Facial Fat Transfer for Natural Facial Rejuvenation
Facial fat transfer restores lost volume, softens lines, and improves skin quality using your own fat for results that look natural and last.
Sculpted Contours, Softened Lines
As we age, the face naturally loses volume, causing once-smooth contours to appear sunken or hollow. Wrinkles deepen, the cheeks deflate, and youthful softness is replaced by sharpness. Facial fat transfer, also known as fat grafting, restores what’s been lost, using your own body’s natural fat to smooth, fill, and rejuvenate your appearance.
This advanced technique harvests fat from areas like the abdomen, flanks, or thighs and reinjects it strategically into the face, targeting areas such as the cheeks, under-eyes, temples, nasolabial folds, and marionette lines.
Dr. Richard Balikian, a double board-certified facial plastic surgeon, performs this procedure with an artist’s touch, using fat not just for volume, but to restore natural beauty, balance, and harmony to the face.
Benefits of Facial Fat Transfer
Facial fat transfer offers a unique and natural approach to rejuvenation by restoring lost volume using your own fat.
- Restores youthful facial volume
- Smooths deep folds and wrinkles
- Enhances under-eye hollows and midface
- Provides natural, long-lasting results
- Uses your own fat, no synthetic materials
- Delivers stem cell enhanced skin quality and vibrancy
With long-lasting results facial fat transfer is a powerful way to turn back the clock both beautifully and naturally.
The Artistry of Volume Restoration
The Facial Fat Transfer Procedure
Facial fat transfer begins with gentle liposuction to harvest fat from a donor site. The fat is then purified and carefully injected into areas of the face that have lost volume.
Rather than overfilling or creating artificial roundness, Dr. Balikian aims to restore approximately 80% of the volume you had in your youth, preserving your natural appearance while softening harsh contours.
In Dr. Balikian’s words, “A facelift rejuvenates, but the fat adds the beauty.” When combined with facelift surgery, facial fat transfer becomes a powerful finishing touch, refining, enhancing, and completing the result.
Injectable Fillers vs. Fat Transfer
While injectable fillers like hyaluronic acid are often used for facial rejuvenation, fat transfer offers a unique, longer-lasting alternative. Unlike synthetic fillers, fat transfer uses your own tissue, reducing the risk of reaction and promoting natural integration.
- Fat transfer – Deeper placement, longer-lasting, regenerative benefits from stem cells
- Fillers – Shallower placement, temporary results, ideal for fine-tuning
During your consultation, Dr. Balikian will help you decide whether fat transfer, fillers, or a combination of both best suits your goals.
Am I a Candidate for Facial Fat Transfer?
Ideal candidates for fat grafting:
- Have visible facial volume loss or deep wrinkles
- Have areas of excess fat that can be harvested safely
- Are in good physical health
- Prefer natural alternatives to synthetic fillers
- Have realistic expectations about the procedure and outcome
Dr. Balikian will evaluate your goals and anatomy during a one-on-one consultation to determine if facial fat transfer is right for you.
Facial Fat Transfer FAQs
Which areas can be treated?
Common areas include temples, under eyes, cheeks, nasolabial folds, marionette lines, jawline, chin, and sometimes lips. Tiny amounts can also refine the upper eyelid hollow and brow.
How does Dr. Balikian perform it?
Fat is gently harvested with micro-liposuction, washed and refined, then placed with fine cannulas in multiple thin layers to match your anatomy. The goal is balanced volume that fits your features from every angle.
How long does facial fat transfer last?
Facial fat transfer offers long-lasting results. While not all of the transferred fat will survive the process, the fat that does establish a blood supply becomes a living, lasting part of your facial structure.
Many patients enjoy visible improvements for years, especially when paired with healthy lifestyle habits and good skin care.
How long does it take to recover from facial fat transfer?
Recovery time can vary based on the individual and whether the procedure is combined with other treatments. In general, patients can expect some swelling and bruising for about 7 to 10 days.
Because your own fat is used, the healing process is typically smooth, and most patients feel comfortable returning to social activities within two weeks.
Is facial fat transfer permanent?
Facial fat transfer is considered long-lasting and in many cases, permanent. Once the transferred fat cells develop a new blood supply and integrate into the facial tissues, they remain like any other fat in your body.
However, natural aging and weight fluctuations can still influence your facial appearance over time.
What is microfat vs nanofat?
Microfat restores contour and lift. Nanofat is processed into an even finer suspension used in very superficial layers to improve fine lines and skin quality in selected areas.
Where does the fat come from?
Typical donor sites are the abdomen, flanks, or inner thighs. The amount removed is small and the entry points are 1 to 2 mm.
Will weight changes affect my result?
Yes. Significant weight loss can reduce grafted volume. Weight gain can enlarge it. Aim to be at a maintainable weight before surgery.
How natural will it look and feel?
Very natural. It is your own tissue and is placed to follow your facial anatomy, not fight it. Dr. Balikian prioritizes balance and proportion over sheer volume.
Is fat transfer better than filler?
They serve different goals. Fat is your own tissue and can be long lasting, ideal for global volume loss. Hyaluronic acid fillers are adjustable and useful for subtle shaping. Many patients use both at different times.
How much does it cost?
Pricing depends on areas treated, anesthesia, and whether it is combined with other procedures. You will receive a personalized quote after consultation. Financing options are available.
Trust Your Face to a Facial Plastic Surgeon
Dr. Richard Balikian is a renowned facial plastic surgeon known for his dedication to patients throughout Southern California.
With more than two decades of experience and double board certification in Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery and Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery, he brings together surgical precision and an artist’s eye.
Dr. Balikian is among a select group of specialists whose advanced training is devoted entirely to procedures of the face and neck.
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The Balikian Experience
Patients choose Dr. Richard Balikian for precision facial procedures, personalized care and results that look naturally you.
Learn More About Facial Plastic Surgery
Richard V. Balikian, MD, FACS
Double Board-Certified Facial Plastic Surgeon
Balikian Facial Plastic Surgery: Richard V. Balikian, MD, FACS
Tyler Frew, MD
Board-Certified Plastic Surgeon