Known Facts About FAT
- FAT is minimally invasive to harvest
- Most people have a lot of extra FAT
- FAT is the highest quality tissue
- FAT has 100-500 times more reparative cells than other similar tissue.7
- Research has shown that as a person ages, their FAT maintains its reparative properties unlike other similar tissue, such as bone marrow, which may lose healing capacity with age. 8,9,10
What Is Lipogems?
The Lipogems device produces a micro-fragmented tissue that is intended for the repair, replacement, cushion and support of damaged or injured tissues from your own adipose tissue. Fat contains cells, including pre-adipocytes, fibroblasts, vascular endothelial cells, and a variety of immune cells. Fat is a structural tissue and performs a structural function in patients, for example, to physically support or serve as a barrier or conduit, or connect, cover, or cushion.
What to Expect During the Procedure
Under local anesthesia, the fat (adipose tissue) is taken from the abdomen through a small incision in the skin. Lipogems then washes your fat tissue to remove the inflammatory oils and blood but preserves the natural and beneficial properties of the tissue.
Benefits of Lipogems
Lipogems is an alternative to surgery, or may be used in addition to your surgery. Benefits of Lipogems include:
- The procedure is done in the office and takes about one hour.
- It is a minimally invasive procedure, performed under a local anesthetic
- Research has shown that regardless of a person’s age, their fat maintains its reparative properties unlike other tissues such as bone marrow, which may lose healing capacity with age.
- The fat tends to stay in the area where it is injected instead of being reabsorbed by the body, allowing your body to maximize the benefits of Lipogems for an extended period of time.
Who is a Candidate for Lipogems
You may be a candidate for Lipogems if you:
- Have symptoms from an injury or ailment that limits your normal daily functioning or physical activity.
- Have a soft tissue defect in the tissue of tendons, ligaments, and or muscles. In order to restore orthopedic function, these defects require tissue repair and regeneration, as well as cushioning and support.
- Had other treatments such as physical therapy, NSAIDS, or steroid injections that did not provide significant relief.
- You would like to explore a minimally invasive alternative to a major surgical intervention.
- Your doctor determines if it may be used in addition to your surgery.
This procedure is not recommended for patients with an allergy to lidocaine or a patient that is currently breastfeeding or plans to begin in the near future. Other contraindications include patients with a current systemic infection, hematologic abnormalities, an autoimmune disease, undergoing treatment for a malignancy or blood borne disease, or has had a cortisone injection in the treatment site within three months prior.
What to Expect After Your Lipogems Treatment
There is a risk for soreness, redness, swelling, and or pain. This procedure requires needle access and this may result in discomfort, pain, bruising, tenderness, bleeding, swelling and or infiltration at the injection site.
- Your doctor will determine what activities you can perform and put you on treatment plan. Patients should not engage in strenuous activity for at least 1-2 weeks following the procedure.
- Patients may experience mild to moderate swelling and/or local inflammation at injection site and/or site of tissue harvest for up to 4-5 days post-procedure.
- Patients may be given some pain medication and should follow your doctor’s recommendations.
- ce may be used to reduce local inflammation/swelling.
- A compression garment maybe given to wear for a few days after the procedure.
- Patients should not take steroids following the Lipogems procedure.
- Patients may have some bruising at or around site of tissue harvest.
All of these symptoms are temporary. As with any medical procedure, there is a slight risk of infection at the injection site and has minimal risk of adverse reactions or complications.
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