Buttock augmentation or gluteopasty is becoming one of the most requested plastic surgery procedures among both men and women.
Gluteoplasty or buttock augmentation can be performed by placing highly cohesive gel prostheses or by fat grafting the patient’s own fat. The scar is hidden in the intergluteal fold.
The gluteal lift is the surgery destined to elevate the buttocks and to eliminate the excess of skin and fat in that area (dermolipectomy). It can be performed alone or associated to liposculpture or prosthesis placement.
Currently there are two types of interventions to perform a gluteoplasty:
- With highly cohesive silicone gel prosthesis.
- With infiltration of the patient’s own fat.
The indication for each of them is specific and depends on each patient.
Prosthesis
When the buttocks are flat, the volume can be increased by placing, through the gluteal muscle and through an incision hidden in the intergluteal groove, a pair of buttock implants. The implant is made of highly cohesive silicone gel, and the prosthesis is flatter and has more resistance than the one used in breast augmentation.
In the crease between the buttocks, an incision of about five centimeters is made, then two pockets are made between the gluteus maximus muscles that will house the prostheses and a careful and flat closure of the incision is made once the proper augmentation, symmetry and appearance are achieved.
It is performed under epidural or general anesthesia and 24 hours of hospitalization are required.
A soft compressive elastic garment, such as a compression garment, must be worn for 3 weeks.
The patient with silicone implants in the buttocks must remember NOT to have intramuscular injections in the buttocks, because of the risk of puncturing the prostheses.
In this surgery, the patient’s collaboration is essential. The first 24 to 48 hours are spent in the clinic, face down. Then it is possible to get up and during 1 week the patient must be seated only as much as necessary, and this must be done in such a way that the operated area is not compressed. For a couple of weeks you should sleep on your stomach or on your side. Avoid any type of physical exercise involving the buttocks for 8 weeks. All this makes the scar that forms around the prosthesis is stable and the prosthesis does not move with the consequent asymmetry.
The risk of infection is minimal, although it does exist, which is why hygiene must be very thorough until the stitches are removed and antibiotics are always given for 10 days after surgery to minimize the risk.
Fat injection
Also known as “Brazilian Butt Lift” or Brazilian buttock augmentation technique, the fat injection technique for buttock augmentation is a novel technique, which is indicated for those who wish to increase the volume of their buttocks and do not want silicone implants.
Fat injection has the advantage of allowing the surgeon to place the necessary amount of fat in those parts that are needed, facilitating the modeling of the buttocks.
It is a technique that consists of aspirating fat from some part of the body (hips, abdomen, buttocks, waist or back), and then injecting it into the areas of the buttocks that need to be treated, through two small incisions.
The prostheses are more indicated for thin people with little fat, so there is not enough volume for fat infiltration.
The fat is injected in the supramuscular plane and is integrated into the body as a living graft in a high percentage, so the degree of absorption is minimal allowing excellent long-term results.
The buttock fat injection technique is performed under epidural or general anesthesia. A special girdle will be worn 4 weeks after surgery to maintain the new buttock shape. Most patients can resume their exercise routine progressively after 6 weeks.
Buttock augmentation can be performed on both men and women. The technique is the same in both cases although aesthetically there are some differences.
In men, the aim is to strengthen the gluteus maximus muscle, so that the buttock appears more muscular.
In women, the aim is to give a shape as rounded as possible, so we usually associate liposuction of the lumbar area, waist and hips to gluteoplasty.
