Buccal Fat Removal – Procedure, Risks, and Recovery

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The buccal fat pads are located on either side of the face in front of the masseter muscles and right below the cheekbones. The encapsulated fat masses function as gliding pads, helping the muscles responsible for mastication (chewing). Buccal fat pads often reduce in size as you age. However, this facial fat cannot be lost through exercise or diet. Buccal Fat Removal procedure removes these fat pads.

The buccal pads also protect certain facial muscles from obtaining any injury due to external force and muscle action.

What is Buccal Fat Removal?

Buccal fat removal, also known as buccal lipectomy or cheek reduction surgery is a procedure that removes the unwanted buccal fat pad from the lower check regions of your face.

Some people genetically have more buccal fat deposits than others, which makes their faces look more heavier, rounder, and sometimes chubby. Often, they lose this facial fat with age, but other times, it does not go away on its own.

Many people desire a well-sculpted facial structure with prominent cheekbones and jawline. Buccal fat removal helps you achieve your desired look by accentuating the natural contours of your face and giving you a more chiseled effect.

The surgery removes 2 of the 3 buccal fat pads, making your face appear slimmer. It eliminates the childlike fullness of the face that most patients complain about. The procedure is relatively safe and leaves no visible scars on your face.

Requirements for Buccal Fat Removal

Any healthy adult with the following requirements can be classified as an ideal candidate for buccal fat removal:

  • Is physically healthy with no serious medical condition
  • Is not obese
  • Does not smoke
  • Has realistic expectations regarding the limits of the procedure

Associated Risks

Buccal fat removal surgery is a safe and short procedure. Your doctor will go through all the possible side effects that you may experience during and after the procedure. He/she will evaluate if you are fit enough to undergo the surgery.

It is essential that you understand all the associated risks and complications. Prior to the surgery, you will be asked to sign a consent form that states you understand the procedure and potential complications.

Side effects and possible risks may include:

  • Prolonged inflammation and pain
  • Bleeding
  • Infections
  • Slow healing
  • Anesthesia associated risks
  • Hematoma
  • Facial asymmetry
  • Facial nerve damage
  • Weakness of the facial muscles
  • Salivary duct injury
  • Seroma (fluid buildup)
  • Numbness or loss of sensation
  • Deep vein thrombosis
  • Cardiac and pulmonary complications

Preparing for Buccal Fat Removal Surgery

During your consultation appointment, your surgeon will examine your facial structure in detail and ask for your medical history. He/she will explain the procedure and the requirements in detail to you. This will be the prime opportunity to ask any questions that you might have.

In order to prepare for the procedure, your surgeon will ask you:

  • Not to eat to drink 6 hours prior to the procedure
  • Adjust certain medications that you might be on
  • Not to consume any alcohol 2 days prior to the surgery
  • Quit smoking 4 weeks before the surgery
  • Avoid the use of aspirin or any other blood-thinners 2 weeks before the procedure

Procedure for Buccal Fat Removal

The buccal fat removal surgery is a generally safe procedure that usually takes forty minutes to an hour. The incisions for the surgery are made from inside the mouth to avoid any visible scars on the face.

The procedure typically consists of:

  • According to your needs, your surgeon will either administer local anesthesia to numb the area to be operated on or general anesthesia to put you to sleep.
  • On the inside of each cheek, a small incision of about 2.5cm can make.
  • Gentle pressure is applied from the outside to maneuver the buccal fat pads outwards.
  • The incisions can closed by using dissolvable stitches.

Recovery Time

After the procedure, your doctor will give you some guidelines to follow during your recovery period. The guidelines may include instructions on how to care for the operated site, what medications to take and not to take during the healing process, and when to schedule a follow-up appointment.

The healing process and time varies from person to person. For some patients, the inflammation may take 3 months to go down while for others, it might take as long as 4 months.

For the majority of patients, the procedure is relatively pain-free and healing begins quickly. You can resume your normal diet one day after the procedure. It takes roughly 5-7 days for you to resume your normal daily activities. This does not include activities that cause physical strain.

Your doctor may prescribe you some antibiotics to avoid infection. Generally, this can take for 1 to 2 days after the surgery.

You can start seeing the results of the surgery almost instantly after the procedure is carried out. However, the results are seen in their full effect once the inflammation dies down after 3-4 months. The results of the surgery are permanent and the fat cannot come back once the buccal fat pads are removed.

Final Thoughts

In short, Buccal fat removal surgery is an ideal choice for you if you want to get rid of your chubby cheeks. It makes your cheekbones and jawline more prominent by removing excess buccal fat.

However, since you naturally lose buccal fat with age, you might suffer from excessively hollow cheeks during old age. This might give you a gaunt appearance. You can fix facial rejuvenation surgeries by using a different way.

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