Special Liposuction - Buttock Volume-Up and Feminine Pelvic Contour

; Buttock volume-up liposuction combines a buttock lift (buttock-up) procedure with buttock reduction or augmentation (fat transfer) as needed. The treatment may also include the hips, flanks, sacral back, and lateral thigh saddlebags. This comprehensive approach not only refines the outer pelvic contour but also corrects buttock ptosis (sagging) to create a voluminous, lifted buttock.

Buttock Liposuction -- Volume-Up (Buttock Lift with Reduction or Augmentation)

Just as Venus Clinic performs breast reduction liposuction to correct breast ptosis caused by weight loss or aging, we also perform buttock volume-up liposuction. This procedure simultaneously lifts saggy, flat buttocks and enhances volume, creating a sensuous, shapely contour.

HIPS / SACRAL BACK / BUTTOCKS / LATERAL THIGHS

The hips, buttocks, and lateral thighs are considered a single cosmetic unit. The contour line extending from the hips above the pelvis, through the buttocks, and along the lateral thighs represents one of the most aesthetically significant feminine features alongside the breasts. Simultaneous liposuction of all these areas is essential to create a beautifully feminine body contour.

Removing fat from the lateral and inferior aspects of the buttocks causes the buttock tissue to gather centrally, creating the appearance of longer legs. This is commonly referred to as the "hip-up" effect -- more accurately termed the "buttock-up" effect -- where previously sagging buttocks appear perky and lifted, producing a sensuous contour.

The buttocks are one of the most common areas requiring revision surgery. The procedure is technically demanding and often yields limited results, which is why many clinics exclude this area during thigh liposuction. This is particularly problematic for patients with relatively large buttocks, as thigh liposuction alone can make the buttocks appear even larger and more ptotic.

The buttocks, along with the breasts, symbolize femininity. An ideal buttock has adequate volume with natural, rounded contours, making it one of the most frequently requested treatment areas. Venus Clinic has extensive expertise in buttock lifting, augmentation, and reduction. When performing combined thigh and buttock procedures, patients wear a thong for before-and-after comparison photos to demonstrate the balanced result, reflecting our emphasis on the overall contour from the abdomen through the buttocks, thighs, and calves.

The Buttock Fold Line and the Edge of Sagging Buttock Tissue Are Different

To understand the changes before and after buttock volume-up surgery, it helps to distinguish three lines beneath the buttock. People with buttock ptosis (sagging) often take the lower edge of the sagging buttock to be the buttock fold. However, that line is not a fold but the edge of the sagging buttock tissue (skin and fat); the original fold line lies higher up, hidden inside the sagging buttock.

① Original fold line

This is the horizontal fold between the buttock and the thigh that everyone has. Because the skin is firmly attached to the deeper tissue here, it always stays in the same place. When buttock ptosis is present, it is covered by the sagging buttock and cannot be seen.

After surgery: It becomes visible as the buttock rises.

② Edge of the sagging buttock tissue

This is the line where the lower end of the buttock, having descended below the original fold line, meets the thigh. It looks like a fold, but it is not a fold; it is the end of the sagging buttock.

After surgery: It becomes shorter or disappears as the buttock volume decreases and the skin contracts.

③ Newly formed fold line

This line did not exist before surgery.

After surgery: When the buttock rises above the original fold line, a new border between the buttock and the thigh forms above it.

Three Ways the Fold Lines Appear After Surgery

How these lines look after the buttock rises depends on how far the buttock rises and on skin elasticity. The illustration below shows the appearance after surgery in three cases, side by side.

Three appearances of the fold line after surgery

Case	Appearance of the fold line after surgery
Case 1 — A new fold line forms	The buttock rises above the original fold line and a new fold line forms there; the original fold line remains visible as a trace below the new one.
Case 2 — Only the original fold line appears	The lower edge of the sagging buttock rises to the level of the original fold line, so no new fold line forms and the original fold line itself becomes the border between the buttock and the thigh. The buttock ptosis resolves.
Case 3 — Mild ptosis remains	The buttock becomes smaller but does not rise much, so mild ptosis remains, and the sagging tissue still covers the original fold line, which therefore cannot be seen. As the edge of the sagging tissue becomes shorter, the degree of sagging is reduced. This is common when skin elasticity is weak.

"A fold appeared under my buttock after surgery"

Some people say they see a fold under the buttock after surgery that was not there before. However, that fold was not created by the surgery; it is the original fold line that had been hidden by the sagging buttock and is now exposed. The position and length of the exposed fold line follow the shape the person originally had, so it may look different on the left and right. Buttock volume-up liposuction is surgery to reduce sagging and raise the buttock, not surgery to remove buttock folds. Which case applies and how far the buttock rises depend on the degree of sagging and skin elasticity, and vary from person to person.

Treating the Hips and Sacral Back Together Raises the Buttock Further

In body contouring, the hips are the upper outer sides of the buttocks, where the pelvis projects sideways, and the sacral back is the lower part of the back just above the buttocks, below the waist. When liposuction of the hips and sacral back is performed together with the buttocks, the skin of the upper buttock also contracts and pulls the buttock upward. In other words, below, the reduced buttock volume raises the lower border, and above, the contracting skin pulls the buttock upward.

Direction in which skin contraction of the hips and sacral back pulls the buttock upward

See also : How the Buttocks Rise: The Mechanism [Case Review] Exposure of the Fold Line

Evidence of Venus Clinic's Buttock Volume-Up Liposuction Results

1. Creates an apple-shaped buttock contour (transforms an uneven pelvic outline into a smooth, rounded feminine curve with a lifted appearance).
2. The edge of the sagging tissue below the buttock (the line often mistaken for a fold) becomes shorter or disappears. Instead, the original fold line that had been hidden becomes visible, or a new fold line forms above it.
3. The distance between the two buttock cheeks widens.
4. On lateral view, the previously downward-pointing buttock vector redirects upward.
5. Volume in the upper buttock increases relative to the lower buttock (via fat transfer).

Case 1 Buttock Liposuction -- Volume-Up

; A young woman underwent circumferential thigh and calf liposuction, buttock reduction liposuction combined with apple line liposuction, and buttock volume-up. Her typical lower body obesity pattern was successfully corrected.

Case 2. Buttock Liposuction -- Volume-Up

; A young woman underwent apple line liposuction with buttock-up. The incision that had been hidden at the lower border of the buttock before surgery (the line that looked like a fold) is now visible because the buttock has risen and that border has disappeared -- this shows how much the buttock has been lifted.

Case 3. Buttock Liposuction -- Volume-Up

; A young woman who had previously undergone partial liposuction of the outer buttock and saddlebag areas. Incision scars were visible on both sides of the pelvis, and her outer hip contour was unsatisfactory. Through revision thigh liposuction combined with buttock and apple line liposuction, a successful volume-up result was achieved.

Case 4. Buttock Liposuction -- Volume-Up

; The buttocks were excessively large and ptotic preoperatively, but after the procedure, they are noticeably reduced and lifted. The incision that had been hidden at the lower border of the buttock before surgery (the line that looked like a fold) is now visible below the newly formed fold line as the buttock has moved upward -- physical evidence that the buttock has genuinely lifted.

Case 5. Buttock Liposuction -- Volume-Up

; A middle-aged woman with buttock ptosis (sagging). Through apple line and buttock volume-up liposuction, the sagging was corrected and the buttocks were lifted. As the buttock rose, the incision that had been hidden at the lower end of the sagging buttock before surgery (the line that looked like a fold) is now exposed. The incision scars will naturally fade in color and become less visible over time.