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Facial fat transfer, also called facial lipofilling or fat grafting, is a procedure in which fat is gently taken from another part of your body, purified and injected into areas of the face that have lost volume. It is commonly used for hollow cheeks, sunken temples, under-eye hollows, flat lips, the lines around the mouth and the jawline. Because it uses your own tissue, there is no risk of an allergic reaction, and the fat that survives becomes a permanent part of the face.
Volume loss is one of the main reasons a face looks older. With age, the fat compartments of the face shrink and shift, the bone beneath slowly recedes, and the face loses the rounded contours of youth. A face that has deflated cannot be fully corrected by lifting alone. Fat transfer replaces what has been lost.
Where facial fat transfer can help
- Cheeks: restoring fullness over the cheekbones and softening flat or hollow cheeks
- Temples: filling concave temples that make the face look narrow at the top
- Under the eyes: softening the tear trough and dark hollows, often together with lower eyelid surgery
- Nasolabial and marionette folds: softening the folds around the mouth
- Lips: adding subtle, natural volume
- Jawline and chin: improving definition and projection
- After other surgery: correcting hollows or irregularities after a previous facelift or liposuction
Fat, filler or lift?
| Treatment | What it does | Duration | Downtime |
|---|---|---|---|
| Facial fat transfer | Restores volume with your own tissue | Long-lasting once established | 1–2 weeks |
| Dermal fillers | Adds volume with hyaluronic acid | About 6–18 months | Hours to days |
| Facelift | Repositions sagging tissue | Many years | 2–3 weeks |
A face that has sagged needs lifting. A face that has deflated needs volume. Most faces over forty-five have a combination of both, which is why fat transfer is often performed together with a facelift or deep plane facelift.
How the procedure works
The procedure usually takes one to two hours. It is performed under local anaesthesia with sedation or, when combined with other procedures, under general anaesthesia.
- Harvesting. Fat is taken from the abdomen, flanks or inner thighs through small incisions using a thin cannula with gentle suction. Low pressure protects the fat cells.
- Processing. The fat is purified to remove fluid, oil and blood, leaving healthy fat cells. For fine areas, such as under the eyes, it can be filtered into smaller particles, sometimes called micro- or nanofat.
- Injection. The fat is placed in tiny amounts, in many layers, with fine blunt cannulas. Placing small droplets rather than large deposits gives each one the best chance of establishing a blood supply and survival.
The technique requires patience. Layering fat carefully in small amounts is what gives the smooth, natural result and reduces the risk of lumps.
How much fat survives?
Not all the transferred fat survives. In the first weeks, some of it is reabsorbed by the body, and the rest establishes a blood supply and becomes permanent. Survival varies from person to person and between areas of the face, with areas that move a lot, like the lips, generally retaining less than stable areas such as the cheeks and temples. For this reason a little more fat than needed may be placed, and some patients choose a second smaller session a few months later to fine-tune.
Smoking reduces fat survival significantly, so stopping nicotine before and after the procedure is important.
A note on “stem cell” facelifts
Fat tissue contains regenerative cells, including a small population of stem cells, and very finely processed fat is sometimes marketed as a stem cell treatment for the skin. There is genuine research interest in this area, and some patients notice that the skin over grafted areas looks a little healthier. However, claims that fat grafting reliably rejuvenates skin quality or reverses ageing through stem cells go beyond what the evidence currently supports. We describe the procedure for what it predictably does: it restores lost volume with your own tissue. Any improvement in skin quality is welcome, but it should not be the reason for choosing the procedure.
Who is a good candidate?
You may be a good candidate if you have lost volume in the face, have enough fat in a donor area (even slim people usually do), are in good health and have realistic expectations. Fat transfer is also useful for people who want a longer-lasting alternative to repeated fillers.
Preparing for the procedure
Stop aspirin, anti-inflammatory painkillers and blood-thinning supplements about two weeks beforehand, after checking with your doctor, and stop smoking at least four weeks before and after. Keep your weight stable in the months leading up to the procedure, as large weight changes afterwards will affect the transferred fat. Wear comfortable clothing and bring a compression garment if the donor site is the abdomen or thighs, or one will be provided.
Recovery
- Days 1–3: swelling and bruising in the face; the donor area is sore, like a bruise; cold compresses help
- Days 5–7: swelling reduces; bruising fades
- Weeks 1–2: most people return to work and social life
- Weeks 2–4: avoid massaging or pressing on the treated areas unless advised
- Months 3–6: the fat that will survive has established itself; the final result is visible
The face may look fuller than planned in the first weeks. This is expected and settles as swelling reduces and some fat is reabsorbed.
Keeping the result
Grafted fat that has survived behaves like the fat around it. It shrinks when you lose weight and grows when you gain it. A stable weight is therefore the single most useful thing you can do to keep the result looking as intended. Significant weight gain can make grafted areas, such as the cheeks, look fuller than planned, while major weight loss can reduce the effect. Sun protection and not smoking help the skin over the grafted areas age well. The face will continue its natural ageing, and some people choose a small top-up session years later rather than returning to regular fillers.
Risks
Facial fat transfer is generally safe. Possible risks include swelling, bruising, lumps or irregularities (especially in thin skin such as under the eyes), asymmetry, reabsorption of more fat than expected, infection, and fat that grows if you gain weight. A rare but serious risk with any injection in the face is the blockage of a blood vessel. Using blunt cannulas, injecting slowly and knowing the facial anatomy in detail reduce this risk.
Facial fat transfer in Istanbul
A stay of five to seven days allows time for the procedure, the first check and the early swelling to settle. When combined with a facelift or eyelid surgery, the length of stay follows the larger procedure.
Dr. Mehmet Özdemir is a plastic, reconstructive and aesthetic surgeon holding the EBOPRAS qualification, trained in Germany, Poland and Brazil. He practises in Bakırköy, Istanbul, and consults in Turkish, Kurdish, English and German. He looks at whether your face needs volume, lifting or both, and plans fat transfer as part of a balanced approach rather than as a standalone filling procedure.
