A Brazilian Butt Lift or “BBL” is a minimally invasive surgical procedure designed to augment and enhance the buttocks to make them look fuller and more voluptuous.

The term “lift” is a misnomer since the procedure is a fat-augmentation or fat-transfer procedure and not an actual lift. A traditional buttock-lift would require cutting and shifting of tissues with long incisions.

A Brazilian Butt Lift, on the other hand, requires only tiny stab incisions and works by taking your fat from one area of the body, purifying it, and injecting back into the buttock and hip area.

A good candidate is in good health, at or near their ideal body weight, and wishes for a more aesthetic buttock shape.

• Ideally, the patient should have good skin quality with minimal skin laxity and good muscle tone. Although liposuction is part of the BBL procedure, it is not a weight-loss procedure. Patients with BMI over 30 will need to lose weight to get under 30 BMI (Calculate your BMI here) to become a candidate for a BBL.
• Patients who are very thin or have little body fat may still be a good candidate for a Skinny BBL procedure.
• Patients who have loose skin or muscle laxity around their abdominal area due to pregnancy or weight loss may need a Tummy Tuck to address those issues.
• Patients with certain body types (e.g., central obesity or apple shape) may not be ideal candidates for this procedure because they may carry their fat inside the abdomen (visceral fat) which is not accessible with liposuction.
• Finally, any patient undergoing a Breast Lift must have reasonable expectations. Although the BBL can be a fantastic transformative procedure, it is a medical procedure subject to surgical, physical, and safety limitations.

The beauty of getting a Brazilian Butt Lift procedure is that the fat is harvested from other parts of your body where you have excess fat. In most cases, the fat comes from abdominal or belly fat, flanks or muffin-top fat, and back fat. Fat from the thighs and arms can also be used.

Since harvesting fat from the abdomen, waist and back area makes those areas thinner, the net effect is even more pronounced when the buttocks and hips are made fuller. So since the procedure uses liposuction to harvest the fat from other areas, in essence, you are getting two procedures in one!

This is a very common question, and the answer is not concrete. The amount of fat that can be transferred depends on your body type and the quality of the fat that can be harvested.

Dr. Truong and Dr. Lin adhere to safety guidelines that limit the amount of fat harvested and the amount injected in one procedure.

Most Brazilian Butt Lifts will achieve fantastic results while staying within the limits of patient safety.

You and your surgeon can decide together the amount we shoot for in order to reach your desired result, but ultimately it’s your BODY that decides. The amount of healthy live fat your body gives us and the ability of the tissues and skin to stretch and accept the newly injected fat. In most cases, your surgeon will remove as much fat as safely possible and transfer as much as your skin will stretch.

It’s important to remember every patient’s anatomy is different, so as much as you would like to decide how much fat you would like to be transferred, it’s not always possible. A second Second Stage BBL or Round 2 BBL procedure may be necessary for more dramatic results, especially if your skin is tight.

This is a very common question. The true wonder of this procedure is that it uses your live fat cells.

As long as those fat cells are kept alive and are happy in their new home, they will live and thrive there, providing you with essentially permanent results.

Since they are your fat cells, they will continue to grow and shrink if your overall weight fluctuates, but they would change proportionately.

Since a traditional lift requires cutting and shifting skin and soft tissues, it is more invasive with long scars. With a BBL, there are no scars, and no skin or tissue is removed.

Tissue (fat) is ADDED to the area to increase volume and fill the skin there. If the site is fuller and tighter, there is an illusion of a lift, hence the term. The Brazilian Butt Lift should be viewed as a body-transformation procedure and not simply a lift!

Emsculpt® is the latest technology on the market, offering the world’s first non-surgical butt lift. EMSCULPT technology works by sending high-­intensity, focused electromagnetic waves into the treatment areas causing muscle contractions. The treatment is equivalent to doing 20,000 buttock squats in just one thirty minute session!

The treatment is non only approved for lifting the buttocks, but it is also approved for toning the abdomen, arms, and legs. You can see how Emsculpt works here.

Specific exercises like lunges and squats can help strengthen and enlarge or lift your gluteus muscles, which may give your buttocks some subtle projection and tone.

If you want more dramatic results, a Brazilian Butt Lift fat transfer or buttock implant augmentation may be a good option for you.

Depending on how many areas have to be liposuctioned to harvest the fat, the procedure can take 2-5 hours.

Once the procedure is done, you will be in recovery for approximately another hour or when you are considered stable to go home.

You may experience some drainage from the small incisions, which typically subsides within 24 hours. You will be allowed to shower after 48 hours.

You will be placed into a unique compression garment which you should wear for at least two weeks. It would be best if you planned to take approximately one week to rest and recover from your BBL surgery.

For the fat cells to have the best chance of survival, it’s important to minimize the pressure on the areas where the new fat cells were injected for at least four to six weeks. This means not sitting DIRECTLY on the area injected directly for long periods.

This can be possible by sitting on pillows, using a soft “BBL” cradle-type pillow, or shifting your weight often if you have to sit. However, since most of the fat for a typical BBL is injected into the lateral hip and upper buttock areas, it’s often possible to sit on the lower buttocks and upper thigh without compromising your result.

Another recommendation would be to sleep primarily on your tummy during the first month. At Chicago Breast & Body, we will go over all suggested recommendations to optimize your recovery. This will include post-operative care for your BBL, suggested garments, pillows, as well as exercises and training we recommend for maximum, long-lasting results!

The term “Butt injections” is a general non-medical term that refers to injecting any substance into the buttocks to make them larger. Only a few medically approved substances can be injected into the buttocks, including Hyaluronic Acid gels and autologous fat. The Brazilian Butt Lift is an autologous fat transfer procedure. After that, a patient’s fat is harvested and then re-injected into the buttocks to increase fullness and give the illusion of a lift. There are no artificial substances used in Brazilian Butt Lifts.

Brazilian Butt Lifts should only be performed by properly trained, board-certified Plastic or Cosmetic Surgeons. There are many non-medically approved and dangerous substances being injected by non-licensed individuals at non-licensed facilities, which are unsafe and can cause horrible disfigurement or even death. There have been reports of non-medical silicone, cooking oil, rubber cement, and bathroom caulk being injected illegally in hotel rooms. These Butt injections should never be confused with a Brazilian Butt Lift. Buttock implants are an entirely different procedure using approved silicone implants surgically placed into the buttocks by a surgeon and should not be confused with the Brazilian Butt Lift.

Brazilian Butt Lifts are generally very safe when your surgeon is trained and experienced in performing the procedure.  Dr. Truong & Dr. Lin perform many BBLs will know how to minimize potential risks and keep you safe.

However, every patient should consider some level of risk when choosing to undergo any surgery. Even when all guidelines are adhered to, complications can and do occur.

• Skin irregularities or asymmetries in the harvested or injected areas, which may require revision.
• Bruising and swelling are to be expected and are usually not considered a complication.
• More severe complications would include bleeding or hematoma formation and infection, which may require immediate surgical intervention.
• Blood clots can occur during and after any lengthy procedures, but again can be minimized.
• Although exceedingly rare, the most severe complication would be fat embolism, in which fat can enter the blood vessel and travel to the heart or brain. This potentially fatal complication should be minimized by not injecting too deep or into the muscle layers and using blunt cannulas.

This is why it is paramount that your surgeon performing your surgery is appropriately trained and experienced in performing the procedure.

The cost of a BBL procedure will depend on your surgeon, operating room fee, and location. At Chicago Breast & Body Aesthetics, we provide our patients with an all-inclusive quote for the procedure – you get liposuction of your tummy, waist, love handles, and lower back, so it’s like getting two procedures in one, which is an AMAZING VALUE. All-Inclusive means all fees are included in the estimate you receive.

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Avéli performed at the same time as a BBL but both procedures can work together consecutively. Based on your surgeon's recommendations, Avéli may be done 6 weeks before your BBL or 3 months after your BBL. 

No, a BBL will not get rid of cellulite. Cellulite is caused when fat cells push up against the skin while fibrous bands called septae pull the skin down, creating an uneven surface or dimpling. Treatments such as Avéli are recommended to address cellulite.