‘Non-surgical butt lift’ death leads to two arrests

Two people have been arrested following the death of a woman who is believed to have undergone a non-surgical Brazilian butt lift (BBL).

Alice Webb, 33, died at Gloucestershire Royal Hospital in the early hours of Tuesday morning, after falling unwell.

Gloucestershire Police said it was called by the ambulance service at 11:35 BST on Monday, and an investigation – led by the Major Crime Investigation Team – is ongoing.

The two people, who had been arrested on suspicion of manslaughter, have been released on police bail.

Save Face, a national register of accredited practitioners who offer non-surgical cosmetic treatments said this is the “first case of a death caused by a non-surgical BBL in the UK”.

The treatment is designed to make buttocks bigger, more rounded or lifted and sees fat or dermal filler injected into the buttocks to change size or shape.

While non-surgical BBLs are not illegal in the UK, last year Wolverhampton City Council barred a company from carrying out the procedure after identifying risks associated with their processes, including blood clots, sepsis, and the potential for the death of body tissues.

Five local authorities in Essex and Glasgow followed suit and have banned certain companies from carrying out liquid BBLs in their area.

Save Face’s director Ashton Collins said the organisation has supported 500 women who have suffered complications from the procedure.

Ms Collins said: “Liquid BBL procedures are a crisis waiting to happen. They are advertised on social media as ‘risk-free’, ‘cheaper’ alternatives to the surgical counterpart and that could not be further from the truth.”

Save Face has criticised non-healthcare injectors carrying out liquid BBLs saying there were often unable to identify and manage the complications of their clients and often misdiagnosing abscesses, and tissue necrosis as bruising.