I am going to start this page with the thing most practices leave off theirs, because if you read only one section, this should be it.

I place fat above the muscle. Never into it.

The Brazilian butt lift earned a reputation as the most dangerous procedure in cosmetic surgery, and that reputation was deserved. The mechanism was specific and well documented: when fat is injected into or beneath the gluteal muscle, it can enter the large veins that run through that muscle and travel to the lungs. That is a fat embolism, and it can be fatal.

The response from the surgical community was equally specific. Place fat only in the subcutaneous layer — above the muscle, in the fatty tissue where those veins are not. Keep the cannula angled away from deep structures. Never aim downward into the muscle.

That is how I do it. Subcutaneous placement, every time, no exceptions for volume and no exceptions for a patient who wants more projection than the subcutaneous plane will hold. If you want more than that layer can safely take, the answer is no, and I would rather lose the case than take that risk with you.

Ask this question everywhere you shop, including here: what plane do you inject into? If the answer is vague, if it is “we’re very safe,” if nobody says the word subcutaneous, walk out. That single question separates the practices that have kept up from the ones that have not.

What the procedure actually is

It is two operations in one. First, liposuction harvests fat from somewhere you want less of — usually the abdomen, flanks, or lower back. That fat is processed. Then it is grafted into the buttocks and hips to change shape and proportion.

The contour change from the harvest is a real part of the result. Taking the waist in often does as much for your silhouette as what gets added behind you. Many patients care more about that part once they see it.

Not all of the fat stays

Transferred fat needs to establish a blood supply in its new location. Some of it does and becomes permanent living tissue. Some of it does not and is reabsorbed over the first several months.

How much survives varies from person to person and depends on technique, how much was placed, and how you care for it during healing. Anyone quoting you a specific survival percentage as a promise is guessing. I will tell you what to expect in your case, and I will tell you honestly that the final result is not visible for months.

Some patients want a second session later to refine. That is normal and not a failure.

You may not be a candidate, and here is why

You need fat to move. This procedure relocates your own tissue. A very lean patient may simply not have enough donor fat to produce a meaningful change. There is no way around that.

Your weight should be stable. Grafted fat behaves like the fat it came from. If you lose thirty pounds afterward, it shrinks with the rest of you. If you are actively losing weight — including on a GLP-1 — finish that first.

It does not tighten skin. Adding volume under loose skin adds volume. It does not lift.

The recovery is demanding. You cannot sit directly on the grafted area for a period after surgery — pressure compromises the blood supply the fat is trying to establish. That means a cushion, a modified sleeping position, and real changes to how you work and drive for weeks. If your job or your life cannot accommodate that, the result will suffer and you should know that before you book, not after.

Who performs it

I do your consultation and I do your procedure. Same person, both times. There is no coordinator selling you a package and nobody you have not met stepping in on the day.

Pricing is discussed at consultation, once we know what you actually need. We do not quote a body over the phone.

Related

Liposuction and body contouring · Medical weight loss · Areas we serve

The next step

The consultation is a real evaluation. You will leave knowing whether this is right for your body and what it would involve — or knowing why it is the wrong move for you, which is worth just as much.

Call or text 480-219-2624.

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Integrative Medical Partners
1910 S. Stapley Drive, Suite 120
Mesa, AZ 85204
480-219-2624

To Health and Wellness, Dr. Ty Tallman

Gluteal fat transfer is a surgical procedure. Results vary from person to person and are not guaranteed. Not everyone is a candidate. All surgery carries risk, including risks specific to fat grafting, which are discussed in detail at your consultation. This page is general information, not medical advice.