People in South Florida are dying from Brazilian Butt Lifts, yet they are growing in popularity.
A new Florida law aims to make the procedure safer, but some experts believe it needs to go further to limit the risk of this surgery.
The Brazilian Butt Lift involves a surgeon enhancing the size and shape of the buttocks by injecting fat that is removed from elsewhere in the body through liposuction. The mortality rate from BBLs is the highest of any plastic surgery, mainly because some doctors have accidentally injected fat grafts into the vessels of the gluteal muscle. This can cause a “fat embolism”, which is when particles of fat enter the bloodstream, travel to the heart or lungs, block circulation and can cause fatal results.
South Florida is the capital of high-volume, low-cost, strip-mall clinics that do BBL. It is also the region of the state where the most surgical deaths occur.
Twenty-five women in South Florida died from BBL complications and two nearly died between 2010 and 2022. All but one of the surgeries were performed at high-volume, low-budget clinics, according to a study published in February in The Aesthetic Surgery Journal. The study found that 2021 was the deadliest year for BBL in South Florida.
However, even reports of deaths have not dampened demand. The Brazilian Butt Lift is the most Googled cosmetic surgery procedure in Florida, with over 20,000 searches per month. In 2021, there was a 37% annual increase in BBLs performed in the US, or a total of 61,387 surgeries, according to the National Cosmetic Plastic Surgery Data Bank.
Florida lawmakers want to make BBLs safer.
A law effective July 1, 2023, requires Florida doctors to follow two new rules. First, they must perform an in-person examination of the patient the day before the procedure. Second, they must use ultrasound guidance to clearly see that the fat is injected only into the upper layers under the skin and never into the muscle.
Some plastic surgeons believe that simply requiring practitioners to use ultrasound guidance does not go far enough.
“I don’t think an ultrasound done by a doctor who doesn’t specialize in it is enough to significantly improve the safety factor,” said Boca Raton plastic surgeon Gregory Albert of the Center for Optimization. “I also think the fat doesn’t have to be injected directly into the muscle for complications to occur. It could be the pressure of the injected fat near the vessel that creates the risk.”
Albert wants even stricter laws to improve the safety of the process.
“What’s happening is too many cases being made in too short a time by too many unskilled operators,” he said. “Florida needs to limit the number of BBLs by the same surgeon in a day. To do these processes quickly you need many helpers, and many helpers lead to multiple problems.”
Patients arrive at Albert’s Boca Raton practice with disfigured arms or other body parts as a result of liposuction that some surgeons perform to move fat to the buttocks. “Sometimes they get it from areas of the body that the patient didn’t consent to get it from,” Albert said.
While Florida’s new law is a start, he said, more research needs to be done on how the state can reduce the number of deaths and complications from this cosmetic procedure.
Home tests for Alzheimer’s disease
Floridians can now purchase a test online to take at home and find out their Alzheimer’s risk.
Quest is the first to sell a home trial and charges $399. The AD-Detect test measures the ratio of amyloid-beta in your blood to indicate your level of risk. A lower ratio indicates more amyloid plaques and an increased risk for Alzheimer’s, while a higher ratio indicates a lower risk.
Quest advises taking the test if you are 65 or older, have a family history of Alzheimer’s disease, have mild cognitive impairment, or have suffered a brain injury or head injury. The company says the test is an initial check that focuses on early detection of risk. It does not give a definitive diagnosis.
It works like this: You buy the test online, and a telehealth doctor then reviews the purchase and places an order for you. You then visit a local Quest Diagnostics lab for a blood draw. You can read your test results online, share them with your doctor, or have the option to speak with one of their partner doctors when your results are available.
The test has not been approved or approved by the FDA, and the Alzheimer’s Association does not endorse it at this time, citing a lack of data.
“We urge Quest to pursue an FDA approval path that demonstrates, rigorously, that this test is valuable to clinicians and patients as part of the diagnostic process,” Rebecca Edelmayer, senior director of scientific engagement at the Alzheimer’s Association. he told MedPage Todaya medical news service.
Because there are no drugs to prevent symptoms, some experts question the test’s usefulness. Michael Racke, Quest’s medical director of neurology, said people can take a more proactive approach to their health after learning about the risk.
New South Florida Physical Therapy Options
Recovering from a fall, surgery or other injury? South Florida has some new physical therapy offerings.
Holy Cross Health opened Holy Cross Rehabilitation Institute of Rio Vista. The physical therapy clinic previously located on Federal Highway in Fort Lauderdale has moved to a new, upgraded facility on Davie Avenue in Fort Lauderdale. It is one of seven physical therapy centers Holy Cross operates in Broward County. The center treats sports medicine injuries, balance conditions, gait dysfunction as well as concussion rehabilitation.
Plus, a new partnership wants to make it easier for people in South Florida to get physical therapy at home.
Memorial Health System, which has a large presence in South Broward, has partnered with Luna, a national physical therapy clinic, to expand its outdoor physical therapy services into the home. Instead of coming to the hospital, Luna’s physical therapist provides one-on-one care in people’s homes, seven days a week.
Patients in Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties can search Luna’s online portal to find and book a physical therapist based on specialty, geography and time availability. The same therapist treats the patient throughout his treatment. Additionally, patients and therapists can communicate and discuss care needs between visits using the Luna platform.
Palm Beach County also has a new option.
HCA Florida JFK Hospital opened a new state-of-the-art inpatient physical rehabilitation center. The center has 42 beds and caters to people recovering from orthopedic injuries, acute heart conditions, neurological disorders, strokes and spinal cord injuries. Within the center, patients have access to a therapy gym and home care therapy space.
The care team at the new rehabilitation center includes doctors, specially trained rehabilitation nurses, physical therapists, occupational therapists, speech pathologists, dieticians and a diabetologist.
The University of Miami is pioneering a new healthcare concept for busy women
Many women juggling personal, family and work commitments do not find time for their own health care. Recognizing this work-life struggle, UHealth is pioneering a new “one stop” Comprehensive Alliance for Women’s Health.
In this program, South Florida women fill out an online questionnaire about their health issues and concerns and are then connected with a nurse navigator. The navigator helps them book appointments with specialists in areas such as gynecology, urogynecology, gastroenterology, breast health, bone health, behavioral health, dermatology care and nutrition services. The program’s nurse navigators will also expedite referrals to other UHealth specialists if needed.
“Instead of spending hours online or on the phone making appointments with multiple doctors, the nurse coordinator helps busy women access screenings, diagnostic evaluations and referrals to specialists who understand specific women’s health issues,” said Dr. Laura Martin , a gynecologist with a subspecialty in urogynecology and co-director of the new program. Martin explained the benefits of the new program UHealth Medical Newsletter. To contact a nurse navigator call 855-34-WOMEN.
Broward nurse and mother donate breast milk to Milk Bank’s new warehouse
A Broward Health Coral Springs Neonatal Intensive Care Unit nurse donated 450 ounces of breast milk to the Broward Health Coral Springs Milk Bank Pantry in observance of National Breastfeeding Month.
Kaitlyn Desmond has cared for the youngest patients in the NICU at Broward Health and said she sees the importance of breast milk in newborn care plans. Breast milk can help limit chronic diseases for premature babies. Desmond just gave birth to her first child. Since becoming a milk bank warehouse in February 2022, Broward Health Coral Springs has received more than 40,000 ounces of breast milk for Mother’s Milk Bank of Florida.
What’s Hot in Healthcare is a monthly feature of the South Florida Sun Sentinel. To submit content, contact health reporter Cindy Goodman at cgoodman@sunsentinel.com.
