Natural Facial Rejuvenation with Fat Grafting

The most common statements and questions I get by my patients are about getting natural results. What is your technique to remove the excess skin, but not make me look unnatural? Where do you place the incisions so that others do not see them? The answers are based on addressing three major components to creating a natural and youthful appearing face, where your own unique facial features are not distorted.

These three elements are critical to all my patients and I strive to get a home run every time. The first component is recognizing that the soft tissues of the face descend with age due laxity of the tissues, effects of our environment, and the unforgivable force of gravity. In my technique I address this descent of the facial tissues internally by repositioning the deeper facial tissues high on the cheekbones effectively resorting their youthful more natural position. I do not rely on the skin for this effect due to the undo tension this would create on the skin, and the unnatural results it will yield.

This brings me to the second component, which is to remove the excess skin without placing significant tension that will distort your unique facial features and give you an unnatural look. Removing the excess skin is very important, but there is a fine line that should not be crossed by removing too much. In my technique I re-drape the skin to hide the scars behind your ear both in front and behind it. I close the skin with no tension, leaving smooth, and well-contoured cheeks, lips, and chin.

The neck is also addressed with the same principles already mentioned. The neck is accessed both from the sides, and from a small incision underneath the chin (which hides very well). The muscle of the neck called the platysma is separated from the skin, the excess fat is removed, and the muscle is tightened to provide a well-contoured neck. The neck is a key component to any facelift if needed, and the bands that are noted in the neck can be corrected very easily using this technique.

The last and third component to creating a natural and youthful face is recognizing that not only the soft tissues descend, but also there is a loss of volume over time. This volume must be restored to provide natural and youthful results. Some surgeons use facial fillers such as hyaluronic acid, however your body absorbs these substances with time. In my technique I use your own fat, which I harvest using a unique technique where the fat is processed very gently to maximize survival. The fat is suctioned with low pressure, in a closed system (not exposed to air), and with a device that is atraumatic (the K-Vac). The fat is then injected in areas of your face that tend to loose volume. By filling the concavities that are made with the loss of volume (marionette lines, nasolabial folds, cheek bones), I can effectively remove the shadows that are caused, and restore the oval youthful shape of your face.

My facelift has been kindly termed the “non-surgical face lift” since the results are natural, not over done, and non distorting. My technique leads to a facelift that looks natural, youthful, and most importantly does not look operated upon.