Butt implants

[Guest guest]

Groan, big groan. I can't believe they call this kind of plastic surgery medicine.

http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?click_id=117 & art_id=qw1046842021773B241 & set_id=1

Cosmetic surgery starts bringing up the rear

March 05 2003 at 08:34AM

By Giles HewittIt cost several thousand dollars and she was unable to sit properly for almost a month, but now Murdoch thinks she has the best seat in the house, and maybe even the neighbourhood.If the American media is to be believed, Murdoch is part of a fast growing trend among United States women who opt for "buttock augmentation" in their quest for the body beautiful in a post- world.And while the buttock lift - a procedure similar to its facial cousin - has been around for some time, the new kid grabbing all the attention on the body contouring block is the buttock implant.

'Oh! J.Lo buttocks'Hailed by one prime-time television magazine as "the breast implants of the new millennium", buttock implants have become a must-have addition to any self-respecting cosmetic surgeon's armoury of techniques.Many now offer the procedure and one particularly high-profile surgeon from South Carolina, , has gone so far as to devote an entire website to promoting its benefits: www.betterbuttocks.com.According to statistics compiled by the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, 614 buttock implants were carried out in 2002. The figure is tiny compared to the approximately 250 000 breast implant procedures, but significant given that the numbers in previous years were so low as not to warrant recording at all.Society spokesperson Adrien Aiache, who carried out a dozen buttock implants last year, said the procedure remained relatively uncommon although interest was being driven by media hype."Between the press and , everyone will want to have a big butt," said Aiache, who charges between $7 000 and $9 000 (about R56 000 to R72 000) for a full procedure.

'My butt is firm and round and perky but not quite as wide', it seems, has singlehandedly changed what cosmetic surgeons refer to as the "gluteal aesthetic" and the superstar singer-actress's name - as well as her equally famous backside -crops up regularly when the subject of buttock augmentation is mentioned. Wells, president of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, recalled recently mentioning to a bell-hop in a hotel that he was a plastic surgeon."His immediate response was: 'Oh! J.Lo buttocks'," Wells said.While buttock implants are still rare subjects for discussion in medical journals and scientific forums, Wells said an increasing number of his society's members were putting information on their websites."We haven't trended it or looked closely at the numbers, but it's certainly more than the blip on the horizon of a few years ago," he said.The procedure involves making incisions inside the crease between the buttock cheeks - to hide the scars - and then inserting solid silicone implants between the main buttock muscles and their covering tissue.Early attempts used the soft silicone favoured in breast augmentation but the results were described by Wells as "disastrous" as the buttocks are subject to far more pressure and the implants often ruptured.Even with the solid silicone, patients have to wear a "compression girdle" for several weeks to stabilise the area and cannot sit properly for up to one month or until the post-operative swelling goes down."It didn't really feel painful, it just felt like somebody had stacked bricks on my butt," said Murdoch, who is in the "50ish age zone" and opted for implants because exercise was not filling out her backside as she wanted."Everything was about an inch lower than I wanted it to be," she said.Since the operation at the end of January, Murdoch has become almost evangelical about the benefits."I would say I have 's butt perfected," she said. "Mine is as firm and as round and as perky but not quite as wide. God, is that an awful thing to say?"Murdoch's doctor, Leroy Young, believes the trend for buttock implants is only just gathering steam."A year and a half ago this was not even on the radar as far as I was concerned," he said. "Now I know people who are doing as many as 10 a month."Young gets his implants from a specialist company that has also reported receiving half a dozen calls a day from people interested in the procedure."One of the things that is holding this back is that there are not enough surgeons who have been properly trained," Young said."But implants are getting better and as more surgeons take it up, then awareness will increase. I think that we are near the tipping point where it really takes off." - Sapa-AFP

To receive news headlines via SMS click here.(Available only to Vodacom contract subscribers)

Bigger is better as Hong Kong women bust out

Taxman rejects treasure chest

Study gives firm support to breast implants

Exotic dancer gets a bum deal

No new support for Bush after Blix report

Cats edge Brumbies in Ellis Park thriller

'We didn't arrest Bin Laden's sons'

Sopranos boss puts out hit on contract

Curse of Uluru weighs down postman's bag