Autologous Conditioned Serum Increases Fat Graft Viability More than Platelet-Rich Plasma in a Controlled Rat Model.

BACKGROUND: Platelet-rich plasma has been used to support fat graft retention, but it may include inflammatory mediators such as interleukin-1ß. Autologous conditioned serum also contains high levels of various anti-inflammatory cytokines. The authors hypothesized that combining autologous conditioned serum with fat graft would increase fat graft survival more than platelet-rich plasma. METHODS: Twenty-seven adult, male, Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into three groups of nine. Ten nonstudy rats were used to prepare platelet-rich plasma, autologous conditioned serum, and fat grafts. Next, 0.7-ml fat graft with a combination of 0.2 ml of autologous conditioned serum, platelet-rich plasma, or phosphate-buffered saline was applied to their dorsa. Fat graft volume was assessed on postoperative day 2 and on the day of euthanization at 1, 3, and 5 months postoperatively. Histopathologic analysis was performed to measure integrity, inflammation, fibrosis, and vascularization. RESULTS: The median volume percentages and interquartile ranges at 1 month postoperatively were 97.3 percent (77.3 to 119.6 percent), 40.4 percent (30.9 to 46.9 percent), and 72.1 percent (53.6 to 84.9 percent) in autologous conditioned serum plus fat graft, phosphate-buffered saline plus fat graft, and platelet-rich plasma plus fat graft, respectively (p < 0.05); at 3 months postoperatively, values were 82.3 percent (70.3 to 88.3 percent), 36.6 percent (29.4 to 43.1 percent), and 48.3 percent (31.4 to 57.9 percent) (p < 0.001); and at 5 months postoperatively, values had increased to 83.9 percent (58.3 to 102.4 percent), 40.3 percent (20.1 to 50.6 percent), and 56.3 percent (37.7 to 74.9 percent), respectively (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Autologous conditioned serum and platelet-rich plasma improved fat graft outcomes compared to saline, whereas autologous conditioned serum was associated with less inflammation, greater fat viability, and more integrity. CLINICAL RELEVANCE STATEMENT: Combining fat graft with autologous conditioned serum may be a better option to minimize resorption rate and improve graft survival.

Autologous Biological Vitamin-C-added (ABC) Filler for Facial Volume Restoration.

PURPOSE: Face rejuvenation procedures with injectable agents continue to gain popularity. Nowadays, a variety of commercial products are available as filler material. Ideal fillers should be inexpensive, easily obtainable, nontoxic, and biocompatible. The aim of this study is to report a clinical perspective for an appropriate, feasible, and inexpensive protocol of a stable, autologous biological filler for facial volume restoring without any commercial kits. METHODS: Eight patients were investigated who underwent facial injection with ABC filler. Eleven ml of whole blood was placed in standard tubes containing anticoagulant and for each patient, 8 tubes were prepared. After the centrifugation at 1630 xg for 5 minutes, the upper plasma was taken, calcium was added and cooled. After the addition of vitamin C, the syringes were incubated at 85 °C for 10 minutes. The autologous biological material obtained was used as filling material. For comparison, FACE-Q satisfaction questionnaires were used before and after the procedure. RESULTS: All patients were followed up for a minimum of 4 months. No major complications were recorded. The patient-reported FACE-Q satisfaction and FACE-Q quality of life pre- and post-procedure results showed statistically significant improvement (p  <  0.05). Overall satisfaction with the outcome was 89.12 ± 16.73 (range 55-100). CONCLUSIONS: ABC filler can be seen as a reliable, inexpensive, and easily obtainable material to restore facial volume with increased patient satisfaction and quality of life scores. We believe that our study will be encouraging to the application of autologous biological fillers for further clinical and scientific studies. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE IV: This journal requires that authors assign a level of evidence to each article. For a full description of these Evidence-Based Medicine ratings, please refer to the Table of Contents or the online Instructions to Authors www.springer.com/00266 .