Breast augmentation is a surgical procedure to enhance the appearance of the breasts by increasing their size. The most common reasons for breast augmentation are to restore volume lost after weight loss or pregnancy, to create a more balanced and proportionate look to the breasts, or to fix deformities caused by congenital anomalies and other causes. Breast augmentation can be done using different techniques and materials, including saline implants, saline-filled implants filled with fat tissue, or silicone gel-filled implants.
The type of implant used will depend on your preference, your body type, how much you want to increase your breast size, and whether you have had breast surgery before. The procedure takes about an hour and is performed under general anesthesia in a hospital or outpatient surgery center. There are usually no visible scars after the surgery since incisions are made around the nipple area or around the inframammary fold (IMF). The incisions heal quickly with minimal discomfort and can be easily covered by bras or clothing.
Read on to learn more on Best Plastic Surgeons In Nyc Breast Augmentation
Best Plastic Surgeons In Nyc Breast Augmentation
At the New York practice of Joshua A. Greenwald, MD, FACS, many women request augmentation mammoplasty, or breast augmentation surgery, with saline or silicone breast implants to enhance their breast profile. Dr. Greenwald performs breast augmentation surgery for patients who would like to:
- Increase their breast cup size
- Improve the appearance of sagging breasts that look flattened or deflated (often due to major weight loss or pregnancy/breastfeeding).
- Improve undesirable shape or contour of their breasts
- Improve breast asymmetry
Who Is a Suitable Candidate?
Only a board-certified plastic surgeon such as Dr. Greenwald is qualified to determine if someone is an appropriate candidate for breast augmentation. Nevertheless, in general, suitable breast augmentation candidates include those who:
- Desire larger or fuller breasts
- Desire a greater degree of cleavage or of outward projection from the chest wall
- Desire breasts that appear higher up on the chest wall
- On the whole, have a positive self-image, but are frustrated with certain aspects of their breasts
- Are in good physical and mental health overall
- Have sensible expectations for the outcome of breast augmentation surgery, and are seeking aesthetic improvement — not necessarily perfection
- Are pursuing breast augmentation of their own volition
- Are not breastfeeding (Women who are currently nursing should wait 12 weeks after they have stopped breastfeeding to undergo breast surgery, so their true breast size can be established.)
Saline vs. Silicone Breast Implants
Dr. Greenwald offers his breast enhancement patients saline and silicone breast implants.
Saline breast implants have a silicone outer shell but are filled with saline solution, or sterile saltwater.
The main benefits of saline implants are that:
- Dr. Greenwald can use smaller incisions with saline implants (than he would with silicone implants) because they are filled after they are inserted into the implant pocket.
- The body can safely absorb the saline filling material in case the implant ruptures.
The principal drawbacks of saline implants are that:
- They do not resemble the look and feel of natural breast tissue as closely as silicone implants do.
- They are more prone to folding or wrinkling in the implant pocket.
- They may be visible under the surface of the skin, especially in women with thin skin or little body fat.
In contrast, silicone breast implants have both a silicone outer shell and a silicone-gel filling.The greatest advantage of silicone implants is that they more closely look and feel like natural breasts than their saline counterparts. MemoryGel® breast implants are composed of an outer silicone shell and filled with a cohesive gel formulation that acts as a solid rather than a liquid, and holds together uniformly. Numerous studies have demonstrated the safety of silicone implants.
The principal disadvantages of silicone implants are that:
- They arrive from the manufacturer pre-filled, so the Manhattan breast augmentation surgeon must use slightly larger incisions through which to insert them.
- Patients with silicone implants are at risk of “silent rupture,” a condition in which the breast implant has ruptured, but the patient is not aware of it because the body cannot absorb silicone, causing the filling material to remain intact inside the implant pocket.
Because of the risk of silent rupture, the FDA recommends that women with silicone breast implants undergo a breast imaging exam such as an MRI or mammogram every three years, starting the third year after the initial breast enhancement procedure.
Silicone Implants
Allergan manufactures three main types of silicone gel implants: Natrelle Inspira Repsonsive, Natrelle Inspira Soft Touch and Natrelle Inspira Cohesive. All of these implants are made of cohesive silicone gel (not liquid silicone!). The Natrelle implants are smooth round implants that are available in various sizes and projections. Dr. Greenwald prefers cohesive silicone gel implants in cosmetic breast surgery for their more natural feel. All of Natrelle implants are “gummy bear implants”.
What Is The Most Natural Breast Implant?
Compared with saline implants, silicone breast implants have the most natural-looking appearance and optimum feel. At Centre for Surgery, we have extensive experience with Sebbin breast implants manufactured in France. These implants have over 20 years of safety data proving their effectiveness. Sebbin implants contain a highly cohesive silicone gel contained in an outer silicone shell. Patients often tell us how the implants feel similar to the natural breast tissue. Successful breast augmentation surgery to achieve a natural appearance depends on choosing the correct implant size, shape and profile, which must always be customised to each patient to get optimal results.
Are there any natural alternatives to breast implants?
Breast augmentation with implants is the most common method of surgically enhancing the breasts. However, fat transfer breast augmentation has emerged as a highly effective way to enhance breast volume without the need for implants.
Centre for Surgery experts in all types of fat transfer surgery, including breast augmentation fat transfer which involves enhancing breast volume by injecting fat into the breasts. Many patients often prefer having breast augmentation with fat transfer as the procedure does not involve the use of artificial substances such as silicone implants and is known for producing natural-looking results.
What are the natural alternatives to breast implants?
Natural breast augmentation with fat transfer to breast involves liposuction to remove fat from unwanted body areas such as the abdomen, thighs or hips, followed by its purification. The purified fat is then injected into the breasts using small diameter cannulas. Many patients appreciate having areas of stubborn fat removed to contour and sculpt body regions such as the stomach. This procedure is often viewed as a two-in-one procedure with the body contouring benefits of liposuction combined with breast fat transfer to increase breast volume in the same procedure. Natural breast augmentation with fat transfer results in fewer scars compared with breast implant surgery.
The risk of complications such as bleeding is much less with breast fat transfer than with breast implant surgery. Not having implants inserted means any risk of infection is minimal. Fat transfer breast augmentation is commonly requested by patients who may be unhappy with the results of a breast implant procedure. Some patients may have had surgery for breast cancer, such as a mastectomy and will require breast reconstruction surgery to restore the shape of the breasts and get rid of breast asymmetry.
Fat transfer breast augmentation is most commonly carried out under a general anaesthetic. At Centre for Surgery, we specialise in TIVA anaesthesia to ensure a quick recovery with minimal risk of post-operative sickness. The procedure takes, on average, between one and three hours, depending on the amount of liposuction carried out and the quantity of fat injected into the breasts.
The recovery time after that transfer to breasts is generally between one week and four weeks. Your surgeon may recommend taking one week off work and restricting physical activities until any post-operative swelling has settled down, which will help improve the quality of your recovery. Once you have seen your surgeon at your six-week review, you may undertake complete activities without restrictions.
Fat transfer to the breasts can be carried out with or without breast implant surgery. When breast fat transfer is combined with breast implants, the procedure is called hybrid breast augmentation. By combining the two procedures, patients can benefit by having a significant increase in breast volume with implants with the natural-looking results achievable with fat transfer. Liposuction can be carried out to other body areas if desired to create a flatter stomach or slimmer-looking thighs.
Some of our surgeons are experienced in 3-D virtual imaging to give you an idea of how you could look after your breast implant surgery. 3-D imaging may help you develop a better idea of what can be achieved and whether your expectations are realistic.
How Do Breast Implants Feel Inside You
I have had breast implants for about 6 years. I had them put in when I was about 30 years old. They feel like nothing at all, and they are easily felt through my clothes. I’m not sure how your body will react to having them placed inside you, but mine has never had any problems with doing so.
I’ve never heard of a breast implant being felt inside someone’s body. Breast implants are made up of silicone gel or saline (injected into the chest wall). The silicone gel is soft and squishy and feels like nothing when you touch it; however, if you squeeze it hard enough, you can get some resistance from it because it’s not solid like regular silicone.
I know that when I had my first surgery (which was over 15 years ago), the doctor used a local anesthetic on my chest and injected a syringe full of saline into each side of my chest wall. Then he waited about 15 minutes for everything to settle down before he put in the actual implants (which were silicone gel). My breasts felt fine afterward and didn’t hurt at all for several days afterward.