Friday, October 5, 2012

Adivive (Adult-Derived Stem Cell Fat Grafting) Frequently Asked Questions

In the summer of 2012, Dr. Lewis Obi was asked to contribute his thoughts on Adivive and adult-derived stem cell grafting to the leading Australian beauty magazine, Cosmetic Surgery and Beauty Magazine. He was asked several questions about his use of the Adivive system and his typical patient results. The following are those questions, including frequently asked questions by patients.

Adivive Video: Extracting & Purifying the Fat Demonstration

What is Adivive Autologous Fat Transfer?

The Adivive Fat Processing Unit is the most advance stem cell concentrated fat grafting system available. Not only is the system FDA-approved but it is the only totally self contained unit that processes adult fat into a stem cell concentrated filler useful for both cosmetic and reconstructive application.

How Long Has Obi Plastic Surgery Been Utilizing the Adivive System?

Palomar sent Dr. Obi the first FDA-approved system in January of 2011 and he has performed approximately 100 fat grafting procedures with this system since January of 2011. Prior to integration of the Adivive technology Dr. Obi had performed various fat grafting techniques for more than 25 years.

How Much is Adivive Fat Transfer?

There are different fees for Adivive, depending on the areas of the body treated. Visit our Adivive costs page for more information.

How Does Adivive Compare to Previous Autologous Fat Transfer Systems?

The Adivive Fat Processing Unit squeezes and filters harvested fat to provide a cleaner and more concentrated fat of extraordinary quality. The resulting fat graft contains a higher concentration of adult stem cells, cytokines and other growth factors which enhances the long term persistence of the Adivive fat. Also, larger volumes may be safely used. As a result, more dramatic and predictable results occur with an average take in-excess of 50% of the transferred Adivive fat.

What are the Most Commonly Treated Areas Using Adivive?

The two most commonly treated areas are the face and breasts. To a lesser degree, Dr. Lewis Obi has applied this technology to treating hands, buttocks and areas of the body with deficiency resulting from trauma or previous surgery.

Where on the Body is Fat Harvested?

The most common donor sites for large volume fat harvesting has been the abdomen and thighs as these donor sites are simultaneously treated with the SlimLipo laser platform. The fat harvesting always precedes laser application as the laser may affect the quality of the fat. Want to learn more about SlimLipo? Click to watch our SlimLipo YouTube video.

How Effective is Adivive for Breast Enhancement?

Adivive for breast enhancing has been most useful for smaller volume grafting (100-150cc per breast). Better results are seen in patients requiring perhaps one cup size enlargements - such as lumpectomy/irradiation patients, breast lift patients and for cosmetic patients with moderate asymmetry of the breasts. It is also much less invasive then the autologous flaps and therefore with much less downtime and fewer risks. The contralateral breast size/sag may be effectively treated with the SlimLipo laser thereby eliminating the need for any surgery. Even after implant reconstructions, Dr. Lewis Obi has used Adivive fat grafting to finalize symmetry and to enhance nipple-areolar reconstruction. In the augmentation patient, moderate enlargements may be accomplished as well as non surgical revisions of breast asymmetry. Adivive may also be used to enhance breast flap thickness in the mastectomy patient. Alloderm™ (cadaver skin) and Strattice™ (pig skin) is universally used by plastic surgeons to provide better coverage of breast implants and to enhance breast folds in these mastectomy patients. Unfortunately, there is a geometric increase in medical costs as well as increased patient risks when these foreign skin grafts are utilized.

How Long Would a Typical Adivive for the Breasts Surgical Procedure Take?

For both breast reconstruction and cosmetic breast procedures, Dr. Obi generally utilizes 200 cc or more of processed fat. This may require removal of 500 cc or more of fat from the donor site. In order to avoid contour irregularities of the donor site, SlimLipo is almost always used to treat these areas. The only exception to this rule is if the same area will be revisited for future fat harvesting. Therefore, the total time for treating the breasts and donor sites is approximately 2 to 3 hours.

What are the Benefits of Adivive for the Face (also referred to as an OPERA Lift, Stem Cell Facelift and 3-D Space Lift)?

There are many benefits fat transfer for the face. To begin, Dr. Obi almost always combines small volume (40cc or less) Adivive fat grafting with almost every surgical face lifting procedure. Larger volume fat grafting to the face may be utilized as a totally non-surgical technique for three dimensional tightening of the face. This is a procedure that Dr. Mark Berman of L.A. refers to as a “3-D Space Lift” and more recently, Dr. Lewis Obi coined the term “The OPERA Lift”. Not only does OPERA stand for: Obi Palomar External Rejuvenating Aesthetics, but a patient may undergo the procedure on a Monday and may be presentable enough to attend the Opera on Saturday. The facial tightening is accomplished with large volume Adivive fat and the neck tightening with the SlimLipo laser.

Are Visible Results Immediate, and if not, How Long Before Patients See the Effects of Adivive?

Visual results, especially in the face, are immediate. There is of course some bruising and swelling which resolves in seven to 10 days. Optimal results are seen at different intervals depending on the areas treated and patient variability. Three months seems to be the magic number for both optimal results and prediction of viability of the grafted fat. According to Drs. He Young Lee (Seoul, Korea) and Kotaro Yoshimura (Tokyo), "What you see, in terms of persistence, at three months, we should see long term. That has been my experience during the almost 30 years I have utilized fat as a graft."




1 comment:

  1. Plastic surgery enhance the beauty of a person. We got a lot of relevant information in terms of Plastic surgical procedures.

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