General Theory of Body Contouring: 2. Modulation of Mechanical Properties of Subcutaneous Fat Tissue

Abstract

Subcutaneous white adipose tissue (sWAT) can be described micromechanically as a foam structure. It is shown that according to this model, mechanical stiffness of this tissue is primarily dependent on the average cell size and is almost independent of the dispersion of cell sizes in a local adipocytes’ population. Whereas the influence of natural fat renewal process with a rate of 10% per year must be of minor importance for mechanical properties of sWAT, induced adipocytes’ death can substantially reduce local sWAT stiffness. The sWAT which contains two or more different subpopulations of adipocytes of varying sizes with a spatially clustered structure can demonstrate significant inhomogeneity of their mechanical properties when compared with those of sWAT consisting of a single population of adipocytes. It is proposed that this effect may be an important pathophysiological feature of cellulite. Transformation of the cell shape from quasispherical to wrinkled or elliptical forms makes adipocytes more susceptible to thermo-mechanical stress reducing the strain needed to achieve the local plastic deformation. These mechanical features of sWAT are essential for understanding the mechanisms of different non-invasive and minimal invasive body contouring procedures.