Although many people would rather have smaller buttocks, others have flat or sagging “behinds” they want to enhance, and some wish to improve the contour and projection of the gluteal area. At BodyAesthetic Plastic Surgery, Dr. Boswell can create either smaller or larger butts, depending on your preference.
Gluteal augmentation, or butt augmentation, has gained popularity in the last decade to reflect changing tastes in body types. Ultra thin models have been replaced by curvier ones, and fashions that emphasize a shapely and rounded backside have been embraced. You can even buy clothes with gluteal padding to simulate full, nicely contoured buttocks.
Enhancement of the gluteal region is requested by a variety of people, including younger women and men who are unhappy with flat buttocks, women in their 30s and 40s who have noticed their buttocks sagging or drooping as gravity takes it toll, and people who have lost a significant amount of weight and are left with unnaturally flattened buttocks and excess skin. With gluteal augmentation, additional volume gives the buttocks better proportion with the rest of the body. Your shape is curvier and clothes fit better.
The following options are available for augmenting the buttocks:
- Fat transfer from another body area
- Shaping your existing buttock tissue into a more pleasing contour
Fat Transfer
Another option for butt augmentation is fat transfer, which is especially attractive for people who have excess fat in other areas of the body, for example in the abdomen or thighs. In a single surgery, excess fat from selected areas is removed with liposuction, concentrated and processed with special equipment, and then injected into the buttocks to add volume and better contour. Because 30% to 50% of the transferred fat will be reabsorbed by the body, more fat than is needed is initially transferred to the buttocks to compensate for what will be lost
After 2 to 3 months, the final result of the gluteal augmentation should be apparent. If additional volume is still needed, touch-up fat injections can be performed in the office. Fat transfer is the safest method of gluteal augmentation, but not all people are good candidates; they must have sufficient fat deposits elsewhere that can be transferred.
Some patients like to use makeup after a fat contouring. Fat can also be transferred from the cheeks, face, and chin as well.
Tissue Re-contouring
The third method of gluteal augmentation is creation of a tissue flap taken from the buttock region and shaped to enhance gluteal projection. Dr. Boswell is an innovator in gluteal flap techniques and developed new procedures that are being adopted by other surgeons around the world.
A flap procedure uses your own tissue, called autologous tissue, as a sort of implant. It is moved from a part of the buttocks where you don’t need it, then molded and secured into a location where it will enhance rather than detract from the gluteal contour.
Gluteal augmentation with a tissue flap is appropriate for people who have excess skin in the flank and back regions that can be pulled down to cover the tissue flap. For this reason, augmentation with autologous tissue is especially useful in massive weight loss patients.
About Butt Augmentation Surgery
Gluteal augmentation can be done as a separate procedure or in combination with other body contouring surgery. Patients who have a complete circumferential body lift or a thigh and buttock lift may choose to undergo gluteal augmentation at the same time. Re-contouring of the gluteal region is sometimes needed when a lifting procedure produces unnaturally flat buttocks. This does not happen because too much tissue was lifted; instead, less tissue volume remains after a lift and the skin has been tightened and repositioned, which leaves the buttocks with less projection.
Surgical details of each type of gluteal augmentation vary depending on the individual. If you are interested in learning more about these options (fat transfer, or a tissue flap), ask your surgeon. After evaluating your anatomy, he will explain which option(s) is best suited to your body type, discuss the advantages and disadvantages of each method, and help you decide which type of gluteal augmentation will best meet your goals.
