Safe Fat Injections for Butt Augmentation?

Everyone wants a high, round, full, and sexy behind. However, because of age, genetics, pregnancy, weight loss, or weight gain, many women and men are left with a flat, square, or saggy derrière. Fortunately, there is a way to correct this… Originating in South America, the“Brazilian Butt Lift,” is one of the newest and most popular aesthetic surgery procedures now being performed in the United States.

The “Brazilian Butt Lift,” or gluteal lift/augmentation is a procedure designed to improve the shape and appearance of the gluteal region. This surgery uses a combination of liposuction and fat grafting (i.e. fat injections with the patient’s own fat) to produce a fuller, firmer, more youthful-appearing buttocks.

Consult with a board certified plastic surgeon who is experienced in fat transfers for best results.

Fat grafting is a safe and effective means of augmenting the buttocks.  The buttocks can be shaped as well as enlarged with this technique.  Good luck and be safe.John T. Nguyen, MD, FACS, FICSDouble Board Certified Plastic Surgeon

Brazilian butt lift (fat transfer to the buttock) is so popular because it enables your plastic surgeon to transform your entire shape. Liposuction is performed over several areas depending on the individual patient needs, but typically of the flanks, abdomen, back and thighs.

The liposculpting will allow your surgeon to bring in your hips and waist giving you more of an hour glass figure. You already have some shape to your buttock and this will be able to be enhanced to give you a very attractive buttock. From the pictures you look like you have very good skin which will give you a great result from the liposcultping. The process of the Brazilian Butt lift is not only to add volume to the buttock but to transform the entire shape of the patient from a square appearance to more of an hour glass shape. It is about giving a patient a figure that she will look great in close or a bikini (for the patients here in Miami). The goal is not to just try and make the biggest butt possible. It is giving the patient a shape they will love for years to come!
Fat injections are the only substance that I would currently have injected into your buttock for enhancement. Unfortunately here in Miami I have seen patients who were injected with silicone or other random substance and some of them end up with lifelong problems. When considering this procedure it is very important that you have your procedure performed by a board certified plastic surgeon. I hope this helps.

In the last few years, the buttock fat transfer has become the predominant technique in buttock augmentation. With this technique, the fat is obtained through liposuction of various areas, most typically the abdomen, flanks, and back. The fat is prepared and injected into the buttocks through small incisions. The buttocks can be augmented and re-shaped with this technique. Serious complications are rare. These include but are not limited to bleeding, infection, fat necrosis (dead fat tissue), and asymetry.

By using buttock implants, the surgeon can only increase the posterior projection of the buttocks. The hips can only be augmented with fat. Complications from implants include infection, seroma (fluid accumulation around the implant), implant exposure, and opening of the incision. These complications can be quite common if the surgeon is inexperienced or if the patient is non-compliant with the post-surgery instructions. Many surgeons who used to perform a high number of implant augmentations have transitioned to using fat. However, in experienced hands both techniques are quite safe.

One should use caution and avoid a third technique, which is polymer or silicone injections. These are illegal in the United States but commonly done in South America. In the United States, these injections are done illicitly. Since this type of practice is not controlled, the patient does not know what is being injected. Many times, the product is not even sterile (cleaned in a special way to be used in surgery) and infections can be common. To further the issue, if the product gets infected, it is difficult to remove and these surgeries can be deforming. The product can also migrate and can deform the buttocks over several years. Therefore, this technique should be avoided.

It works. The preferred method for performing buttock augmentation is fat transfer, the use of the patient's own body fat to reshape the butt. Fat injection achieves a more natural result, has a lower risk of infection, and also contours the areas around the buttocks to enhance the overall effect.

However, implants may be recommended for patients who have very little body fat to harvest, such as body-builders and naturally thin patients. An additional benefit of the Brazilian butt lift is that you don’t only get a shapelier buttock, but the area to liposuction is now much leaner, giving your profile a more sensuous look. Cost is always a consideration in elective surgery. Procedure prices can vary widely, due to the fact that every patient is different.

When performed by an experienced surgeon using the proper techniques, buttock augmentation is a highly satisfying and permanent procedure that enhances the profile of the buttocks and surrounding areas for a younger, firmer, curvier look.

 

The best and safest way to augment the buttock area is through the use of your own fat (fat transfer also known as a Brazilian buttock lift).  This can give a very natural looking result and at the same time can reshape the entire lower back, love handle and hip area.  Fat transfer can give a more natural feel also compared to buttock implants.

I do not recommend any other injections, such as silicone, for buttock enhancement. These injections are not FDA approved and are associated with numerous complications.

Please consult with a board certified plastic surgeon prior to considering any form of buttock augmentation

Best wishes,

Dr. Bruno

Depending on whom you ask, complication rates vary tremendously with implants and are often quoted in the 30% range. Coupled with the relative small selection of implant materials available in the US in paticular, implant buttock augmentation is generally not the preferred method of buttock enlargement in the USA. Therefore buttock augmentation via lipoinjection remains a popular option in the USA.

If you ever wanted to redefine and improve the shape and appearance of your backside Sculptra butt injections are a simple and effective way to achieve that. Sculptra unlike other fillers increases volume as it induces collagen production. So the solution itself is not the one that produces the added volume. The process relies on the body's natural collagen production. It induces the body to produce collagen.

Thank you for your question. You should start by selecting an experienced plastic surgeon, then you want to look into the details of where and how your Brazilian Butt Lift will be performed. They have been performed in a hospital setting, surgical center, or even in a procedure room of a doctor's office. I discourage having your surgery in a doctor's procedure room because they usually lack a decontamination area (or what we call the "clean" area). This is the buffer area between the normal environment (which we consider "dirty") and the operating room (which we consider "sterile"). When you don't have this buffer area, you may increase your risk of an infection, which can also lead to poor fat survival. In a hospital setting, you are at higher risk of being exposed to patients with infections or illness, which can also increase your risk of an infection. In a surgical center, especially one where they are only performing elective surgery or other cosmetic surgeries, your risk of an infection or exposure to one is extremely low. Of course you also want to make sure that you will have an experienced, board-certified anesthesiologist who will be keeping you asleep and comfortable and that the facility is certified and kept to the highest standards. One should never cut corners on your health and safety!

I see so many questions online about buttock augmentations through methods that do not involve either fat injections, the traditional Brazilian Butt Lifts, or with buttock implants.  In other words, the questions are often about the use of materials such as hydrogels, free silicone, and also materials that are not specifically made for buttock augmentation.  Oftentimes, the patients asking the questions have already had the buttock injection and now they’re wondering about their options for having said material removed.   I really cannot stress enough that all forms of buttock enhancement that does not use the patient’s own fat or use of silicone implants specifically designed for buttock enhancement, should really be avoided for safety reasons.  I think injections of materials not specifically made for buttock enhancement may lead to immediate or long-term problems.  These can include things like infections, pain, hard lumps, and even deformities.  Unfortunately, some of these may be impossible to correct.  This is not even to mention the catastrophic results that often make the headline news.   I really do urge anyone who is considering buttock enhancement by anyone other than an experienced, licensed and board certified plastic surgeon, to rethink what could lead to a lifetime of problems with black market injections.  Buttock enhancement is really a surgical procedure.  It should not be done anywhere other than a surgical facility and that means not having the procedure done in a place like a hotel room or someone’s private home.  Please be smart and cautious.  What may sound like a great deal in the short run, may be a long period of problems that cost you your health or worse.   If buttock augmentation is what you really desire, seek out a consultation with a board certified and experienced plastic surgeon.  Buttock augmentation is an incredible procedure that can be done very safely and with great results.  The main message here is to be smart about your selection of surgeon by choosing a professional who can answer your questions and give you their best recommendation for treatment. Best of luck with your procedure!