Deutsch
English
Nederlands
The procedure | Lipofilling of the breast
The method of lipofilling combines liposuction with breast augmentation, where your own fat can be used to enlarge your breasts. The fat is taken from natural fat deposits, like the abdomen, the flanks or the hips. There is a limit to how much fat can be injected into a breast, as the fat needs healthy tissue with good vascularisation to survive. This means that realistically an enlargement of (only) one cupsize can be achieved. Lipofilling therefore is often used in combination with an implant, thus creating a very versatile and custom made solution to create a breast shape with volume exactly where you want or need it.
Where will I be operated?
Depending on the techniques used, the operation will be performed either in the Radetzky villa or in one of the private clinics of Vienna. If you have a preference then we will of course take this into consideration.
What can I expect of the operation?
Your surgeon will always see you before the operation and will talk you through the steps. Markings will be made on your breasts and pictures will be taken for documentation. The operation will be performed under general anaesthetic and will take approximately 120 minutes. The fat will be taken out by liposuction, but only the fat cells and the stem cells will be isolated and used to augment the breast.
What are the risks?
Lipofilling is considered to be a low risk procedure. Most common complication is the risk of infection (1-3%). It can be dealteffectively and at limited physical cost by antibiotics if noted at an early stage.
What can I expect after the operation?
When the anaesthetic wears off you may experience some slight discomfort, which however typically disappears after the first few hours. In the first days healing will include some swelling, combined with a tightness of the areas involved in surgery, and (variably) some bruising. You may notice some tightness on your chest and initially some asymmetry may be present, but this will disappear as swelling subsides and healing occurs.
What will the scars be like?
The scars of lipofilling will be minimal and in most cases not noticeable.
How long before I can resume my normal life?
Most woman manage to return to light activities in the first few days after surgery, while some manage to return to work after a week (depending on physical requirements). Realistically it will take two weeks to reach this stage for most. Sports activities can on average be resumed after 6 weeks. Please listen to your body though; pain is a protective mechanism so if certain movements are painful please refrain from doing them.
What is good to know about the long term?
Not all fat cells survive the transplantation process. A slight loss of volume is seen in the first 6 weeks before the situation stabilises. In some cases multiple procedures are therefore necessary.
