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In the US alone, around 300,000 breast augmentations are done every year. Some of these are performed because of the high rates of breast cancer, and subsequent necessary mastectomies that must be performed, and some are purely for cosmetic and aesthetic reasons. While silicone implants fell out of favour for Thailand cosmetic surgery procedures long ago, and international hospitals in Bangkok and other Asian medical tourism facilities now use saline as the preferred implant, there has been much controversy regarding the newer fat transfer technique. However, a new study to be presented to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons clears up some confusion. Fat transfer as a supplementary procedure for breast reconstructions at cosmetic hospitals in Thailand is considered safe and effective, however the procedure for cosmetic augmentations still has strong arguments on both sides of the fence.
Fat grafting is a procedure in which donor fat is harvested, then screened and centrifuged at the Thailand cosmetic hospital to remove impurities. The fat is injected into the breasts in a four to five hour procedure, depending on the amount of fat to be injected. The injections are performed at the cosmetic surgery medical tourism facility, through around six to eight incisions of around two millimetres - significantly less invasive than traditional implant surgery. This Thailand cosmetic surgery is supposed to give the breast a more natural look than saline implants do, however there are still dissenters in the fat transfer ranks.
A new study helps clear up the use of fat injection
s for breast reconstruction patients at Thailand cosmetic hospitals, though. The study covered 21 patients that had a total of 42 fat transfer procedures, to correct wrinkling and deformities in the reconstructed breast. With procedures done around 10 months after the initial reconstruction, the patients "couldn't be happier", says one of the doctors involved. It found that fat transfers for reconstruction improves breast shape, is safe, and helps correct implant wrinkling.
However, the Society disagrees as to whether fat transfer in cosmetic surgery in Thailand is a worthwhile procedure. William P Adams Jr, American Society of Plastic Surgeons member, notes that "there are no good scientific studies about cosmetic use of fat in the breast - this is an evolving issue". "We need to have good, sound scientific studies to determine the usefulness and safety of this methodology before we offer it to our patients". The fear is that fat transferred at Asian medical tourism facilities will calcify in the breast, both making lumpy areas and obscuring mammorgram results, possibly masking breast cancer.
It is also unclear how much fat is needed to cover the whole breast, as is done in a purely cosmetic procedure, because some of the fat is reabsorbed by the body and distributed to other organs and areas. The injected fat may even lodge in dangerous areas, such as the brain or heart. Cosmetic hospitals in Thailand agree with Dr Adams' comment that "this is all still unknown. For that reason, we need to wait until the issue has been studied in a controlled, scientific environment.".
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