Do I have enough fat to achieve desired results from a Brazilian butt lift? (photos)

Question

I will be 40 years old this year. I have four kids and after having my last child last year and going through a lot of stress I have lost weight and I want to enhance the shape of my butt I am normally around 135 lbs but currently 125 5’7’’. Do I have enough fat to transfer to really see some results of a lifted shapely butt. Thank you.

J. Jason Wendel, MD, FACS · Answer

Thank you for your question in regards to a Brazilian butt lift. Having enough fat to transfer is depending on what your desired appearance is. You appear to be a good canidate for the procedure. To be sure what is best for you, see two or more board-certified plastic surgeons in your area for a full and complete evaluation to make sure you are a good candidate and that it is safe for you to have surgery. I hope this helps.

Daniel Barrett, MD · Answer

Dear Thoughtful11511,
it is hard to tell for sure without an examination. If you are considering surgery, I would suggest you consult a board-certified plastic surgeon. Only after a thorough examination, you will get more information and recommendations.
Daniel Barrett, MD
Certified, American Board of Plastic Surgery
Member, American Society of Plastic Surgery
Member, American Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery

Moises Salama, MD · Answer

Thanks for your question. From your pictures, you seem to be a good BBL candidate. The BBL includes 360 lipo, which is lipo of the upper and lower abdomen, the upper and lower back and the flanks. This helps contour your waist and give you an hourglass figure, and the transferred fat will add projection to your buttocks. In addition, if you do not have enough fat in these areas, liposuction can be performed in many other areas of the body for fat transfer to the buttocks, such as the upper arms and chin. Depending on your desired results, you may be asked to gain some weight. I recommend you schedule a consult for a proper evaluation. Make sure your surgeon you choose has extensive experience with BBLs and clean credentials. Always consult with a board certified plastic surgeon. Take care, Moises Salama MD, Board Certified Plastic Surgeon

Geuris Cruz Quiroz, MD · Answer

Thank you so much for your question. Based on your pictures you can achieve good results after a BBL procedure. Make an appointment with a board certified plastic surgeon and get a proper consultation. Good luck!

Manuel Diaz, MD · Answer

You are an excellent candidate for abdominoplasty and liposuction with fat placement in the buttocks. if you won't get pregnant again. you can get excellent results and get the buttocks you want. I recommend a tummy tuck for the flaccidity that you present.

Cagil Meric Erenoglu, MD · Answer

Hi! Yes, you have enough fat to transfer so you are suitable candidate for Ultrasonic Safe and Natural BBL. We can inject more permanently and safely with the maximum fat we will get from your abdomen, waist, back and legs with this method I apply. So you can have the lifted and rounded butt you dream of. I recommend that the Ultrasonic Safe and Natural BBL method in order to position the injected fats in the right places, to make the fats much more permanent and to be done in the safest way, Best regards.

Mats Hagstrom, MD (license on probation) · Answer

Fat is only one of many variables that determine someone’s body contour.
In your case your fat distribution is somewhat bottom heavy and you don’t carry much subcutaneous fat on your torso. your pelvis is tall and thin. you also have projecting hips based on your bone structure and some degree of saddlebags that is in part due to skin laxity from age and weight fluctuations. You also have mild to moderate cellulite on the back and lower part of your buttocks.
All of these variables need to be taken into consideration when making an assessment and deciding how the procedure should be performed as well as trying to convey exactly what your results would look like. there are some inherent challenges that will limit outcome and some potential pitfalls.
Most of the volume needed is in the lateral aspect of your buttocks up to your hip dip area. The amount of fat that can be successfully grafted and will survive is dependent on the amount of host tissue available to support the graft. in the area where you need volume the most your subcutaneous fat layer is most likely relatively thin. without grafting fat into the gluteus muscle the amount of fat that can be successfully grafted and survive in this area will inherently be limited. I am not suggesting grafting fat into your gluteus muscle though doing so would give you a much better outcome. grafting fat into the muscle is considered a high risk procedure and is not done by the great majority of plastic surgeons in the United States and around the world. This unfortunately leaves only your subcutaneous fat layer as the only post tissue to support the grafted fat.
Generally speaking you can expect a layer of soft tissue to double in thickness with one round of fat transfer. For example if your subcutaneous fat layer were you need volume at the most is half an inch thick then you can attempt to double that making it 1 inch or adding 1/2 inch of projection. The final outcome will be slightly less than that because not all the fat will survive. If you rely on your torso only as a source of fat then you may not have enough fat for a quality BBL. adding arms will add one more area to collect fat from but because you carry more fat in your lower extremities harvesting from your thighs may also be necessary. The decision of where to emphasize fat harvest it’s a pretty important topic and is one that you need to have with the surgeon you choose to do the procedure with. If you’re OK with harvesting fat from your torso and all extremities then you can certainly have a quality BBL. it’s possible that enough fat could be harvested from your lower extremities alone or possibly lower extremities and arms for a BBL. Deciding what areas to treat with liposuction depends on what you’re trying to achieve.
Delivering consistent quality liposuction and fat transfer results is more difficult than most people believe.
The variation and outcome for this procedure based only on the choice of provider varies massively. There is more variation in outcomes for liposuction and fat transfer and then the other plastic surgery procedure based only on who does the surgery.
Being board-certified in plastic surgery with an overall good reputation any years of experience does not mean somebody has mastered either Liposuction or fat transfer. Liposuction and fat transfer should be considered permanent and irreversible operations,
If done poorly people are left just figured.
Once performed if the results are undesirable it is very difficult to improve on the results of both Liposuction and fat transfer.
Patients should be highly selective and carefully vetch plastic surgeons before scheduling this procedure.
To do that I recommend patients start by having at least five in person consultations with local board-certified plastic surgeons who have a proven track record for the BBL procedure.
Bring pictures of your own body to use for reference. pictures should be cropped to show your torso and lower extremities from your shoulders to just below your knees. 
During each consultation ask each provider to open up their portfolio and show you their entire collection of before and after pictures for the BBL procedure. Ask providers to show you examples of previous patient who had similar body characteristics like your own. The transition from your buttocks to the saddlebag area is going to be challenging but if done correctly should give it a very good outcome. Skin laxity is most likely contributing significantly to the contour of your outer thigh. You can see for yourself if skin laxity is contributing by pulling up on the skin above the problem area while looking in the mirror or while someone else takes a picture. if the contour does not change by pulling up on the skin and skin is not contributing. It is an area that tends to worsen with age and weight fluctuations in patients with your age bracket and pregnancy history.
When reviewing before and after pictures as providers to show you examples of excellent outcomes, average outcomes and outcomes that did not turn out as well as they had hoped. providers may be apprehensive to show you anything other than their best results.
Your goal is to get confirmation of what average results look like and previous patients who had similar body characteristics to your own as well as get some idea of how many of these procedures each provider has actually done.
When reviewing before and after pictures bring your own pictures with you and use those as a reference.
Insist on only being shown pictures of previous patients who had similar body characteristics to your own.
A highly experienced plastic surgeon should have no difficulty showing you at least 50 send some before and after pictures of commonly performed procedures like the BBL. In fact highly experienced surgeons will have hundreds or possibly even thousands of before and after pictures for commonly performed procedures if they’ve been in practice for many years.
Providers who cannot show you impressive collections before and after pictures or a previous patients pull up very similar to you should be a big red flag.
Look very carefully at all areas treated with Liposuction to make sure there are no contour irregularities anywhere. Ask the surgeon to point out specifically what areas were treated and what areas were not treated with liposuction. Then look carefully at transition zone between treated and on treated areas to make sure they look totally natural.
For fat transfer results make sure after pictures were taken at least three months but preferably six months from the date of surgery. Early fat transfer results can look very impressive but do not represent final results.
 Continue having in person consultations until you feel very comfortable you found the most qualified and confident provider for your needs.
Delivering consistent results including the ability to make accurate assessments for this procedure is more difficult than most people believe. The number of providers who can make accurate assessments and delivery consistent quality results is actually relatively small.
Considering that the results will be permanent any reversible patients should take the selection process very seriously.
If you have any doubts or questions then slow down and schedule more consultations.
Avoid virtual consultations whenever possible and I highly recommend against traveling long distances for elective surgical procedures,
Best,
Mats Hagstrom MD

Do I have enough fat to achieve desired results from a Brazilian butt lift? (photos)

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