Application of adipose-derived stromal cells in fat grafting: Basic science and literature review.

Evidence from laboratory and animal studies provides groundwork for understanding mechanisms and potential before human studies continue.

• Level A · Stronger Clinical Evidence
• Level B · Emerging clinical evidence with positive signals
• Level C · Early human research exploring benefits
• Level D · Scientific groundwork from lab and animal studies
• Emerging · Emerging topic under active research

Abstract (original English)

Autologous fat is considered the ideal material for soft-tissue augmentation in plastic and reconstructive surgery. The primary drawback of autologous fat grafting is the high resorption rate. The isolation of mesenchymal stem cells from adipose tissue inevitably led to research focusing on the study of combined transplantation of autologous fat and adipose derived stem cells (ADSCs) and introduced the theory of 'cell-assisted lipotransfer'. Transplantation of ADSCs is a promising strategy, due to the high proliferative capacity of stem cells, their potential to induce paracrine signalling and ability to differentiate into adipocytes and vascular cells. The current study examined the literature for clinical and experimental studies on cell-assisted lipotransfer to assess the efficacy of this novel technique when compared with traditional fat grafting. A total of 30 studies were included in the present review. The current study demonstrates that cell-assisted lipotransfer has improved efficacy compared with conventional fat grafting. Despite relatively positive outcomes, further investigation is required to establish a consensus in cell-assisted lipotransfer.

Evidence level

Evidence from laboratory and animal studies provides groundwork for understanding mechanisms and potential before human studies continue.

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