Buccal fat pad removal

Buccal fat pad removal is an effective aesthetic surgery technique for refining overly full cheeks.

WHAT IS A BICHAT BALL?

Buccal fat pad are buccal fat pads situated inside the cheeks and extending up towards the temples.

TECHNICAL PRINCIPLES

A small incision is made inside the mouth which enables access to the fatty deposit. The Bichat ball volume is reduced accordingly to refine the cheeks.

Important point: The Buccal fat pad must not be completely extracted. Indeed, with ageing the buccal fat pads will naturally decrease. If a total removal was performed, the cheeks would then appear too hollow at a more mature age.

A Bichat ball extraction is the only reliable technique for reducing the volume of the cheeks. Liposuction cannot be envisaged as a technique given the risk of facial nerve lesion.

PRACTICALITIES

Endobuccal incision of 1 to 2 cm to access the Bichat ball and reduce it
Anaesthesia: local with sedation or general anaesthetic
The sutures are resorbable
Type of hospitalisation: outpatient
Ice to be applied to the cheeks in the days following the procedure

POST-OPERATIVE EFFECTS

Moderate pain
Ecchymosis (bruising): rare
No wire to be removed: the stitches are resorbable
No drain
Swelling of the cheeks partially masks the result for the first few days.
Time away from work required depending on the extent of swelling in the cheeks.
Return to sports activities after 14 days.

THE RESULT FOLLOWING BICHAT BALLS EXTRACTION

Definitive result at 3 months. During the first three months, the result is partially masked by the oedema.
The scar is invisible.

THE RISKS

Risks are rare when the intervention is performed by a plastic surgeon specifically trained in this type of technique. These are the risks to be aware of:

• Haematoma: blood clot in the fatty deposit resulting in significant swelling and requiring an evacuation
• Infection: exceptional
• Lesion of the facial nerve: the precision and care taken with this surgical procedure makes this complication exceptional

Lesion of the Stensen salivary duct: the precision and care taken with this surgical procedure makes this complication exceptional.