While large breasts used to be considered a woman’s most feminine feature, it seems that recently a voluptuous derriere has claimed the spotlight. Beginning with Jennifer Lopez, stars like Beyonce and Shakira have been lauded as the most beautiful women on Planet Earth, largely because of their generous backsides. As a consequence, more and more women are seeking to accentuate their derriere through procedures such as the Brazilian butt lift and butt implants.

While these procedures might be safe when performed by a board-certified plastic surgeon in a hospital or outpatient surgical setting, they can be extremely dangerous when done by a dubious practitioner in an unaccredited office. In the worst case, such procedures can prove fatal. Read on to learn about three recent butt injection procedures that caused grief and horror instead of beauty and happiness.

2009: Death of a Beauty Queen in the Name of a Firmer Behind

Solange Magnano was a former Miss Argentina, a successful model, the owner of her own modeling school, and the mother of seven-year-old twins. At age 38, she was still receiving numerous modeling offers. Unfortunately, even Ms. Magnano was not immune to Argentina’s obsession with the body beautiful and love for plastic surgery. She booked herself for a buttock lift at a prominent cosmetic surgery clinic in Buenos Aires. She though the procedure was going to be very simple, as she was supposed to receive only injections.

However, after Ms. Magnano was injected with polimetilmetacrilate, she developed respiratory problems, was rushed to a hospital, and soon died of a pulmonary embolism. While the precise cause of her death is unknown, several Argentinean surgeons have suggested that perhaps the injected substance was improperly injected into the capillaries. Once in the bloodstream, it traveled to the lungs and caused the fatal embolism.

2009: Mexican Rock Star’s Near Death Experience

Alejandra Guzman was enjoying popularity and fame as one of Mexico’s most successful female rock stars when she decided to improve her look by receiving a liquid butt lift. She booked herself into a cosmetic surgery clinic, where she received injections to her buttocks. Soon after, Ms. Guzman developed severe respiratory complications and was rushed to a hospital. The doctors managed to save her life after removing all of the foreign substance from her body.

2011: Death of a British Woman in a Philadelphia Hotel Room

In February 2011, Claudia Aderotimi, a dancer and aspiring rapper from the U.K., died after traveling to Philadelphia for a butt lift procedure. The treatment was performed in a hotel room near the Philadelphia International Airport. Preliminary investigation indicates that the person who performed the injections was not a physician, and the substance that was used was not an FDA-approved injectable. Instead, it appears that the injected substance was an illicit chemical, such as non-medical-grade liquid silicone, petroleum jelly or hydrogel. Aderotimi was only 20 years old and had no health problems prior to receiving the injections.

Use Caution and Good Judgment

As these stories indicate, butt injections can be fatal when performed by unlicensed practitioners using unsafe substances. However, not all buttock augmentation procedures end badly. In fact, when performed by a reputable plastic surgeon in a hospital or surgical center, the insertion of soft, solid butt implants can deliver beautiful, long-lasting results, as can fat grafting to the buttocks. If you desire to undergo these procedures, use plenty of caution and your best judgment to select a trustworthy surgeon who will use only FDA-approved techniques and materials. This is the same approach you should employ when contemplating any other cosmetic surgery procedure, including a breast augmentation, liposuction, body lift or tummy tuck procedure.