Four Dimensional Lipofilling of the Face

Debate over what constitutes beauty, particularly beauty of the human face, has raged since philosophy began. Interested scholars have debated the meaning of beauty for centuries. However, it seems that numbers and the resulting numeric relationships play a fundamental role in the classification of the human body, and that a harmonic profile or shape is produced only at certain definite numeric relationships.New research suggests that fat may be a more important key to a younger looking face. Further, that this finding may provide new ways to make faces look younger. The recent research describes how the face has underlying fat compartments. These compartments are distinct and are separated from each other by fibrous connective tissue. They are independent compartments that are found in all areas of the face, around the mouth, cheeks, eyes and forehead. These independent compartments age at different rates. As we age different compartments will change in shape, and decrease or increase in size. In the young face, the boundaries between the facial compartments are not obvious and so the face has a generally smooth outline. As we age the transitions become more obvious. The different rates of changes of the different parts of the face explain why the face does not age evenly.This study provides a review of the locations and characteristics of the facial fat compartments that can be filled with harvested fat and provides examples of how this knowledge can be used clinically on 42 female patients treated by fat injection in various compartments of the face.