Unless you are an avid follower of Chrissy Teigen or of plastic surgery, the term buccal fat may mean absolutely nothing to you. As such, buccal fat removal would sound completely foreign. This procedure isn’t new, it’s been around for more than 50 years. However, it has recently gained steam as a beneficial and conservative treatment. Recently, Teigen gave a shout out to her Hollywood plastic surgeon for his work in improving her facial contours through buccal fat removal. Here, we discuss what patients may be wondering about this treatment.
What Is Buccal Fat, Anyway?
Buccal fat is a pad of fatty tissue situated in the middle of the cheek area. Its purpose is to facilitate a gliding motion between facial muscles. Early in life, the buccal fat pad is what contributes to that full “baby face” appearance. Sometimes, its prominence doesn’t go away and the cheeks and lower face look fuller than one might like.
Buccal fat pad removal is a quick procedure that is performed in the plastic surgeon’s office. It is done using a local anesthetic and sometimes with light sedation. Patients do not feel pain during the procedure that takes 30 minutes or less.
Are There Risks Involved?
Buccal fat pad removal may not be ideal for everyone who wants to see more contour in their cheeks. However, there is limited downtime associated with the procedure. Patients may still have some swelling the following day, and some have bruising. However, the vast majority of people who have this minor surgery done are back to work in a day or two. The risks of buccal fat pad removal are very low when the procedure is performed by an experienced, board-certified plastic surgeon. When we say experienced, we don’t mean years in practice; we mean that the doctor knows the ins-and-outs of this particular technique.
The most important consideration with buccal fat pad removal is anticipating how the face changes with age. The best outcomes stem from sound surgical judgment, which includes accurately qualifying a patient for this procedure. The consequence that the surgeon needs to avoid is an exaggerated hollowness that could occur as the face loses fat with age. This concern is primarily present in younger patients. Older patients may have already begun to lose facial volume, so the surgeon can better predict the outcome of fat removal.
Buccal fat removal isn’t something to do because Chrissy Teigen or any other celebrity has done it. It’s something to do because it may be an ideal procedure to give you the facial contours you’d like. To learn more about this procedure, call (702) 805-2058 and schedule a visit with us in Henderson or Las Vegas.