Who Is A Good Candidate For Breast Augmentation By Fat Injections?

Q: I am interested in the Fat Injection Breast Augmentation surgery but have a few questions. What are the preop requirements and do you have to have multiple operations?

A: Breast augmentation with fat injections is in the early stage of technique development. While the appeal is enormous for some patients, it is a concept which has not been shown to be consistent in results just yet and the long-term outcome on breast health and cancer surveillance is unknown. Breast augmentation with implants remains a proven technique. Whether fat injections will one day be a comparative procedure remains to be seen.

What is known about fat injections for breast augmentation is that one has to select the patient for it very carefully. Several criteria are important. First, one has to have enough fat to transfer into the breast. If one is very thin or skinny, they will not be a candidate due to lack of adequate donor tissue. Secondly, one’s desired breast size increase must be modest. At best, only a 1/2 cup or maybe more can be gained in size. Desiring a bigger change than that is beyond what fat injections can yet achieve. Lastly, one must be prepared to accept the likely possibility that more than one fat transfer may be needed. Injecting too much fat in a single session will not work. It is better to incrementally increase the fat breast volume to ensure the best survival and decrease the risk of fat necrosis. Therefore, patients must be willing to accept, and have enough donor tissue, to do a second fat injection session in most cases.

Dr. Barry Eppley

Indianapolis Indiana