Face — Treatment
Your own volume,
returned.
The face loses volume before it loses tightness. Cheeks flatten, the temples hollow, the under-eyes deepen. Fat grafting replaces what was lost using your own tissue — harvested by gentle liposuction from a place where you have it to spare, purified, and re-injected in microdroplets.
What it is & what it isn't
Fat is harvested from your own body — usually the abdomen, flank, or inner thigh — with low-suction, atraumatic liposuction. The fat is purified in a centrifuge, then re-injected into the face in tiny aliquots through small access points. The result is a three-dimensional restoration of volume, with the fat that survives becoming permanent.
What it isn't
Not a filler. Fillers are temporary; fat grafting is permanent — but only for the cells that survive. About half of the injected fat is reabsorbed in the first three to six months. We honestly over-inject by the expected loss, then re-evaluate at the three-month mark. Sometimes a second session is part of the plan.
The practical detail
What you are actually committing to.
- Procedure time
- Typically 1–2 hours
- Anaesthesia
- Sedation or local
- Stay in Antalya
- Typically 2–3 days
- Flying home
- Typically 3–5 days
- Light exercise
- Typically 1 week
- Full exercise
- Typically 2–3 weeks
- Final result
- Typically 3–6 months (after fat settles)
- Scarring
- Tiny donor-site dots; no scar at injection sites
- Survival rate
- About 50% of injected fat is permanent
These figures are typical ranges, for planning your trip. Your own treatment and recovery timeline is assessed and decided by Dr. Meral — at consultation, and again as your healing progresses.
How it unfolds
The consultation
Where the face has lost volume — cheeks, temples, tear troughs, nasolabial folds, lips, jawline. Where you have fat to spare. Whether the procedure is best as a single session, or as a planned two-step (because of the 50% loss).
The plan
Markings made standing for the recipient face areas; donor-site markings done lying down. The harvest volume is calculated to allow for the expected reabsorption.
The surgery
Gentle liposuction at the donor site through 3–4mm access points. The harvested fat is centrifuged to separate it from blood and tumescent solution. The purified fat is re-injected in microdroplets — a grid of fine threads of living tissue, given the best chance to take up residence in the recipient bed.
The first night
Cold compresses on the face. Light compression at the donor site. Most patients are surprised at how swollen the face initially looks — much of that swelling is intentional over-correction.
Recovery
Bruising and dramatic swelling for the first 7–10 days. The face will look too full for two to three weeks — this is expected, partly intentional, and not the final result. As swelling settles and the body reabsorbs the non-surviving fat, the contour settles. The face you see at three to six months is your real result.
A typical course, not a promise — healing differs from person to person. Dr. Meral reviews you at each follow-up and decides when each step is right for you.
This may be for you if
- Your face has lost volume — cheeks flatter, temples hollow, under-eyes deeper than they were
- You prefer your own tissue over a synthetic filler
- You're comfortable with a single procedure that has a settling phase of three to six months
- You accept that 50% of the injected fat will reabsorb — the survivor is permanent
This is not for you if
- You want a fully predictable result on a fixed timeline — fillers are more predictable
- You have very little body fat to harvest — fillers may be the more honest answer
- You're chasing instant volume — fat takes months to settle into its final form
- You expect no second session — a touch-up is common, not exceptional
Begin
A conversation,
not a quote.
- +90 532 508 39 50
- info@mertmeral.com
- Hours
- Monday — Saturday · 09:00 — 19:00 (UTC+3)