Lipose commences supply of Viafill Fat Transfer System

Sep 2 2009

Lipose Corporation announced today that its Viafill™ Fat Transfer System is now available for sale to healthcare professionals. Viafill is an autologous fat transfer system that allows doctors to harvest fat from one part of the body and process it for use as injectable filler in another part of the body.

Fat transfer has been around for decades(1). In many ways, fat is the ideal filler(1). It is autologous, completely biocompatible and naturally integrated into the host tissue(1,2). In addition, it appears natural with the same consistency as surrounding tissue, and unlike synthetic fillers, does not cause a Tyndall effect, which is a bluish tint at the injection site when fillers are superficially injected(1,3).

Fat tissue is fragile therefore the viability of harvested and purified fat cells is not high(1). Studies have shown manipulation, harvest technique, high speed centrifugation and air exposure all result in decreased cell viability(1,4). Because dead or damaged cells do not survive, a large portion of the fat graft is resorbed, reducing the clinical efficacy and often resulting in the need for further fat transfer(1). To compensate for this resorption, many physicians overfill when performing fat transfer(5).

"The key to fat transfer success is maximizing the number of viable cells transplanted," said Robert Freund, MD, PC, FACS, plastic surgeon, author and founder of the Viafill System. "Based on several scientific studies about fat harvesting and processing, the Viafill System was designed to minimize damage to fat cells compared with traditional fat harvesting techniques by limiting manipulation, exposure to air and trauma," he added.

Dr. Freund has studied fat transfer and believes this new system overcomes many of the past challenges.

"We believe we have developed a system that addresses most of the challenges of autologous fat transfer," said Freund. "The Viafill System was designed to maximize the number of live fat cells transplanted, increasing the potential for less fat resorption and longer lasting results."

The Viafill System can be used wherever physicians would use autologous fat transfer. These areas often include chin, nose, neck, jaw line, nasolabial folds, marionette lines, brow, upper eyelids, temples, lips, and hands and other contour irregularities.

The Viafill System is patent protected and FDA cleared. It features a proprietary harvest syringe and centrifuge tube designed to reduce cell damage and allow oil and debris to be separated from fat with minimal trauma or exposure to air. The system's centrifuge spins at an optimal low speed (50 g), which studies show minimizes cell death. The Viafill System is completely disposable, fast (less than 15 minutes, not including injection) and easy to use.