Facial Liposuction
A chubby face has numerous causes, such as a pancake face due to a broad facial skeleton, a square face due to thick masticatory muscles, baby fat due to the hypertrophy of the intraoral fat pad (buccal fat), or a round face due to the accumulation of skin fat, which should be identified at the initial stage of management. If a round face is the result of excess subcutaneous fats, facial liposuction is conducted. This surgery is performed by creating an approximately 2-mm incision at the bottom of both earlobes or the chin. After the injection of proper hemostatics and painkillers into the affected sites, it uses the smallest liposuction tube to extract the fats at the hypertrophic area. In general, the fats removed are not enormous, but more attention should be paid to sculpt the sharper contour and tighten the jawline. For patients with subcutaneous fats associated with other causes, facial liposuction will be conducted along with intraoral fat pad removal, Botox slim face injection, or facelift to attain complete effects.
Surgical conditions
Duration
- Type of anesthesia: IV sedation + local anesthesia
- Type of incision: A 2-mm incision at the inferior margin of the earlobe or chin
- Recovery: Within 3–5 days
- Removal of stitches: 5 days
General instructions
No food and water on the day of surgery
- Compress the face with an elastic bandage for 24 h postoperatively.
- Avoid strenuous activities for 1 month postoperatively.
Ideal candidates
- Patients with facial skin thickness of more than 1 cm
- Those who have undergone facial fat grafting that leads to lumps or sagging
- Those with facial hypertrophy and combined circumoral or buccal fats (the surgery may be conducted along with buccal fat removal)
- Those with facial hypertrophy and combined skin looseness or sagging (the surgery may be conducted along with facelift)
Possible complications
- Cheek depression
- Results short of expectation
- Skin laxity
- Skin numbness (temporary)
Surgical advantages
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The results are quite natural to replace those obtained by weight loss or a Botox injection.
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The surgery is limited to the superficial fat layer, so there is no risk of facial nerve or vessel injury.
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Regional liposuction is performed to improve cheek sagging or circumoral fats.
Surgical drawbacks
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Excessive liposuction may cause cheek depression or skin looseness.
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It may be less effective for patients with a pancake face caused by bone or muscle hypertrophy.
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Its face slimming effects may be less obvious than those from facial bone reduction.