What is Behind the Latest Brazilian Butt Lift Warning?

Many celebrities walk the red carpet at events and show off their rather ample backsides to the public. Kim Kardashian and Nicki Minaj are just a few of the celebrities known for having a large booty and this is a look desired by many people. Even though a Brazilian butt lift (BBL) is one of the most popular ways to get a larger rear end, many surgeons are also issuing a warning about having the procedure.

Before the potential side effects can be discussed, it is important to know what a BBL is as well as how it is performed by medical professionals.

What is a Brazilian Butt Lift?

A Brazilian butt lift (BBL) is a surgery where the doctor removes unwanted fat from areas such as the stomach, arms, back and thighs. The fat that is removed is then purified before being injected back into the body. This fat is specifically injected into the backside of a patient in order to provide more volume as well as an increase in shape, contour and projection. The fat that is injected provides a dramatic difference in the appearance of the booty of a person and can give them the booty volume they have always desired.

An ideal patient for a BBL is a patient that is not too skinny as the doctor needs to have an adequate amount of fat available to suction out and then inject back into the body. The patient’s BMI (Body Mass Index) should be no less than 22 and not more than 32.

A Warning for Patients

A task force backed by the American Society of Plastic Surgeons has issued a warning about the Brazilian butt lift procedure. The warning from the task force claims that a BBL carries an “unusually high mortality rate” that is “greater than any other cosmetic surgery”. The task force went on to say that as many as one in 3000 people who undergo a Brazilian butt lift die.

One of the reasons there is an increased risk with the Brazilian butt lift is the fact that it is such a popular procedure. The more popular the BBL becomes to the public, the more doctors there will be trying to perform the procedure on a regular basis. It is a procedure that takes a good amount of experience to perform properly as it combines liposuction and fat grafting. This means that fat is sucked out of the patient and placed in another area of the body. In this case, the “other area” is the butt of the patient. Since a BBL combines multiple medical techniques, it needs to be performed by a board-certified doctor.

The new warning highlights the danger of a potential fatal fat embolism happening during the BBL procedure. The fat embolism has the possibility of happening because some doctors are often too aggressive when performing a BBL. In other words, they often inject the purified fat too deeply in the buttocks. This can be very dangerous because of the veins that are located in the area. If the fat is injected into the veins, they can bring the injected fat to the lungs and the heart and cause a deadly mistake that can result in the fat embolism.

What Should Patients do

Before deciding to undergo a Brazilian butt lift, patients can try alternative methods of improving the backside such as exercising on a regular basis. The improvements in the shape and size of the booty can often be altered and improved via exercise.

If a method such as exercise does not provide the results desired by a patient, the person needs to conduct proper research in order to find a board-certified doctor with experience in providing natural looking results. Once the patient determines the doctor of choice, she needs to schedule a consultation appointment with the doctor. An experienced surgeon will meet with the patient and conduct a thorough examination to make sure the person is an ideal candidate for the procedure. In addition, the doctor will discuss the goals of the patient and make sure that realistic expectations are set so the person will not disappointed by the final results of the BBL.

MA