#gluteoplasty

The Brazilian butt lift or BBL has gained massive popularity these past few years, for both good and not-so-good reasons.

But if done right, it can be one of the most rewarding things you can do to your body—or in this case, booty.

To ensure your safety, here are five BBL safety precautions you and your chosen plastic surgeon should always exercise.

Know the risks and possible complications.

Your plastic surgeon must explain to you the risks of BBL surgery. Knowing them allows you to evaluate the circumstance and help you make an informed decision.

Some of the risks include infection, poor wound healing, fluid accumulation, changes in skin sensation, skin discoloration, and unfavorable scarring.

Another complication that might happen is when your plastic surgeon uses the intramuscular fat injection technique. With this technique, there’s a possibility that the cannula might be injected too deep into the muscles, hitting a blood vessel and causing a fat embolism.

To avoid this, your plastic surgeon should inject the fat into the subcutaneous tissues instead.

Use fat, not fillers.

While the Food and Drug Administration approved silicone and fillers for use in breast augmentation and facelift surgeries, they aren’t meant for a BBL. But you’ll find a lot of non-board-certified plastic surgeons offering low-cost BBL using these alternatives.

Keep in mind that a BBL involves harvesting fat from other parts of your body and injecting it into your buttocks to increase their volume. Using fillers in place of fat can create unsatisfactory results that might lead to revision surgery. Worse, it can result in fatal complications.

Have your BBL performed in a hospital.

A lot of plastic surgeons perform BBL and other surgeries inside their clinics. But the truth is, it’s safer to do the procedure in an accredited hospital.

In a hospital, your surgeon has access to all emergency equipment that you might need in case something goes wrong. He can also request for additional staff as needed.

Plus, you can stay in a hospital while you’re recovering from your surgery.

Follow your recovery and prep instructions.

The actual BBL surgery is half the battle. If you want to achieve your desired results, you must follow your doctor’s pre-op and post-op instructions.

Before your surgery, you have to stop smoking and taking certain medications to help you heal faster. 

It’s also important to note that BBL recovery is about four weeks, so you shouldn’t do any strenuous activities during that period.

Choose a board-certified plastic surgeon with extensive BBL experience.

As with any plastic surgery, finding a trained, experienced, and board-certified plastic surgeon is an absolute must.

Since a BBL isn’t a one-size-fits-all procedure, what works for one patient may not work for you. Your plastic surgeon should tailor the steps based on your body’s varying levels of fats and muscles.

Buttock augmentation or gluteoplasty is a plastic surgery and liposuction procedure that corrects traumatic, congenital and acquired deformities and defects of the buttocks and the anatomical gluteal region.

It is also performed as an aesthetic enhancement of the buttock contour. The procedures for buttock repair and buttock augmentation  includes the replacement of the  buttock prosthesis (gluteal implant), fat transfer or liposuction (Liposculpture) and body contouring which involves Liposculpture and surgery to correct the patient's deformity and defect of the gluteal region.

For functional purposes, the augmentation process is performed to establish a stable gait or a balanced walk for both sexes who needs the surgical correction or a defect or deformity of the gluteal region. For cosmetic  purposes, gluteoplasty is performed to lift, enlarge and shape the buttocks. The cosmetic procedure can make a person look curvier and to balance the look or the figure of a person who is top-heavy.

This cosmetic procedure has gained popularity due to cultural trends around the world. Any person interested in cosmetic buttock augmentation may have the following top reasons or concerns:

Their buttocks are too small for their body frame.

Their clothes do not fit properly and does not hold their figure.

Weight loss has left their buttocks flat and sagging.

The shape of their buttocks is making them self-conscious.

A person with a top –heavy figure will want to balance the overall all look of their body.

A congenital defect that affects the gait.

The buttocks appear too big or too small for the person’s body size.

Lacks fat in the gluteal area.

An underdeveloped gluteal muscle.

An accident or trauma that damaged the gluteal area and needs to be reconstructed.

Gluteoplasty  can be performed using fat transfer or by using implants. A fat transfer is technically where the fats are harvested from a another body part and then transferred and used to another body part that needs treatment or enhancement. Fats are usually taken from the  thigh, lower back, hips and abdomen. The fat is sourced through liposuction, purified and then transferred to the new area for treatment. Buttock implants  on the other hand are made of soft yet strong silicone that is placed in the buttocks through a single incision in the crease between the thigh and the buttock cheeks.

Based on the tests and examination your plastic surgeon has performed during the consultation stages, your plastic surgeon will help you decide which procedure will suit you best and the one that will meet your requirements and expectations. There may be cases where fats are also used to supplement the buttock implant to achieve a more pleasing and natural looking results. and just like any surgery, there are certain risks involved in gluteoplasty. Possible risks may involve:

Implant leakage or a ruptured implant.

Fat absorption after a fat transfer.

The implants are not symmetrical

Infections and scars

Liposuction and fat transfer usually take 2-3 hours. Inserting buttocks implants are between 1-2 hours. The procedure is normally an outpatient basis thus the patient can be discharged once the effects of anesthesia has gone down or worn off.

There will be swelling, soreness and pain after the surgery which are normal. The plastic surgeon will prescribe antibiotics and pain relievers to minimize pain and the chances of infections. The swelling will go down within 2 weeks and the stitches will be removed after a week. The implants and the muscles will slowly settle into place while healing and expect to see the changes after  within a month after surgery.