I have had PMMA butt injections four years ago. I notice red patches and pain under my buttocks. Should I be worried?

Poly (methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) beads are tiny thermoplastic microspheres in a collagen filler marketed under the trade name Artefill. This is the only FDA-approved PMMA filler product in the USA marketplace, and has been used as a filler designed to be semi-permanent, since the beads do not dissolve or reabsorb over time.Chemically, the proper name is poly(methyl 2-propenoate), and it was first used as a glass-like substitute under the trade name Plexiglas or Lucite. For cosmetic uses the tiny microspheres comprise about 20% of the volume of Artefill, with the remaining 80% collagen, which is reabsorbed over time, leaving only the tiny micro beads and any collagen (scar) that forms in response to the beads.Its use in buttock augmentation is questionable, as it would take numerous syringes to achieve any sort of meaningful volume enhancement, making me wonder just what injection was really received. If indeed you really received PMMA (Artefill) buttock enhancement, the microbeads can become contaminated with bacteria, causing infectious symptoms such as redness and pain, but usually only where injected. If your buttocks were injected, it makes no sense that your hips develop "red patches" unless these areas also received injections that became contaminated/infected.You need to be seen by one or more ABPS-certified plastic surgeons, as the only way to definitively eliminate these infected foreign bodies is to remove them. Since complete removal of tiny microbeads is, for all practical purposes, impossible, this may be a chronic problem that can only be controlled partially with antibiotics, and perhaps never able to be eliminated completely.I'm sorry this was recommended to you, and agreed to by you. This may not be a problem with an easy solution. Best wishes! Dr. Tholen

It may represent inflammation, infection, or potential skin necrosis in the future. Best to be seen in person. Best of luck.

Certainly any synthetic product injected can become infected and/or patients can develop a chronic inflammatory response that may give rise to symptoms similar to those you describe.  If you are having progressive pain and/or fever you should be seen immediately to be evaluated for infection.  If it is intermittent in nature, it could be a sub-clinical chronic infection (such as mycobacterium) or chronic inflammation. You should schedule a consultation with a board-certified plastic surgeon to have a full assessment, exam, and discussion of your situation.  Best of luck!