Liposuction With Fat Transfer To Breasts Vs. Breast Implants: Safety, Recovery And Results

Many of our patients walk into Aesthetic and Cosmetic Surgeons in Los Angeles in pursuit of breast enhancement. Because our boutique cosmetic surgery practice specializes in Awake VASER Liposuction with Fat Transfer, we field a variety of questions on how this technique compares to an old-school breast augmentation procedure. The cliff notes: the procedure is safe, gentle effective and the results are very natural. It is an increasingly popular choice among people who want to improve the shape of their breasts, and also among a swath of patients looking to increase breast size. Now that those basic points are out of the way, let’s discuss why Awake VASER Liposuction with fat transfer to breasts is trending upward in the breast enlargement market.

Understanding Awake VASER Liposuction Fat Transfer

Fat transfer, also known as autologous fat grafting, is a three-part procedure. First, excess fat is harvested from an undesirable location. Then, the fat undergoes a hi-tech purification process. Then, the cosmetic surgeon takes the purified fat and grafts it into pre-determined parts of the patient’s breasts to alter shape and improve volume. This method increases bust size while also enhancing the silhouette of the breast.

Awake VASER liposuction fat transfer provides some additional advantages over traditional liposuction fat transfer techniques. VASER liposuction utilizes ultrasonic wave technology, which eliminates the risk of liposuction burns. The instrument does minimal damage to surrounding tissue, and is more gentle than other techniques when extracting fat. This combines to shorten recovery periods and produce more quality cells to harvest for fat grafts. The fact that the procedure is done awake also removes a ton of complications from the equation and significantly shortens the patient’s expected recovery time.

Safety Benefits Of Fat Transfer Over Implants

As detailed above, Awake VASER liposuction fat transfer to breasts has some advantages over other breast augmentation procedures when it comes to safety. Here’s a summary of the benefits:

Natural Substance: Awake VASER with fat transfer utilizes the body’s own fat to enhance breast size and shape. As such, there is no risk of allergic reactions or implant rejection.
No Foreign Objects: Nothing foreign is implanted in the body during fat transfer to the breasts. Breast implants often rupture or leak. In some cases, scar tissue can form around the implants leading to capsular contracture. This causes the area to harden, causing pain and negatively affecting the appearance of the breasts. Once again, none of these complications are possible with breast fat transfer.
Minimal Scarring: Awake VASER Liposuction occurs without the creation of massive incisions. A skilled cosmetic surgeon only creates a few miniscule openings (2-4 millimeters) to insert a cannula, use the VASER system, and extract unwanted fat. Neither the lipo procedure nor the fat grafts to the breasts produce significant scarring. A breast implant surgery, on the other hand, requires large incisions and will leave scarring in one of a few classic locations.
Lower Infection Risk: An added perk of not inserting foreign objects into the body is a lower risk of infection.
No General Anesthesia: The vast majority of old-school “boob job” procedures, and many liposuctions, are performed under general anesthesia. Anesthesia is very hard on the body, and it can come with a variety of very serious complications, including death. The ability to achieve the same medical or cosmetc goal without going under anesthesia is a great option to have.

Recovery After VASER With Fat Transfer

Awake VASER liposuction fat transfer is a faster and less intensive recovery process compared to conventional breast augmentation surgery. Here is a rough breakdown of what you can expect after your VASER Liposuction and fat transfer to the breasts:

Fat Transfer Recovery:

Downtime: The vast majority of patients return to their normal life and work routines a few days to a week after undergoing their procedure. Some more physically demanding tasks should be avoided for longer. A quality, board-certified cosmetic surgeon will discuss a patient’s lifestyle with them in an initial consultation and make a plan for the resumption of their specific activities.
Symptoms: Common symptoms after the procedure include swelling, discomfort and light bruising. Patients can experience these symptoms at the donor and recipient sites.
Results: Significant improvements are visible immediately after a fat transfer to breasts procedure. Some absorption of fat occurs around six weeks after fat grafting. The full results are apparent 6-9 months after the procedure, once healing is complete and the body has incorporated all of the fat into the recipient sites.

Awake VASER Liposuction Fat Transfer Recovery:

Enhanced Post-Operative Comfort: Coming off of sedation, pain medication and local anesthetic is significantly easier than waking up from anesthesia. While the day of any operation isn’t going to be sunshine and daisies, the moments after an Awake VASER surgery are significantly more pleasant than the ones after a more invasive procedure.
Faster Recovery: A variety of factors play into the quick recovery associated with VASER with fat transfer. General anesthesia slows healing, awake patients communicate discomfort to their surgeons during the procedure and VASER technology enables less invasive fat reduction. Patients heal much faster and experience less severe symptoms.

Recovery From Breast Implant Surgery

Surgically implanting fake breasts typically causes longer, more intensive recovery periods and more complications. Here are the reasons why:

More Invasive: Implant surgery requires significantly bigger incisions than Awake Lipo. Some breast implants are inserted under the muscle. While the degree of invasiveness varies from procedure to procedure, these surgeries collectively do more damage to tissue, require longer to heal from, and lead to more complications than fat transfer surgery.
Activity Restrictions: Patients healing from breast implant surgery must avoid heavy lifting and intense physical activities for significantly longer than those that opt for fat transfer techniques. They also take longer to return to basic activities after the surgery.

Making the Right Choice for You

At Aesthetic and Cosmetic Surgeons, Dr. Jain prioritizes safety and comfort, as well as cutting-edge technology in the procedures he chooses to perform. His team tailors customized procedures to meet a patient’s specific needs and desires. As such, we are here to assist you in selecting the proper approach to breast augmentation. During an initial consultation with Dr. Jain and his body sculptist, depending on your needs and health status.

For those seeking a natural look and feel, we highly recommend considering Awake VASER liposuction with fat transfer to the breasts. The effect on your body contour from removing unwanted fat from a problem area and adding it to your chest is breath-taking. Schedule an initial consultation with Aesthetic and Cosmetic Surgeons LA and begin your transformation today!