At Emerage Medical, autologous fat grafting does more than simply add volume. By gently harvesting fat through Body-Jet water-assisted technologies, board-certified dermatologist and fat grafting specialist Dr. Jason Emer is able to obtain beautiful, golden fat, which can be used to shape and sculpt various parts of the body, fill out contours, augment the breasts and buttocks, provide muscular definition, address conditions such as atrophic acne scarring and cellulite, and add volume in hollow or deficient areas.
With such a wide range of applications, it’s no wonder that this harvested, purified fat is often referred to as “Liquid Gold.”
What is Autologous Fat Grafting?
Autologous fat grafting refers to fat that is derived from your own body (typically from the arms, abdomen, flanks, and thighs) and then strategically injected back into the body in specific areas. The extracted fat is purified through Puregraft microfiltration, which removes any contaminants, oil, debris, and blood from the solution.
Fat grafting expert Dr. Jason Emer then enriches the fat with beneficial stem cells (such as ACell), growth factors, exosomes, and platelet-rich plasma (PRP) derived from your own blood. Once it has been harvested, purified, and enriched, this viable and sustainable fat can be used to lift, shape, sculpt, add volume and definition, and provide additional contour.
Dr. Emer uses autologous fat grafting to provide a wide range of improvements, including:
- Facial volumization, contouring and sculpting
- Atrophic acne scarring improvement
- Cheek and temple augmentation
- Lip augmentation
- Natural breast augmentation
- Muscular definition, contouring, and volumization
- Surgical buttock augmentation / Brazilian Butt Lift (BBL)
- Non-surgical penile enlargement
- Non-surgical vaginal rejuvenation
- Improving indentations, cellulite, or dimpling in the skin
- Refilling and camouflaging indentations and irregularities from previous botched procedures
The purified fat can even be filtered down to a specialized “nano-fat” to treat thinner skin (e.g. hand rejuvenation) and rejuvenate smaller areas of the body, such as the eyelids, eyebrows, earlobes, and forehead. Fat and stem cells can also be harvested and stored for future use, when joint, wellness, anti-aging, and longevity procedures are required.
Facial Sculpting with Fat Grafting
For non-surgical facial sculpting, lifting, and contouring, Dr. Emer uses fat grafting as well as strategically placed dermal fillers, silicone injections, Sculptra (a natural collagen stimulator), and/or Renuva synthetic fat grafting (donor fat derived from cadavers) to:
- correct facial volume loss
- fill dents and indentations
- improve under eye hollows and dark circles
- augment the cheeks, temples, and lips
- improve overall facial balance
Improving Atrophic Acne Scars with Fat Grafting
Dr. Emer’s volumetric treatment for atrophic or depressed acne scars includes autologous fat grafting for deep volume improvement and semi-permanent dermal fillers (such as Bellafill) to help fill the scar over time. These injectables are combined with a procedure called subcision, in which a sharp needle or cannula is used to break apart and elevate tethered down scars.
Natural Breast Augmentation with Fat Grafting
For women seeking a natural Breast Augmentation without implants, Dr. Emer combines autologous fat grafting with PRP to provide minor lifting and volumization to the breasts. Dr. Emer’s expert plastic surgeons and breast augmentation specialists also use fat in conjunction with surgical Breast Augmentation procedures (with implants) to provide additional fullness and roundness to the upper breasts.
Body Shaping with Fat Grafting
In the hands of body sculpting expert Dr. Jason Emer, autologous fat grafting can also be used to add volume, contour, and definition to the abdominals, chest, arms and shoulders, legs, and calves to create a more muscular and athletic figure.
Fat grafting is a common and effective method of treatment for male chest contouring, which aims to lift the chest and increase the size of the chest muscles. Occasionally, surgical implants may be required to obtain significant sculpting in the chest area.
Dr. Emer also specializes in gynecomastia repair (to address “man boobs”), which involves a non-traditional combination approach that includes fat removal, contouring and sculpting with Hi-Definition Liposuction, gland removal, nipple lifting, and internal “shrink wrap” skin tightening with Renuvion (J-Plasma) and InMode BodyTite. Dr. Emer then uses fat grafting to rebuild the chest muscle and create a defined, sculpted, and athletic upper body.
Men who have had previous botched surgeries in the chest area are often left with unintended indentations, irregular contouring, and chest sagging. Revision surgeries to correct these botched procedures (especially in the chest area) are extremely difficult and often require numerous procedures to obtain substantial improvement. For this reason, it is vital that chest sculpting and gynecomastia repair procedures be performed by a board-certified expert in liposculpting and fat grafting to ensure the most successful outcome.
Buttock Augmentation with Fat Grafting
For men and women alike, Dr. Emer uses harvested, purified fat to lift and project the buttocks. For patients who lack definition, size, and/or shape in the buttocks, Dr. Emer provides lipo-contouring to the areas surrounding the buttocks and then re-injects the purified fat to the buttocks, thighs and hips to create the desired shape. Permanent Buttock Augmentation results are typically seen after 6 to 12 months and can be complemented with:
- robust, volumizing, semi-permanent dermal fillers (such as Bellafill)
- BellaLift, Dr. Emer’s newest combination, which features the lifting properties of Voluma and the long-lasting, collagen-building benefits of Bellafill
- collagen-stimulating Sculptra
- semi-permanent fillers + natural collagen stimulators (e.g. Bellafill + Sculptra)
- additional fat as desired
For greater enhancement, Dr Emer may suggest buttock implants for significant improvement in size and projection.
In recent years, Brazilian Butt Lifts have become one of the most popular treatments at Emerage Medical, particularly for Dr. Emer’s female patients. Using an innovative combination approach, Dr. Emer uses fat grafting to create an attractive and athletic S-Curve (or “Emer Hourglass” figure), lift and shape the buttocks, build out the hips to make the waist appear smaller, and improve cellulite in the buttocks and thighs (with the aid of Cellfina, Sculptra, subcision, and Bellafill as well as shockwave therapy treatments).
Penile Enlargement and Rejuvenation with Fat Grafting
Penile enlargement, also known as the “Man Shot,” is an increasingly popular trend for men looking to rejuvenate the look of their penis and increase their girth through natural means. Dr. Emer may choose to complement penile fat grafting with PRP, stem cells (ACell), exosomes, dermal fillers, and autologous lipocyte micronized injections (ALMI) to improve the final outcome. Stem cell therapy in particular can also enhance sexual gratification.
At the same time, shock therapy treatments and penile lymphatic massage (with devices such as Cellutone, eVive, and Z-Wave) can be used to increase blood flow in the area and improve erectile dysfunction. Patients can typically resume their normal activities 2 to 4 weeks after undergoing a penile fat grafting treatment.
Vaginal Rejuvenation with Fat Grafting / Labia Majora Augmentation
Dr. Emer uses fat grafting and PRP injections to address numerous concerns in the vaginal area, including appearance (wrinkles), dryness, sensitivity, and sexual pleasure. While large volumes of fat can plump and restore volume to the labia majora, nano-fat grafting and PRP can be injected into the clitoris and the G-spot in order to increase sensation and libido, improve dryness and sensitivity, and enhance overall pleasure and sexual desire.
How long do fat grafting improvements last?
When injected strategically and meticulously by an experienced injector, autologous fat transfers can provide permanent improvement in volumization, skin tone, texture, and contouring. Results are normally not evident until 6 to 12 weeks after the procedure.
Although fat transfer results are permanent, not all fat will survive. To obtain the most viable, sustainable fat cells, fat grafting expert Dr. Emer employs gentle, water-assisted fat harvesting to obtain the purest fat possible. He then combines it with PRP, stem cells (ACell), and exosomes (and occasionally Sculptra) to ensure the longevity of the fat grafting procedure.
In most studies, about 50% of transferred fat is retained after an initial treatment, but it’s impossible to know for certain how much fat will survive or how often maintenance treatments will be required. A series of fat grafting treatments is often needed to adequately produce the desired enhancements.
Is fat grafting painful?
As with any injectable treatment, there may be some sensitivity, discomfort, or redness in the treatment area following a fat grafting procedure. To minimize pain and discomfort for his patients, Dr. Emer uses topical numbing for small treatment areas and general anesthesia or local nerve blocks for larger treatment areas.
What is the downtime for fat grafting?
There is minimal downtime following an autologous fat transfer procedure. Although swelling may persist for up to 2 weeks after injection, most patients can resume everyday activities immediately following the treatment.
How do I schedule a consultation with Dr. Emer?
To schedule a fat grafting consultation with Dr. Emer in Beverly Hills / Los Angeles / West Hollywood, California, please reach out to our concierge to schedule an appointment. Call 424-800-4140 or email us at appointments@jasonemermd.com.
