The Brazilian Butt Lift (BBL) procedure aims to give the female hips a rounder and fuller shape, and the male buttock an athletic, toned look. In line with increasingly popular trends, women now wish to achieve a slimmer waist line and fuller, rounder hips. In particular, the effect of social networking influencers such as the Kardashians has increased this desire for perfection. The aim of a BBL is to give the buttock an ideal shape and create a small waistline, thereby giving patients the chance to get the body proportions they want. The patient’s body must be looked at holistically and part of the art of making the buttock appear fuller is not only to increase the size of the buttock, but to also make the waist as slim as possible.

The Brazilian Butt Lift aims to slim the patients waist while augmenting the buttocks. To achieve this, liposuction is performed on various areas of the body, for example the abdomen, love handles, and the upper and lower back. This makes these areas smaller, and narrows the waist line. This creates the ideal body shape of a slim waist and a fuller rounder buttock.

We use a combination of Vaser Liposuction and Power Assisted Liposuction (PAL) to achieve the desired body contouring. The fat removed during liposuction is harvested and processed and made ready for injecting back into the buttocks. The processed fat is then injected into the buttocks using special blunt cannulas, between the muscle and the skin layers. This plane is chosen to inject fat into as it avoids vascular structures within the muscle layer, and at the same time expands the skin outwards to create an augmented buttock. This procedure is known as autologous fat grafting.

The absence of any intramuscular injection significantly reduces the risk of fat embolism. Approximately 20% of fat grafted into the buttock is absorbed by the body, and the remainder stays in the area it is injected into. The fat cells behave normally after this. If the patient gains weight, those fat cells will increase in volume. If the patient loses weight, the fat cell volume will reduce.

The reason for removing fat from the abdomen and waist is to narrow it by removing the fat in this area. Thus, the buttock will appear relatively bigger with a trim waistline even if no fat is grafted into the butt.

The duration of a BBL varies depending on the number of areas liposuction is to be performed and the amount of fat to be collected. Typically, if fat is to be removed from a patients abdomen, waist, and back and injected into the buttocks, the procedure will take about 2 to 3 hours. If other areas are added onto that such as arms and legs, the procedure can extend in time. The procedure is performed under twilight sedation or general anaesthesia. Patients can typically go home on the day of the procedure, i.e it is a day surgery procedure. Occasionally patients may need to stay overnight. During the procedure, the fat in the waist area should be removed as much as possible to get the desired waist to buttock proportion. This is a priority area of liposuction when performing a BBL on a patient. It is also important to reduce irregularities as much as possible while removing fat from the waist, creating symmetry.

The procedure typically begins with collecting fat from the abdomen and waist areas by liposuction. The patient can then be repositioned and fat collected from other areas of the body. Fat is collected in a closed circuit to avoid contact with air as much as possible. The fat is processed to be made ready for injection into the buttock.

For BBL procedures, where fat is injected is key. For example, fat can be injected into the thighs for wider hips, while fat injected into the upper section of the buttock gives a lifted, projected, and rounder shape. A key technique is to inject fat in the plane between the skin and gluteal muscle. This is a safe plane to inject in, as it avoids blood vessels found in the large gluteal muscles. If fat is injected into the muscle, there is potential for fat to enter the blood vessels and cause a fat embolism, which can be a life-threatening issue. For this reason, fat is injected in-between the skin and muscle layers in ALL BBL procedures. We utilise ultrasound technology to identify the anatomy of the buttock and ensure injection into this safe plane, while avoiding penetration of the muscle.

After the procedure, patients are transferred into the recovery room, where our team of specialised nurses look after the patient as they wake up. As BBL procedures typically take 2-3 hours to finish, patients may need to stay in recovery for 2-6hrs to recovery before they can go home. Any issues such as nausea or pain are dealt with and compression garments are applied at this stage.

After the BBL procedure, patients are required to lie face down to avoid pressure on the buttock. In surgeries combined with other procedures, or in cases where a patient may have difficulty lying on their stomach, a special BBL mattress can be used instead. This mattress is designed to accommodate the buttock allowing patients to lie on their back or on a 45 degree angle, avoiding pressure on the buttock. After fat grafting to the buttock, patients should not lie on their back for 2 weeks, and when sitting, should use a BBL cushion, which is a special pillow designed to reduce pressure on the buttock. Patients are advised to sit forward on their thighs and to continue to wear their compression garments for 6 weeks after surgery. This helps swelling, speeds up healing, and supports better results. For a more rounded and smoother hips, we recommend that patients gently self massage their hips with baby oil for about 3 weeks, and demonstrations are given as to how to do this.

Patients can resume their daily routine in about 10 days time. Patients are advised to avoid sports or exercise which puts pressure on the buttocks for 6 weeks post procedure. After this time, patients can start to resume their normal exercise routines.

The BBL procedure is preferred especially for patients with good skin quality in the buttock area. It is not a feasible procedure in patients with excess skin or poor skin quality in the buttock. Patients must also have enough fat to harvest for the BBL. A BBL is not possible if there is not enough fat to collect, in which case patients may opt for other procedures. A final decision on suitability can only be made after an examination by one of our doctors.

The most common method used for BBL procedures is fat grafting. Buttock implants may be a good alternative option for patients who do not have enough body fat. However where possible, we prefer to use the patients own fat rather than opt for buttock implants, as it utilised the patients own tissue rather than inserting a foreign body into the area. Both methods can achieve similar results. As previously mentioned, the fat grafting procedure requires liposuction to collect fat for grafting, and this leads to greater results with a smaller waistline. We use the safe BBL where we inject the fat above the muscle with the use of ultrasound. Using the SAFE BBL we have Never had a death in over 3000 cases with Doctor Fascetti.

As with any procedure, routine pre-op tests are performed before patients undergo a BBL. It is important not to take blood thinning medication one week before surgery as it can increase the risk of bleeding. A pre-op interview is required with our patients to go over medical history, any medications, and explain the procedure. Pre-operative photographs are also taken at this time.

The shapewear used after the BBL procedure should apply pressure to the liposuction area and at the same time lift the buttock without applying pressure to the area. Therefore, shapewear used after a BBL usually has a buttock section that is either made of a softer fabric or leaves the buttock open. The shapewear must be worn for minimum 6 weeks after surgery to achieve optimal results. This is an important part of the procedure and should not be underestimated.

We recommend using a BBL pillow for large volume patients after their BBL procedure and sitting forward to avoid adding pressure to the buttocks for smaller volume BBL patients. The purpose here is to put the pillow under the legs while sitting so that the buttocks will not touch the seat. This protects the buttocks from pressure which can cause fat cell death. Thus more of the grafted fat survives leading to better results.

There are limitations to the amount of fat that can be injected during a BBL. The skin tightness is constantly assessed by the doctor and guides the volume injected. Injecting too much fat to the area will cause excessive pressure, which leads to fat cell death and fat cell absorption. In summary, injecting excessive volumes of fat does not necessarily mean a greater size, as it is likely that fat cells will die. BBLs can be repeated after a period of recovery if a bigger size is desired.

As with all procedures involving liposuction, we recommend lymphatic massage after the BBL procedure. Lymphatic massage provides a more natural and smooth appearance in the area of liposuction, which improves results. If applied to the buttock area, lymphatic massage helps to achieve a smoother rounder buttock shape. We recommend our patients to have at least 4 sessions of lymphatic massage, starting on the first day after surgery. Lymphatic massage also helps patients recover faster from swelling after surgery.

Current data suggests the mortality rate is 1:14,952 from the article "Improvements in Brazilian Butt Life (BBL) safety with the current recommendations from ASERF, ASAPS, and ISAPS" from the Aesthetic Surgery Journal published in 2020. This makes the BBL safer than a tummy tuck (death rate 1:13,000). The improvement in death rate for 1:3000 in 2017 is due to recommendations by a task force in 2017 to inject fat above the muscle and not direct the cannula upwards. Del Vecchio in 2021 states that the death rate for BBL will continue to improve with improved training and techniques to 1:25,000 to 1:35,000 in 2025.

Liposuction must be combined with the BBL procedure in order to harvest fat for grafting. Fat can be harvested virtually from any problem area in the body. High-definition liposuction can be performed as well as normal liposuction, to give the abdomen an athletic look. Fat injection for BBL procedures can also be combined with fat injection to breasts, allowing for a larger breast size. A fuller buttock and breast can be achieved while narrowing the abdomen and waist, creating that coveted hourglass shape. Patients undergoing both BBL and breast procedures will need a BBL mattress as lying on the stomach will not be an option. Occasionally after liposuction a tummy tuck may be needed to remove excessive skin. The Vaser machine does tighten the skin however there is a limit to how much skin tightening can be achieved. We have a number of plastic surgeon colleagues who we refer to for tummy tuck procedures where needed.

Brazilian Butt Lift surgery costs depend on your current weight and are as follows. Costs may vary according to the contents of surgery and the combination of surgeries to be performed. You can contact us immediately to get information about tummy tuck costs & inclusions.

Liposuction prices include all of the following pre surgery and post surgery services;