine a fresh, rosy apple just picked from the tree. The peel is elastic, the flesh is dense. Beauty is not to take your eyes off. But time passes, and the peel wrinkles, the pulp dries out - the appearance of the fruit is no longer so attractive. Similar processes occur in our body with age - the skin wrinkles and sags, the subcutaneous adipose tissue becomes thinner. Plastic surgeons undertake to correct this by removing excess skin using a scalpel. But is this enough to restore your face to its former healthy, youthful appearance? No, not enough. After plastic surgery, it’s time to resort to injections of hyaluronic acid or facial lipofilling, which will fill the volume and smooth out wrinkles.

PHOTO AFTER FACIAL LIPO FILLING

Photos before and after facial lipofilling surgery can be viewed on the website of the Abrielle Plastic Surgery Clinic in the Photo Gallery section.

ANTI-AGING HYALURONIC ACID INJECTIONS

Rejuvenating filler injections allow you to create a new volume under weakened skin that will straighten it. The cosmetologist fills hollow subcutaneous areas with preparations based on hyaluronic acid. Hyaluronic fillers do not dissolve within 5-8 months, ensuring the absence of wrinkles and folds on the face, as well as the presence of the necessary volume in the cheekbones, chin or lips. There is one drawback - after this period of time a repeat session will be required.

REVIEWS ABOUT ANTI-AGING INJECTIONS

“Every morning a new face greeted me in the mirror - the swelling went away quickly, there were almost no bruises, two days later I calmly walked down the street without additional disguise like a helmet or at least sunglasses) True, I had to run across to the shady side of the street, because It was impossible to be in the sun after the operation." Victoria, 34 years old and other reviews about facial lipofilling.

ANTI-AGING LIPO FILLING INJECTIONS

An alternative to anti-aging injections with hyaluronic acid fillers is lipofilling - an operation in which the patient’s own fat tissue is used to fill the face and restore (or create) the required volumes. Fat cells are taken from the abdomen, flanks, inner thighs, riding breeches or inner knee and are injected using a special technique into the area of ​​the face that needs correction.

The advantage of lipofilling is that after complete engraftment of adipose tissue, the rejuvenation effect from injections of one’s own fat persists for many years, and after a series of successive procedures, indefinitely. As an added bonus, fat stem cells will eliminate pigmentation and have a beneficial effect on the quality and appearance of the skin. Unlike “artificial” fillers, which can migrate, fillers made from your own fat cells do not move and can be injected into any area of ​​the face and neck.

ADVANTAGES OF ANTI-AGING LIPO FILLING INJECTIONS

Lipofilling is becoming increasingly popular today, as it has a number of advantages over gels administered for the same purposes:

• after engraftment it does not dissolve, unlike fillers;
• does not migrate, does not move;
• does not cause allergic reactions;
• fat stem cells contribute to skin rejuvenation and elimination of pigmentation;
• You can inject fat into any areas of the face, neck, cheekbones and fill deep creases (for example, nasolabial folds).
• Allow yourself to turn back time - contact a cosmetologist or plastic surgeon at the Abrielle Aesthetic Surgery Clinic.