| Cost range | Recovery |
|---|---|
| Cost range $7,000 - $10,000 | Recovery 2 - 4 weeks |
Many people want to have a round, voluminous backside, even though they may not have been genetically blessed with one. Traditionally, buttock augmentation has involved enhancing the size and shape of the buttocks with the placement of an artificial implant. While this approach is still used in some plastic surgery practices, nowadays, plastic surgeons have a better alternative to butt implants: the Brazilian butt lift (BBL).
BBL collects fat from an area of the patient’s body where it is unwanted and transfers that fat to the buttocks. This approach, known as fat transfer or fat grafting, leaves the backside looking shapelier and the donor area looking slimmer.
Brazilian butt lift is the most effective way to achieve a beautiful, shapely buttocks. Having a larger backside helps patients to feel more confident and look more attractive in certain types of clothing like jeans or a bathing suit.
Because BBL uses the patient’s own fat cells, the results tend to look and feel more natural. Patients also feel more comfortable augmenting their buttocks with real fat rather than a foreign object like an implant.
The most popular benefit of Brazilian butt lift is that it is essentially two procedures in one. By taking fat from another part of the body, patients have the excuse to improve their overall proportions to better achieve their dream figure.
Candidates for Brazilian butt lift desire a larger, sexier backside that looks and feels natural. They must have sufficient donor fat in another area (or areas) of the body. Fat can be taken from the abdomen, hips, thighs or various other areas where unwanted fat deposits amass.
Candidates should be in good general health and have realistic expectations of the surgery itself, the recovery and the outcomes.
Brazilian butt lift is broken down into three steps:
First, unwanted fat is harvested from the donor area (generally the abdomen, thighs or lower back) with liposuction. Dr. Valladolid takes time to carefully mold the remaining fat to achieve trimmer, appealing contours in the area from which fat is borrowed
Next, the donor fat is purified. Dr. Valladolid removes excess fluid and damaged cells so that only viable fat cells are ultimately transferred. This purification process helps to make the procedure safer and to increase the odds of success.
Finally, the purified fat is injected into the buttocks in a strategic pattern to increase its fullness and shape. In most cases, Dr. Valladolid places a significant portion of the fat in the upper part of the buttocks to give it a rounder and more “lifted” appearance. He then molds the transferred fat into an attractive shape.
After surgery, a compression garment is placed around the buttocks to help the tissues conform to their new contour.
The buttocks will be swollen, bruised and sore for a few weeks after surgery. Pain medication can be taken to manage any discomfort, and the compression garment helps reduce swelling. Plenty of rest, nutritious meals and proper hydration are recommended to nourish the body as it heals.
Patients must be careful not to sit or lie directly on the buttocks for about two weeks after the operation. Putting pressure on the buttocks can interfere with the fat cells’ ability to survive and reshape the contours achieved during surgery. To avoid downgrading the results, patients usually sit or lie on their stomach or sides. A special donut seat or pillow can also be placed under the thighs to take some of the pressure off the buttocks.
Dr. Valladolid sees patients for follow-up appointments during the initial recovery and advises when it is safe to resume work, exercise and normal activities. Most patients can resume desk jobs about 10 to 14 days after surgery (as long as they modify how they sit per Dr. Valladolid’s instructions), and exercise within four to six weeks.
Though the patient’s derriere is immediately larger following surgery, Dr. Valladolid encourages patients to wait about six months before assessing their results. This allows time for the swelling to subside and fat cells that did not survive the transfer process to be expelled from the body.
Although BBL is not a permanent procedure, it is usually long-lasting. Because a patient’s body recognizes and adopts its own transplanted fat cells, these cells have a high rate of survival and can thrive for many years.
The best way for the patient to extend the duration of these results is to maintain a steady weight. A significant fluctuation in weight — either a gain or a loss — can alter the contours. Because these fat cells behave like normal fat cells even in their new location, a concerted effort to diet and exercise can cause them to shrink.
Brazilian butt lift typically costs between $7,000 and $10,000. The exact price differs from patient to patient, primarily based on the amount of fat that must be transferred to achieve that patient’s desired results. Because BBL is an elective, cosmetic procedure, it is not covered by medical insurance. However, Valladolid Plastic Surgery does accept cosmetic surgery financing plans through CareCredit to allow patients to pay for the procedure in payments.
To produce beautiful results with the Brazilian Butt Lift, a surgeon must have a finely developed eye for aesthetic detail, as well as in-depth training and extensive experience. Dr. Genaro Valladolid is the plastic surgeon of choice for individuals seeking Brazilian Butt Lift in Scottsdale and Mesa. He has specialized training in buttock augmentation and the fat transfer technique, and consistently delivers very appealing results.
To meet with Dr. Valladolid to discuss Brazilian butt lift, please schedule a consultation online or call (480) 770-5015.
In most cases, Brazilian butt lift (BBL) is the preferable option because the surgery produces a more natural appearance. It is easier to sculpt a pleasant shape with the patient’s own body fat. Patients of Scottsdale and Mesa plastic surgeon Dr. Genaro Valladolid report that their new Brazilian butt lift derrière not only looks great, but also feels more natural.
The problem with butt implants is that they maintain a fixed shape and only alter the specific area in which they are inserted. On top of that, implants are at a higher risk of complications such as infection, scarring and implant displacement where the implant shifts out of its intended position.
That said, Dr. Valladolid would recommend implants for certain patients, particularly thin women who do not have sufficient fat on their body for fat transfer to produce meaningful Brazilian butt lift results. Other patients simply do not carry enough fat in the parts of the body that are preferable to harvest fat from for transfer. For example, women who carry their weight primarily on their abdomen are not great candidates for BBL because this visceral fat is not safely treated with liposuction.
Butt implants are also generally the best choice for patients who want the most drastic changes in size since implants can offer more volume than BBL.
When performed by an expert surgeon like Dr. Valladolid, the results from Brazilian butt lift can last as long as 20 years. Be aware, however, that BBL does not stop aging from occuring, and the natural effects of getting older may gradually appear on the contour of your buttocks as they would for people who never underwent Brazilian butt lift surgery.
To extend your BBL results for additional years, you should maintain a healthy weight, since changes in weight will alter the shape of your body, including your buttocks. You should also avoid smoking as research has shown smokers are more likely to lose fat from fat transfer.
As tempting as it may be to try binging on calories to augment the size of your butt, unfortunately it is not that simple. The weight you put on will most likely be distributed across your body, and any increase to your butt could be overshadowed by the new weight you carry in other parts of your body.
Moreover, Brazilian butt lift is about more than adding size to your butt. Dr. Valladolid contours your buttocks so that it has a beautiful, appealing shape, a scenario that is unlikely to occur via weight gain.
Ideally, you should be at or near your goal weight before having Brazilian butt lift, because maintaining your weight is the easiest way to keep the contoured results you paid for. However, obviously many patients gain or lost weight after the surgery; rest assured that there is nothing unsafe if this occurs. Fat cells that have been moved by fat transfer act in the same manner they would have otherwise, meaning that they will grow or shrink according to your diet and exercise habits.
Definitely not. Apart from fat transfer techniques used in Brazilian butt lift, the only substances that can legally be injected into the buttocks to increase volume are hyaluronic acid gels. Unlicensed facilities are known to advertise injections of substances that have not been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, nor recommended by any reputable doctor. Injections of substances such as non-medical-grade silicone can result in outcomes that range from disappointing to tragic. You should never consider any procedure not performed by a highly trained, board-certified plastic surgeon.
If you want a shapelier buttocks, Brazilian Butt Lift might be a good option for you. Schedule a consultation with Dr. Valladolid to learn more by calling (480) 770-5015 today.
