If 5 Liters of Fat Is Removed, Does That Amount Include the Fat Transferred for the BBL?

Question: If 5 Liters of Fat Is Removed, Does That Amount Include the Fat Transferred for the BBL?

Answer: For safety purposes, 5000 cc is the generally accepted upper limit for liposuction aspirate in an outpatient setting, with the fat transfer being a volume less than that.  This number might decrease based upon patient weight, surgeon experience, and intraoperative findings.   Patients should realize that the lipoaspirate is not all fat but contains fluid as well so the maximum is really more like 4 liters in most cases. Finally, the fat that is transferred to the buttock does not allow you to then remove more fat from that same individual.

Patients should be aware that larger volumes of fluid and fat removed or shifted can lead to greater issues with fluid shifts and lung complications and even death. There are also risks intrinsic to fat transfer including pulmonary fat embolus that led to hundreds of patient deaths prior to changes in technique first suggested in 2017. Dr. Kenneth Hughes changed his fat transfer technique in 2015 and has not had a fatal or nonfatal fat embolus since that change in technique was instituted.

Dr. Kenneth Benjamin Hughes, Los Angeles Plastic Surgeon.