Breast augmentation
Breast procedures
Breast augmentation
Breast augmentation in California and Florida (Beverly hills, Newport beach, Orange County, Miami)
Breast augmentation is one of the most popular procedures performed in America Beverly hills and Orange county. For many women, it can have significant benefits, including the increased self-confidence that comes when you look and feel your best. The breasts are a defining feature of a woman’s body that signify femininity, sexuality and beauty. When their size and shape do not match the rest of the body or are too small, it can have a profound impact on a woman’s self-confidence. Fortunately, augmentation procedures are available in Beverly Hills to enhance the natural appearance of the breasts, creating fuller curves and a more aesthetically pleasing shape.
Breast augmentation is a type of surgery that adds fullness to the breasts by placing silicone or saline implants into the breast pocket. Through the positioning of the pocket, good plastic surgeons can ensure breasts are more proportionate in size while also enhancing the overall look for his patients. With many options to choose from in implant types and size, as well as surgical techniques, this procedure offers customization that produces a look that is natural, balanced, and beautiful.
Like any operation, breast augmentation surgery involves anesthesia, incisions and a recovery period afterward. However, the process is often quicker and more comfortable than patients expect. Most breast augmentation surgeries can be performed on an outpatient basis, which means the patient does will not have any overnights in the hospital after the procedure. Recovery time is usually three days before a patient is ready to return to most regular activities including work. When you consider that the results of breast augmentation may last for many years, it is easy to see that breast augmentation is well worth the investment to many women who are unhappy with the appearance of their breasts.
Is Breast Augmentation Right For You?
There are several different reasons why patients choose to undergo breast augmentation. Some include increasing their breast size, compensating for reduced breast size after pregnancy or correction of a congenital breast defect such as tubular breasts. No matter why you might be seeking this procedure, the following factors will be considered when determining whether you are a good candidate for breast augmentation surgery:
- Good physical health (underlying medical conditions will be evaluated by the plastic surgeon to ensure that the procedure is safe for you)
- Understanding that too much skin laxity may require you to consider a lift in addition to a breast augmentation. This would be determined at your consultation.
- Non-smoker (if you smoke, you will be asked to quit for a few weeks before and after surgery to prevent potential complications linked to nicotine)
- Realistic in your expectations (the plastic surgeon will explain the results you can expect to achieve at your initial consultation)
- Healthy reasons for wanting breast augmentation (the procedure should be done for you alone and not to please a partner or others in your life)
- Willingness to take time off for recovery (by allowing yourself time to rest and recuperate after surgery, you can reduce the risk for many complications and encourage healthy healing)
Because your safety is a top priority for the plastic surgeon, he will take time to assess your medical history, general health and expectations for your procedure before recommending breast augmentation.
Benefits of breast augmentation
Your new breast augmentation procedure can potentially help you achieve a more balanced and proportionate body contour, improving not only your breast appearance, but your overall appearance as well.
Other aesthetic benefits may potentially include:
- Correction of breast asymmetry
- Improved breast shape
- More attractive cleavage
- Better breast projection
- Restoration of lost breast volume caused by aging, pregnancy, or weight loss
- Increase in wardrobe options
- Improved appearance in clothing and bathing suits
Types of Breast Implants
One of the decisions you’ll make regarding your breast augmentation procedure involves the type of implant that will be used. The plastic surgeon offers a wide range of breast implant types, shapes, and sizes in order to provide you with a truly customized procedure that addresses your unique aesthetic goals and body type.
Saline Breast Implants
Saline breast implants consist of a silicone shell filled with a sterile saline solution. Although less commonly used today in practice, saline implants may provide several important benefits, including:
- They can be filled after being inserted into your body
- Saline implants allow for a smaller incision
- If your implant ruptures, the sterile saline solution is absorbed and excreted by your body
In recent years, saline implants have waned in popularity, mainly due to the fact that they tend to look and feel less natural than silicone gel options. This issue is even more pronounced for thinner women with less natural breast tissue.
There are several other drawbacks to consider before choosing saline implants:
- Saline implants may deflate, creating a very uneven breast appearance that requires a revision procedure to correct
- Implant rippling is more likely to be visible than with silicone gel implants
Gummy Bear Implants
Gummy bear implants are the newest breast implant option to receive FDA approval. They consist of a silicone shell filled with a denser, more cohesive silicone gel that holds its shape better.
While these implants might be a good option in certain situations, the gel is firmer than other implants. When shaped, ”gummy bear” implants can shift position and when round, they tend to look a bit more spherical than softer options. However, particularly in a setting of thinner tissues, they may be a pleasing choice.
One downside is that the more form-stable material used in gummy bear implants requires a typically larger incision. This may limit your incision placement options.
Silicone Breast Implants
Silicone breast implants consist of a silicone shell filled with a cohesive silicone gel material. Today’s silicone implants have been extensively studied and are FDA approved.
In recent years, silicone implants have become increasingly popular due to the fact that they tend to look and feel more natural than saline implants.
Breast implant pocket
Submuscular Breast Implant Placement
With the submuscular placement option, the plastic surgeon will place your breast implant partially under the chest muscle. This option may potentially provide for greater coverage of the breast implant and a more natural appearance, particularly among women who don’t have a lot of natural breast tissue. The plastic surgeon recommends partial submuscular breast implant placement for most of his patients.
Some potential benefits of submuscular placement include:
- Improved support of the breast implant which may reduce implant sagging over time
- Reduced risk of complications such as capsular contracture and rippling
- Less interference with mammograms
Rarely, submuscular placement may potentially limit the size of the breast implant used in your procedure.
One of the important decisions you’ll have to make regarding your breast augmentation procedure involves the location of the incision used to place your breast implants. There are several different options, and the right one for you will be based on your aesthetic preference and the style and size of implant selected.
Subglandular Breast Implant Placement
If you choose the subglandular implant placement option, the plastic surgeon will place the breast implant behind your breast tissue and over the chest muscle. This option may be ideally suited for women with a significant amount of natural breast tissue.
You may potentially achieve several benefits from subglandular placement, including:
- The accommodation of a larger breast implant size
- Greater lift
- Reduced recovery time
- Greater ease of implant placement
Some possible limitations of this option include a greater risk of rippling for women with minimal natural breast tissue and an increased likelihood of capsular contracture.
Breast augmentation incisions
There are mainly 3 types of incisions your plastic surgeon use for a breast augmentation. Incisional approaches include:
- Peri-areolar (around the nipple)
- Inframammary (on the lower breast fold)
- Transaxillary (in your axilla)
All of these incision options can accommodate submuscular (below the muscle) and subglandular (above the muscle) breast implant placement, and both can be used with any type of breast implant.
1. Peri-Areolar Incision
The peri-areolar incision is performed around the lower areolar border. Some patients favor this as there naturally is a line present between light and darker skin. There is no chance that it will be seen near the fold in a bathing suit.
Other important benefits to the peri-areolar incision option include:
- May result in more precise implant positioning than transaxillary
- May allow for necessary cosmetic work on the lower breast
Some drawbacks of this option include:
- May interfere with breastfeeding
- Potential loss of nipple sensation
- Possibly greater risk of implant firmness (encapsulation)
2. Inframammary Incision
The inframammary incision is performed near the lower breast fold. This is also a commonly used incision location.
Possible benefits of choosing the inframammary incision option include:
- Possibly less interference with breastfeeding
- Possibly greater preservation of nipple sensation
- Possibly a lower rate of implant firmness (encapsulation)
Drawbacks to the inframammary option include:
- You may experience irritation in the incision location while you recover from surgery
- Your scar may remain red for an extended period after your breast augmentation procedure
- Some prefer not to have a scar near the fold
3. Transaxillary incision (Scarless Breast Augmentation)
A transaxillary incision is an incision that is placed in your armpit. Working through this armpit incision, a plastic surgeon can insert a breast implant into the breast and enhance the overall size and shape of a patient’s bustline in the process. This is a hidden incision method since there will be no direct incision made on the breasts themselves. If there is any concern about the armpit scar, the surgeon makes the incision as small as possible and the scar will typically fade with time.
The Advantages of the Transaxillary Breast Augmentation Incision are the following:
- The incision is hidden from view.
- The armpit incision is hardly noticeable by most people, and since there are no incisions on the breast, the patient is allowed to wear any kinds of bathing suits, undergarments, and tops without worry of visible scarring.
The Disadvantages of the Transaxillary Breast Augmentation Incision:
There is slightly less control in the overall position of the breast implant when working through the transaxillary incision. This could mean that sometimes there could be some difficulty when it comes to placing the breast implant in the proper place. This can be discussed more during the consultation process.
