Never underestimate the creativity of plastic surgeons. when 32 year old Tim Barter locked himself out of his house, he climbed the drainpipe in an attempt to get in. After falling 25 feet, neighbors found him unconscious, and took him to the hospital, where he remained in a coma for several days. He suffered a shattered eye socket and a brain hemorrhage. The damage was severe, and due to the swelling and bleeding, part of his skull had to be removed to relieve the pressure.
When mr. Barter recovered, surgeons used computer technology to design a custom titanium plate to replace the piece of skull that was removed. But, there was still a dent where the plate had been inserted. To fill it, surgeons harvested fat from the man’s stomach and transferred it his temple.
It took two years for him to recover, but thanks to the fat transfer and his surgeons, mr. Barter is now in fine shape, and has moved on with his life. fat transfer is a wonderful way to use our body’s resources. it is a cosmetic tool for freshening our appearance, while removing fat from areas that we do not want it – but, it is also a method that is used in reconstruction, and can help those who have been in accidents. As fat grafting technology moves forward, we will be reading many more stories like this, and helping people, who might have had to live with disfiguring scars, lead normal lives.