London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Jul 31, 2025

UK plastic surgeons to vote on banning 'Kim Kardashian-inspired' Brazilian butt lifts over safety fears

The British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons (BAAPS) has said it will vote later Friday on whether the procedure popularly known as the Brazilian butt lift is safe enough to be performed in the UK.
An expert panel will assess the latest evidence and decide whether to uphold previous guidance it issued in 2018, which strongly warned surgeons against performing the surgery because of its high fatality rate. If the guidance is upheld it will essentially ban the procedure in the UK, though surgeons could in theory choose to ignore the recommendation.

Concern about the procedure, which has been rising in popularity over the past five years, follows a number of cases of serious illness and death.

Two Britons are known to have died following the surgery, and it is feared that globally the number of fatalities could be in the hundreds, BAAPS president and plastic surgeon Paul Harris told CNN.

The surgery, which can cost in excess of £6,000 (around $7,400) in Britain, involves taking fat from another part of the patient's body and injecting it into the buttocks, to increase their size and roundness. But there is a risk of injecting the fat into large veins, after which it can travel to the heart or brain, causing a "fat embolism" and illness or death, according to the plastic surgeons' body.

According to an anonymous 2017 survey of 692 surgeons worldwide, 32 respondents reported fatalities and 103 cited non-fatal cases of fat embolism.

"I am still concerned about patient death," Harris told CNN, saying people were opting for the procedure to achieve a rounded look or a Kim Kardashian-style figure.

"At this stage there's no guarantee the fat will not travel (between the muscles, causing potential harm)," he added.

"We don't know what it's going to look like in 20 years' time when we've pumped two liters of fat into someone's buttocks - that's unknown. One of the questions we'll ask our members today is: 'Would you do this to your daughter?' and if you wouldn't do it to your daughter, why would you do it to a patient? And most of us wouldn't do it to our daughter."

Of particular concern to BAAPS is plastic surgery tourism, because of countries' varying levels of safety regulation. Harris said the procedure was particularly popular in Latin America, including Brazil and Mexico, and was also performed in Turkey.

"I've just had a patient who had this procedure abroad. She didn't die, but she was septic and in intensive care - and as a result she lost all of her fingers," he said. "She was in hospital for eight months and had 23 operations. And she's the lucky one because she survived."

When considering a ban, Harris said, BAAPS will have to consider carefully whether doing so could push more people to seek treatment overseas, prompting a potentially dangerous "race to the bottom" on costs and patient safety.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Former Judge Charged After Drunk Driving Crash Kills Comedian in Brazil
Jeff Bezos hasn’t paid a dollar in taxes for decades. He makes billions and pays $0 in taxes, LEGALLY
China Increases Use of Exit Bans Amid Rising U.S. Tensions
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
Procter & Gamble to Raise U.S. Prices to Offset One‑Billion‑Dollar Tariff Cost
House Republicans Move to Defund OECD Over Global Tax Dispute
Botswana Seeks Controlling Stake in De Beers as Anglo American Prepares Exit
Trump Administration Proposes Repeal of Obama‑Era Endangerment Finding, Dismantling Regulatory Basis for CO₂ Emissions Limits
France Opens Criminal Investigation into X Over Algorithm Manipulation Allegations
A family has been arrested in the UK for displaying the British flag
Mel Gibson refuses to work with Robert De Niro, saying, "Keep that woke clown away from me."
Trump Steamrolls EU in Landmark Trade Win: US–EU Trade Deal Imposes 15% Tariff on European Imports
ChatGPT CEO Sam Altman says people share personal info with ChatGPT but don’t know chats can be used as court evidence in legal cases.
The British propaganda channel BBC News lies again.
Deputy attorney general's second day of meeting with Ghislaine Maxwell has concluded
Controversial March in Switzerland Features Men Dressed in Nazi Uniforms
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
Thai Civilian Death Toll Rises to 12 in Cambodian Cross-Border Attacks
TSUNAMI: Trump Just Crossed the Rubicon—And There’s No Turning Back
Over 120 Criminal Cases Dismissed in Boston Amid Public Defender Shortage
UN's Top Court Declares Environmental Protection a Legal Obligation Under International Law
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
The Podcaster Who Accidentally Revealed He Earns Over $10 Million a Year
Trump Announces $550 Billion Japanese Investment and New Trade Agreements with Indonesia and the Philippines
US Treasury Secretary Calls for Institutional Review of Federal Reserve Amid AI‑Driven Growth Expectations
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Severe Flooding in South Korea Claims Lives Amid Ongoing Rescue Operations
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
US Revokes Visas of Brazilian Corrupted Judges Amid Fake Bolsonaro Investigation
U.S. Congress Approves Rescissions Act Cutting Federal Funding for NPR and PBS
North Korea Restricts Foreign Tourist Access to New Seaside Resort
Brazil's Supreme Court Imposes Radical Restrictions on Former President Bolsonaro
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Judge Criticizes DOJ Over Secrecy in Dropping Charges Against Gang Leader
Apple Closes $16.5 Billion Tax Dispute With Ireland
Von der Leyen Faces Setback Over €2 Trillion EU Budget Proposal
UK and Germany Collaborate on Global Military Equipment Sales
Trump Plans Over 10% Tariffs on African and Caribbean Nations
Flying Taxi CEO Reclaims Billionaire Status After Stock Surge
Epstein Files Deepen Republican Party Divide
Zuckerberg Faces $8 Billion Privacy Lawsuit From Meta Shareholders
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
SpaceX Nears $400 Billion Valuation With New Share Sale
×