Improved shape and consistency after lipofilling of the breast: Patients' evaluation of the outcome

Abstract

Autologous transplantation of fat, or lipofilling, of the breast can correct deformities after reconstruction and after conservation surgery for cancer. We have made a retrospective evaluation of morbidity and patients' experiences of the method. Forty-four patients have had lipofilling once, twice, or three times (mean transplanted volume 40 ml, range 6–200 ml). One minor complication, a local infection, was treated with antibiotics given orally, and recorded at follow up. A questionnaire was sent to all 44 patients and answered by 43. Twenty-nine of the 43 patients reported improvement of irregularities after lipofilling, 26 reported that the shape of the breast had improved, 26 that the consistency had improved, and 20 that the size had increased postoperatively. Five of the patients reported some adverse effects; one case of liponecrosis that did not need any treatment was found one year postoperatively. No problems were reported at the donor site at follow-up.

Key Words::

• Lipofilling
• autologous fat transplantation
• fat grafting
• lipomodeling
• breast
• breast reconstruction
• breast conservation surgery

Acknowledgements

Financial support was provided through the regional agreement on medical training and clinical research (ALF) between Stockholm County Council and Karolinska Institutet.

Declaration of interest: The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.