While there have been a host of reasonable arguments both pro and con the procedure at the present time is still rather controversial. The patient presented with a long, thinned out face from significant depletion of fat volume. With fat grafting techniques, her face could be filled and rounded, providing a softer, more feminine appearance. This patient had several operations on her eyelids to correct the lower lid defect before fat-grafting corrected her problem. Like any operation there are some degree of risks.
Most people are worried about unfavorable results, particularly lumpiness.
Initially, there may be some firmness in conjunction with local tissue swelling, but as that settles down it is very rare to have firm lumps, as fat itself is very soft. While some doctors over-correct the treated areas I have found this to be unnecessary. On the other hand, areas such as the lips do not take the graft as well and overcorrecting there will only lead to wasted fat which can not be re-vascularized and will thus reabsorb. I do however, tend to put more fat around a larger area of the lips, in a sense over correcting by area. Infection, bleeding, or problems related to anesthesia are all exceedingly rare.