Patients often mix up the terms liposuction, lipomodeling, lipostructuring, and lipofilling without understanding the difference between them.
Liposuction
Liposuction consists in removing fat from a patient through a very small incision using a cannula that we slide under the skin and through which the fat cells in the area are removed using suction.
Once the fat has been removed by liposuction, the question is what are we going to do with this fat? Are we going to throw it away or is there somewhere it can be reinjected and, therefore, used? Indeed, there are often areas where there is not enough fat either constitutionally (lack of volume of buttocks or breasts in particular) or due to loss of fat linked to aging (on the face in particular).
Lipofilling, lipomodeling, or fat grafting
If the fat removed is reinjected, this is known as lipofilling or fat grafting. The term lipofilling is the commonly used English term (lipo meaning fat and filling from the verb to fill). It is also known as lipomodeling.
This lipofilling (or lipomodeling or fat grafting) can also be carried out using an even smaller cannula through an even smaller hole using different equipment adapted to the area (face or body).
So what is lipostructuring?
Lipostructuring concerns all the terms that deal with fat, whether injection or removal. This is the work that will be carried out in the fatty areas and that will enable the restructuring or resculpting of the body or face.
Well that’s it for the different terms. The most commonly used terms are “liposuction” for fat removal and “lipofilling” for reinjection.