A Clinically Relevant Model for Hands-on Training in Ultrasound-Guided Gluteal Fat Grafting: The Miami Butt Model

Many board-certified plastic surgeons believe that accessibility of hands-on training in ultrasound-guided gluteal fat grafting (US-GGFG) is insufficient. Cadaver models utilized to practice ultrasound-guided fat grafting have proven to be expensive and difficult to procure.

The authors present a novel, clinically relevant buttock model, and compare this model with the costs and logistics of the cadaver model with the aim of providing affordable hands-on training for US-GGFG.

A clinically relevant buttock model, the Miami butt model (MBM) was created by attaching a hemiabdominoplasty specimen to a portion of pork belly with its skin attached.The costs and logistics related to 2 separate ultrasound-guided Brazilian butt lift (BBL) workshops, 1 with cadaver specimens and the other with the MBM, were compared.

The specimen costs for a workshop with 20 participants (10 stations with 1 cadaver specimen for 2 participants) were $4580 per station. After adding the cost of delivery and disposal for the cadaver specimens ($7770), the total price for a 10-cadaver-specimen workshop amounted to $53,570. The MBM was found to be anatomically relevant and provided a close facsimile of US-GGFG experience in humans, at a cost of $47 per specimen. The MBM cost of specimens for a 20-participant workshop totaled $940, compared to a cadaver-based workshop with specimen costs of $53,570.

Compared to the cadaver model, the MBM is significantly less expensive and allows the participant to perform US-GGFG on a close facsimile of human gluteal anatomy, improving the accessibility of US-GGFG training.