title: The viability of autologous fat grafts harvested with the LipiVage system: a comparative study.
abstract: This study evaluates the viability of adipose aspirates harvested with the LipiVage system (Genesis Biosystems Inc, Lewisville, TX), a newly developed fat harvesting device, and determines a potentially preferred method for possible large-quantity fat graft harvesting. Adipose aspirates were harvested with the LipiVage system from the abdomen of 16 female patients (group 1, n = 8) according to the instruction by the manufacturer and with conventional liposuction (group 2, n = 8). Samples from conventional liposuction were spun at 50 g for 10 minutes and the resulting middle layer of fat was collected. All fat graft samples were evaluated with trypan blue vital staining for viable adipocyte count, glycerol-3-phosphatase dehydrogenase (G3PDH) assay for intracellular enzyme activity, and histology. In this study, group 1 had significantly higher viable adipocyte count than group 2 had (3.7 +/- 0.64 versus 2.37 +/- 0.56 x 10(6) /mL, P = 0.0021). G3PDH assay showed a marked increase of intracellular enzyme activity in group 1 compared with in group 2 (0.61 +/- 0.10 versus 0.34 +/- 0.13 U/mL, P = 0.00045). Histology revealed normal structures of fragmental fatty tissues in both groups. While adipose aspirates by both modalities maintain normal structure, the LipiVage system yields a greater number of viable adipocytes and sustains a higher level of intracellular enzyme activity within fat grafts and can potentially be a preferred method of choice for large-quantity fat graft harvesting.
authors.affiliation: Division of Plastic Surgery, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY, USA.
authors.forename: Robert E H
authors.initials: RE
authors.lastname: Ferguson
authors.forename: Xiangdong
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Cui
authors.forename: Betsy F
authors.initials: BF
authors.lastname: Fink
authors.forename: Henry C
authors.initials: HC
authors.lastname: Vasconez
authors.forename: Lee L Q
authors.initials: LL
authors.lastname: Pu
mesh_terms: D000273:Adipose Tissue / Q000637:transplantation*; D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D014022:Tissue Survival; D020858:Tissue and Organ Harvesting / Q000295:instrumentation*; D014182:Transplantation, Autologous