Fat necrosis

Fat necrosis is necrosis affecting fat tissue. The term is well established in medical terminology even though it does not denote one specific pattern of necrosis. Fat necrosis may result from various injuries to adipose tissue, including physical trauma, enzymatic digestion of adipocytes by lipases, radiation therapy, hypoxia, or inflammation of the subcutaneous fat, which is called panniculitis. Because the name describes tissue damage in fat rather than a single disease process, it is applied across several different settings.