Microfragmented Fat and its Uses

Microfragmented Fat, technically called Microfragmented Adipose Tissue and informally called Microfat or MFAT, is fat tissue (adipose tissue) harvested from your own body, then processed to remove unwanted substances and concentrate your natural stem cells. The result is a much finer substance composed of small fragments or particles.

The process can be achieved by mechanical, enzymatic, or ultrasound fragmentation, but only the mechanical method is sanctioned by the FDA for use in the United States.

Microfat’s Uses

MFAT is used in wound healing and aesthetics, but the following sections focus on MFAT’s use in orthopedics – for arthritis, injury, and joint pain. It is well suited for this because it is naturally anti-inflammatory, which can provide pain relief. Further, MFAT is an extremely rich source of natural mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) which are believed to be regenerative, meaning they don’t just relieve pain but actually help your body heal itself.

The Microfat Therapy Process

If your doctor uses Jointechlabs’ MiniTC® to produce microfat, the process is simple and virtually painless. The procedure is done in your doctor’s office, takes about an hour, and is done under mild local anesthetic. Your doctor removes a small amount of fat from your belly or buttocks and processes that fat into microfat with MiniTC. He or she then injects the microfat into your painful joint. The procedure is comfortable and you are back to doing normal activities within a day or two. Additionally, the pain reduction is almost immediate.

When Microfat is Indicated

Microfat is best suited for people who are not getting satisfactory pain relief from pain relieving pills or injections, but do not want or are not a candidate for surgery. There are millions of people in this group in the US.

Alternatives to Microfragmented Fat

Microfat is in the class of medicines and treatments called orthobiologics, which are the general area of Regenerative Medicine. There are two other popular orthobiologics. One is called Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP). PRP is anti-inflammatory in nature so it is often effective for short-term pain relief. However, it does not contain regenerative cells. The other is called Bone Marrow Aspirate Concentrate (BMAC). BMAC is anti-inflammatory and contains MSCs but the concentration of MSCs are far less than that of microfat. In addition, microfat has cushioning properties that BMAC lacks and the extraction of bone marrow from patients can be painful.

MFAT’s Safety and Track Record

Microfat has been in use in the United States since 2014 and is sanctioned by the FDA. However, not all microfat processing systems have been FDA cleared. MiniTC from Jointechlabs is FDA cleared – you should only receive treatment from an FDA-cleared product. Thousands of microfat procedures have been done and there is a large pool of research attesting to its safety and effectiveness. Additionally, since microfat is derived from your own fat cells, microfat therapy eliminates the risk of rejection or adverse reaction associated with the use of foreign materials.

The Advantages of MiniTC

Your doctor has selected MiniTC because the microfat it produces contains more MSCs than any other microfat product. Also MiniTC is sterile, fast, dependable, and is FDA cleared. Jointechlabs is ISO 13485:2016-certified (assuring the very highest quality standards) and we manufacture MiniTC in the US.

Next Steps

Whether microfat is right for you is a decision that you should make in consultation with your doctor. You should discuss the details of the procedure, and any alternatives, to understand the specific steps involved and the associated risks and benefits.