Does my bum look bigger in this? More women are now injecting fat INTO their bodies than having it removed

Does my bum look bigger in this? More women are now injecting fat INTO their bodies than having it removed

• Trend for women to look like J Lo and Kim Kardashian is catching on
• Number of fat transfer procedures overtaken numbers having liposuction
  

By Jo Macfarlane

PUBLISHED: 20:37 EST, 26 January 2013 | UPDATED: 20:39 EST, 26 January 2013

The trend for women to increase the size of their bottoms to look like US stars such as Jennifer Lopez and Kim Kardashian is catching on in the UK as figures show more women are injecting fat into their bodies than having it removed.

Annual figures out tomorrow from the British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons (BAAPS) show the number of fat transfer procedures has overtaken the numbers having liposuction for the first time.

Cosmetic surgeons say women are increasingly looking to boost their curves and rejuvenate saggy areas by having their own fat removed from one area and transferred into another â€" most commonly from flabby areas such as the thighs to their bottoms, breasts and face.

The association’s surgeons also say scandals over defective PIP breast implants and controversy over fillers such as Botox are prompting women to seek options in which the body’s own fat supplies are used.

Thousands of women have had the faulty PIP implants removed after it was found they could leak industrial-grade silicon into the body.

BAAPS’ figures show a decrease  in the number of women seeking breast-enlargement surgery in the past year. This has been attributed to the scandal. Normally, this number rises each year.

Cosmetic surgeons say women are increasingly looking to boost their curves

Consultant plastic surgeon Michael Cadier, BAAPS President-Elect, said: ‘Fat transfer has been around for 70 years, but the techniques have got much better.

It can be used around the whole body. We do occasionally get patients who have their bottoms enlarged in this way.

‘In my experience, they want to enhance their contours rather than get a massive bottom to mimic  the US trend, but we do get people enquiring about that.’

The annual figures show the number of women having fat transfer procedures has risen by 13 per cent to 2,641, overtaking the number of liposuction operations (2,638) for the first time.

Paula Andrews, 66, a cattery manager from Southport, Merseyside, had fat taken from her midriff and injected into her cheeks at the Sthetix Clinic in Liverpool.

She said: ‘I felt sick when the surgeon suggested taking fat from just below my left rib and putting it into my face, but then I thought at least it wasn’t a foreign substance.’

Rajiv Grover, President of BAAPS, said: ‘The growth rates for surgical facelifting and other anti-ageing procedures showed a double-digit rise, despite the country’s double-dip recession.

‘Perhaps because of the turbulent financial times we’re experiencing, patients are looking for tried-and-tested procedures that will deliver  a reliable and long-lasting result.’