LAM FACIAL PLASTICS

Hi Dr. Lam--

I've been meaning to follow-up with you after my treatments last month while I was in Dallas during my vacation. My name is Mike and I had a fat grafting consult as well as Botox in my forehead and Perlane in my cheeks (as a "preview" of the fat grafting) and in a small dent in my nose on January 16th.

First, let me say that your work is incredible. This is my second time trying Botox. The first was with another doctor and left my forehead feeling like it was numb and asleep for 4 months. Your Botox treatment took every last wrinkle away, but I don't look or feel frozen. The nose looks great---I hope that it lasts a long time (although it was completely painless and quick if I need another injection). I also really like your aesthetic tastes for where you'll place the fat in my cheeks. A question that I have for you is: At what point following the Perlane "preview" will it look most like what you are aiming for with fat? I remember you saying afterwards, but I forget what you said, and the look has changed over time--it looked different at 3 days, one week and by two weeks it looked like it looks now. What should I expect in regards to outcome from fat grafting in comparison to what I've seen with the Perlane?

Thanks again for your advice, help and the care that you and your staff took with me. I was truly impressed and walked away with a good feeling. I've been in the offices of several nationally recognized plastic surgeons and you and your staff are certainly of the very highest caliber.

Sincerely,
Mike
a.k.a. Mickey D

Thanks Mike. Those are very nice comments, and I am glad you are pleased. As far as when Perlane looks more like fat grafting, I would say in the first few days following the injection since there is swelling there. In other words, 1 cc of Perlane plus swelling looks like the 2 to 3 cc of fat that I would put. However, fat when the swelling goes down does not look like the distorted, swollen look that you see in the first few days after Perlane. So, this swelling with Perlane is a rough approximation of fat, and I mean rough but can still be valid. Sorry for the wishy-washy answer. I just don't want to try to put any equivalency between the two methods even though I do use fillers to approximate fat.
best,
sml

Thanks, Dr. Lam-- actually a wishy-washy answer was kind of what I was hoping for--you want the look that was there after a few days, but just not as distorted. I really liked the projection of my cheeks after about 3 to 4 days, and if it had been more blended, that's exactly what I am hoping for. I know that you have limitations with the amount of Perlane that you placed, and it would have taken more (and more $) to blend it in better. So, while at 3 days I didn't see what I wanted exactly, it was right in the ball park and I think that's what you were shooting for as a preview. In using fat, how far will you blend it upwards towards the top of my ear/lower part of the temple (or between the two--I wish I knew the proper anatomical terms to use)?

Also, on the price quote sheet that I took home, at the top it says "FFF, Plasma." Is the Plasma resurfacing procedure included in the fat grafting procedure? I wasn't sure because we didn't talk about it during the consult.

Thanks again for your time!

Mike

Absolutely, I can do much better blending with fat. That is the magic of good fat grafting. If the price sheet had "plasma", then that is a skin resurfacing procedure that I offered you. If I didn't, then that is a mistake. You can email my staff at info@lamfacialplastics.com to clarify those numbers.
best,
sml