How does lipofilling work to rejuvenate the face?

Lipofilling involves removing the patient’s fat from an area of the body where it is in excess, and reinjecting it into other areas where it is lacking.

As this is an autologous transplant (the fat cell donor and recipient are the same people), there is no risk of foreign-body rejection.

Injected fat has a dual effect:

• A volume effect to create new reliefs or fill in areas that have melted;
• A trophic effect, as the stromal fraction of fatty tissue is very rich in stem cells, with rejuvenating and regenerating properties.

As facial skin ages, fibroblast activity declines, resulting in loss of elasticity and firmness, while the face deepens under the combined effect of loss of hyaluronic acid (in the dermis) and fatty tissue (in the hypodermis).

Lipofilling will therefore treat the main signs of facial ageing at their roots:

• Its volumizing effect helps restore facial volume and rework a sagging oval, for example by restoring volume to sunken cheekbones;
• Its filling effect eliminates hollow circles and static wrinkles, such as the nasolabial fold;
• Its trophic effect helps to improve skin quality by boosting the activity of dermal fibroblasts; nano-lipofilling, involving small volumes rich in stem cells, will enhance skin radiance and facial luminosity.

What are the different types of facial lipofilling?

Volumizing lipofilling aims to restore volume:

• Or to beautify the face, for example by creating reliefs that were previously absent. This is possible, for example, with medical genioplasty, to give a little projection to a receding chin (progeny).

Volumizing lipofilling is a minimally invasive technique, but requires a patient with sufficient localized excess fat to perform the procedure. The abdomen or thighs are often the site of choice.

It’s a simple solution for :

• Rejuvenate a face by restoring lost volume, either in isolation (volumetry of the oval of the face) or as a complement to a cervico-facial lift;
• Rejuvenate deepening eyes, for example by using addition blepharoplasty to treat hollow circles that darken and harden the eyes.

Filling lipofilling involves smaller volumes, making it feasible for most patients, even the leanest: the fat is taken from the hollow of the knee.

Unlike hyaluronic acid injections, the results are long-lasting, whether for filling hollow dark circles or static facial wrinkles such as the valley of tears or the nasolabial fold.

Nano-lipofilling or nanofat-grafting focuses on even smaller volumes, to benefit not from the volumizing effect of fat cells, but from their trophic effect. This innovative, yet virtually natural, technique not only fills small wrinkles, but also helps the skin regenerate thanks to natural growth factors and stem cells. In just a few weeks, the skin is rejuvenated and regains its contours, firmness and radiance, enhancing the youthfulness of the eyes (treatment of dark circles, for example) or the whole face.

Dr Hayot considers nano-lipofilling to be the only truly effective and long-lasting method of removing dark circles.

How to enhance the results of lipofilling?

Once the fat cells have been injected, around 25-30% of the graft will not take and resorb: this is normal and your surgeon will always take this into account.

On the other hand, the rest of the graft is definitive, giving a lasting and spectacular result.

However, Dr Hayot advises following a few rules to enhance the effect over time:

• It is important to follow the post-operative advice, with the possibility, if necessary, of a touch-up after 3 to 6 months;
• As loss of volume is the main factor in ageing, the skin must be well hydrated with a fluid hyaluronic acid to nourish the dermis, while protecting it from the deleterious effects of UV rays;
• Although adipocyte grafting is definitive and acquired, it should not be forgotten that their volume can vary upwards (in the event of weight gain) or downwards (in the event of weight loss). That’s why it’s important to maintain a healthy lifestyle, to guarantee a stable weight… and perfectly refreshed features, thanks to the rejuvenating effects of facial lipofilling.