What is the Brazilian Butt Lift (BBL)?
The Brazilian butt lift (BBL), sculpts the buttocks and adds volume using the patient’s own fat from other areas of the body. No matter the patient’s age, genetics, or other factors, butt enhancement can lift, tighten, and improve the overall appearance of the buttocks.
The BBL (Brazilian Butt Lift) procedure has recently become the fastest-growing cosmetic surgery in the nation, according to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons.
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About the Brazilian butt lift (BBL) Procedure
The Brazilian butt lift is usually performed as an outpatient surgery under general anesthesia. The first step in the procedure is the extraction of fat from one or more donor areas. These areas may include the stomach, hips or thighs, and will depend on the amount of fat needed and the distribution of fat throughout the body.
Liposuction is performed through small incisions, removing excess fat from the donor areas to ensure there is enough fat for grafting. Once the fat is retrieved, it is washed, spun, and purified to isolate the most viable cells for transfer. About 25 percent of cells will be healthy enough to reuse. The prepared fat is then injected into the buttock area, carefully shaping, lifting and augmenting the area according to the patient’s wishes.
Brazilian Butt Lift Recovery
Because treatment centers around a high-movement area, recovery after a Brazilian butt lift involves significant activity restrictions. Patients should plan to take up to two weeks off of work, and possibly more if their works involves a lot of sitting. Patients should wear compression garments for three to six months following the procedure.
Post-surgical pain and discomfort can be controlled with prescribed medication. Final results become apparent at about six months to a year after surgery after swelling subsides and the fat establishes itself in the buttock area.
Is BBL Painful?
Like all surgeries, a BBL is usually followed by some discomfort. Many patients report some mild to moderate soreness in their buttocks and at the liposuction sites after the procedure. Buttock pain is often compared to muscle soreness. It typically subsides within 48 hours of surgery and is generally not difficult to cope with. Post-surgical pain and discomfort are controlled with prescribed medication which will keep you comfortable as you recover.
If you still have some mild discomfort after finishing your prescribed medication, over-the-counter pain relievers such as Tylenol usually prove more than adequate at resolving the issue. There is no reason for you to fear that a BBL will leave you in excessive pain or discomfort. Severe pain or pain that increases rather than decreases indicate a complication you should immediately report to us.
Frequently Asked Questions
Though a Brazilian butt lift is generally a safe procedure, there are always risks to major surgery. Choosing the right surgeon and following all pre- and post-operative instructions will greatly reduce the risk of complications.
Some potential risks may include:
- Bleeding
- Infection
- Numbness
- Stretch marks
- Excessive resorption of grafted fat
- Asymmetry
- Fat Embolism
While not all of the injected fat from a Brazilian butt lift will survive to augment the buttocks, the idea behind the Brazilian butt lift is that the majority of the fat grafts used will establish themselves permanently. At about the six-month mark, patients will be able to see how much of the fat transferred is permanent.
The fat cells that don’t survive are absorbed by the body. To compensate for the inevitable loss of some fat, surgeons sometimes overfill the area during surgery.
Results can be compromised if the patient gains or loses weight, so we advise patients to maintain a stable weight while their body is healing.
While fat transfer is the preferred method for buttock augmentation, some patients don’t have enough fat in other areas of their body to generate the necessary volume for a Brazilian butt lift. In these cases, some surgeons recommend using silicone implants instead of fat, but this is far less common and less natural-looking. Only talking to an expert will give you the customized answers you need.
Brazilian butt lift procedures should only produce small scars which fade over time and are hidden by clothing. Prospective surgeons will be able to advise you on the expected location and size of the scars.
Yes, you will have to avoid sitting after a Brazilian butt lift for three to four weeks in order to prevent fat-shifting, which compromises results. If you need advice on how to handle this recovery requirement, discuss it with your Mia Aesthetics surgeon during your consultation.
Good candidates for a Brazilian butt lift are healthy adults who want to improve the size, shape, contour, and lift of the buttocks. Candidates should have enough fat to use in the transfer process and have realistic expectations about the results of the procedure.
