Q: What are the pros and cons of butt lift surgery?

Pros A buttock lift procedure can make a saggy butt look firmer, with a more youthful, natural-looking silhouette. The improvement in appearance often leads to a boost in self-confidence. Results are permanent, though the area will continue to age. Discomfort or rashes caused by excess skin will be alleviated. As plastic surgery procedures go, it's considered a very safe outpatient procedure, with minimal risks. Cons The procedure is expensive and not typically covered by insurance. You’ll need up to three weeks of downtime, and full recovery takes several months. While the incision is placed so it’s not easily visible and the scar will fade over time, it will be permanent. The procedure can leave the butt deflated, though more volume can be added via a fat transfer or silicone implants. Future weight fluctuations can affect results.

Question 1

What is a butt lift?

Accepted Answer

A butt lift is a surgical procedure that removes excess skin to tighten, elevate, and reshape the buttocks.

Also called a gluteal lift, gluteoplasty, or butt tuck, the surgery is frequently performed after significant weight loss, often as part of a lower body lift (along with a thigh lift and tummy tuck).

“With massive weight loss, the buttocks can look deflated and droop,” leaving saggy skin, says Dr. Andrew Lyos, a plastic surgeon in Houston. “If there’s a great deal of skin laxity, a buttock lift, which elevates and tightens the buttocks, is the best option.”

Butt lift surgery removes this saggy skin and fat, while tightening and redraping the remaining tissue.

RealSelf Tip: Unlike a butt augmentation procedure, a butt lift can actually make your rear end look flatter than it did prior to surgery. If you want to remove sagging tissue and add more volume, your surgeon can also perform a fat transfer procedure, commonly called a Brazilian butt lift (BBL), or insert silicone butt implants. Read on to find out more about the differences between these procedures.

Question 2

What are the pros and cons of butt lift surgery?

Accepted Answer

Pros

A buttock lift procedure can make a saggy butt look firmer, with a more youthful, natural-looking silhouette.
The improvement in appearance often leads to a boost in self-confidence.
Results are permanent, though the area will continue to age.
Discomfort or rashes caused by excess skin will be alleviated.
As plastic surgery procedures go, it's considered a very safe outpatient procedure, with minimal risks.

Cons

The procedure is expensive and not typically covered by insurance.
You’ll need up to three weeks of downtime, and full recovery takes several months.
While the incision is placed so it’s not easily visible and the scar will fade over time, it will be permanent.
The procedure can leave the butt deflated, though more volume can be added via a fat transfer or silicone implants.
Future weight fluctuations can affect results.

Question 3

How much does a butt lift cost?

Accepted Answer

A buttocks lift is considered a cosmetic procedure, so most insurance providers don't cover it. However, some plans may offer partial coverage if it’s deemed medically necessary. Check with your insurance carrier.

See our complete guide to butt lift costs

Question 4

Butt lift before and after pictures

Accepted Answer

The butt lift photos in our gallery have been shared by the provider who performed the procedure, with the patient's consent.

Question 5

Who makes a good candidate for a butt lift?

Accepted Answer

Healthy adults “who have loose skin above their buttocks are the best candidates for this procedure,” says Dr. Ricardo Rodriguez, a plastic surgeon in Lutherville, Maryland. “You need a butt lift if excess skin and a lack of fat are causing your butt to sag. You need a Brazilian butt lift if you have fat in other places of your body—but not in your butt,” he explains.

It’s also important to be at or near their goal weight for at least a year, to help ensure that your results will last over time.

If you smoke, you'll need to quit at least two weeks before the surgery and refrain during your recovery. Smoking slows down the healing process and increases the risk of infection, bleeding, or an adverse reaction to anesthesia.

Question 6

What’s the difference between a buttock lift and a BBL?

Accepted Answer

A buttock lift removes excess tissue, to lift and tighten the buttocks. This can leave the butt looking deflated, so surgeons often recommend combining this body contouring procedure with butt augmentation, to add volume and make the buttocks rounder.

The most popular choice for buttock augmentation is Brazilian butt lift surgery (BBL), a two-part fat grafting procedure:

First, liposuction is used to harvest your own excess fat cells from other areas of the body (usually the abdomen and flanks), or even from fat that was removed during your butt lift. This fat is purified and loaded into a syringe.
Your surgeon then injects your own fat into the buttocks, just below the skin.

Fat transfer can be performed at the same time as buttock lift surgery, or after you’ve healed and assessed the new shape and size of your buttocks. Unlike a traditional lift, a BBL doesn’t involve any skin removal or tightening; the intention is to create an hourglass shape.

Keep in mind that a BBL is one of the riskiest cosmetic surgery procedures if it’s not performed correctly, according to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons. New guidelines have made it safer, but you’ll still want to make sure that your surgeon is board certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery, their surgery center is accredited, and the fat is injected only into the subcutaneous tissue—not into the muscle.

Silicone butt implants are another augmentation option. “The most reliable, predictable, relatively safe and permanent way to augment and/or ‘lift’ the buttock is with buttock implants,” says Dr. Ryan Stanton, a plastic surgeon in Beverly Hills. If the buttock looks deflated, “buttock implants will reinflate it. There will be an enlargement of the buttocks and, likely, more pop at the top.”

A limited number of board-certified plastic surgeons routinely perform buttock implant surgery, but it’s best to find a provider who specializes in the procedure.

Not all butt lift patients opt for buttock enhancement. RealSelf memberThinisIn had a lot of extra skin after losing 140 pounds following gastric bypass surgery. “I’ve always been bottom heavy, and it’s like my body melted into my butt. I got tired of looking like I’m sitting in a puddle.” She didn’t want implants or a fat transfer procedure (“no Brazilian here!”), so buttock lift surgery left her butt very flat. “Can’t wait to get to the gym and try to round it out some,” she says.

If you do want to get a boost but avoid surgery, consider Emsculpt, which uses electromagnetic energy to build muscle mass and tone.

Question 7

How is a butt lift done?

Accepted Answer

Buttock lift surgery takes about two hours when it’s performed alone and as long as five or six hours, it’s part of a lower-body lift.

You’ll be given general anesthesia or local anesthesia with IV sedation, so you’ll be fully asleep or deeply relaxed and sleepy during the surgery. Either way, you won’t feel any pain or discomfort.

During the procedure, your surgeon will:

Make an incision from hip to hip, where your lower back meets your upper buttock. “I’m very careful to plan the scar so that it’s hard to detect, even when wearing a bikini,” says Dr. Rodriguez.
Remove an ellipse of excess skin and fat.
Potentially perform fat removal via liposuction on your lower back and flanks, for optimal body contouring.
Carefully pull up the skin below the incision and trim away the excess skin. “This allows for a true elevation of the buttock tissues and reshaping of the entire butt,” says Dr. Rodriguez.
Close the incisions with sutures.

They may also place surgical drains, to prevent fluid from accumulating under the skin as you heal.

After recovering for a few hours, you’ll be able to go home. You’ll be groggy from the anesthesia, so be sure to arrange for someone you trust to make sure you get there safely. They’ll also need to stay with you overnight.

Your surgeon will prescribe medication, to minimize pain during the first few days of your recovery.

Question 8

What should you expect during butt lift recovery?

Accepted Answer

Butt lift surgery requires 2 to 3 weeks of downtime before you can return to work. You'll also need to take it easy for up to 3 months, slowly ramping up your activity levels.

Here’s what to expect during that time:

Your incision will be covered with surgical dressing. You’ll be sent home with instructions on how to keep it clean (often with a gentle antibacterial soap), change the dressings regularly, and be alert to any signs of infection.
Your surgeon will show you how to empty your surgical drains, measure the amount of fluid, and keep the entry points clean. Typically, they can be removed after one week.
You’ll be encouraged to walk around the day after surgery, to promote circulation, but you’ll mostly be on bed rest for a few days, so it’s a good idea to have someone there to help you during your recovery.
You’ll need to wear a compression garment for 6 weeks or longer, taking it off only when you shower. This controls swelling, reduces pain, and keeps the skin taut and smooth as you heal. Compression garments can be difficult to remove and put back on, so you may need help with this.
“There’s no sitting for the first week, to avoid stressing the area," says Dr. Rodriguez. Your surgeon will advise you on how to position yourself, including how to use pillows to minimize tension on your incisions, reduce pain, and minimize scarring. Many RealSelf members slept on a recliner for the first week.

If you develop a fever or become concerned about anything during your recovery, don’t hesitate to reach out to your surgeon.

Question 9

How can butt lift scars be minimized?

Accepted Answer

Scars from a buttocks lift are permanent, but they’re typically placed in areas that aren’t easily visible, and their appearance will improve over time as they fade.

Your surgeon will give you instructions to minimize scarring, but one key is to avoid any undue force on the incision from straining, bending, twisting, or lifting for at least a month.

“In a worst-case scenario, a buttock lift scar can be revised and even provide a little extra tightening,” says Dr. Rodriguez. “The scar will still be visibly reduced and the overall result improved.”

Many surgeons recommend silicone sheeting or gels like Biocorneum once the incision has fully healed, to help your scars fade faster.

Question 10

How soon will you see results, and how long will they last?

Accepted Answer

Butt lift results are apparent almost immediately, and most major swelling will subside within a couple of months. It may take six months to a year for you to completely heal and see the final result.

Results are usually long-lasting. Maintaining a stable weight is important for a successful long-term outcome. According to Dr. Rodriguez, “A small amount of weight gain can sometimes round out the butt, but excess weight gain could further stretch the skin.”

BUTT LIFT

Ricardo L. Rodriguez, MD

Karyn Repinski

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Ricardo L. Rodriguez, MD

Karyn Repinski

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