Labial Fat Grafting After Penile Inversion Vaginoplasty

Penile inversion vaginoplasty (PIV) has become the most commonly performed genital surgery for transfeminine patients. However, patients undergoing this procedure may still require revisions to achieve a satisfactory result.

The authors report on the utilization of autologous fat grafting to the labia majora to improve results after PIV and complications that may predict the need for grafting.

A retrospective chart review was conducted of a single surgeon's patients who underwent PIV between July 2014 and December 2019. Demographic information, operative information, and postoperative outcomes were abstracted from the health records. Wilcoxon rank sum tests and chi-squared test were employed for continuous variables and categorical, respectively.

A total of 182 transfeminine and gender-diverse patients underwent PIV, with 6 patients (3.3%) eventually undergoing labial fat grafting. The most common indication for labial fat grafting was flattened labia majora (83%). All fat grafting procedures were performed concurrently with other revisions of the vaginoplasty. There were no demographic or medical history differences detected between the fat grafting and non-fat grafting groups. Patients who underwent labial fat grafting were more likely to suffer from introital stenosis (33% vs 6%, P = 0.007) and prolonged granulation tissue greater than 6 weeks after initial vaginoplasty (83% vs 32%; P = 0.01).

Labial fat grafting is a safe and effective method to address defects in the labia majora after PIV. Prolonged granulation tissue and introital stenosis may predict the need for labial fat grafting, possibly due to increased scarring and contracture at the surgical site.