Augmentation Mammoplasty With External Volume Expander-Assisted Autologous Fat Grafting in 305 Asian Patients.

[BACKGROUND] External volume expander (EVE)-assisted autologous fat grafting is suitable for breast augmentation, but no large sample study in Asia has confirmed this method.

[OBJECTIVES] The authors reported their experience and outcomes in augmentation mammoplasty with EVE-assisted autologous fat grafting.

[METHODS] A retrospective study was conducted in 305 female patients who underwent augmentation mammoplasty with EVE-assisted fat grafting between September 2012 and December 2020. Doctors utilized Crisalix (Crisalix S.A., Lausanne, Switzerland) for 3-dimensional (3D) imaging acquisition to measure the increase in breast volume to evaluate doctor satisfaction. The Preoperative Satisfaction with Breast and BREAST-Q questionnaires were employed to assess patients' preoperative and postoperative satisfaction, respectively.

[RESULTS] The 305 female patients were aged 18 to 50 years (mean, 35.9 years). Among them, 68.52% were "very satisfied," 18.69% were "somewhat satisfied," 11.15% were "somewhat dissatisfied," and 1.64% were "very dissatisfied" based on BREAST-Q analysis, whereas 100% were dissatisfied according to the Preoperative Satisfaction with Breast questionnaire. Doctors employed Crisalix to measure the increase in breast volume to evaluate doctor satisfaction. The results showed 76.01% had an increase in breast volume of 150 to 250 mL or >250 mL and were "satisfied" and "very satisfied," respectively, 21.64% had an increase of 50 to 149 mL and were "somewhat satisfied," and 2.30% had an increase <50 mL and were "dissatisfied." There were no complications, such as obvious fat liquefaction, infection, or fat embolism.

[CONCLUSIONS] Augmentation mammoplasty with EVE-assisted fat grafting is effective and satisfying in China. Crisalix for 3D imaging acquisition is convenient and effective in measuring breast volume.