Enhancing your figure

Breast enlargement, otherwise known as augmentation mammoplasty, is a surgical procedure to enhance the size and shape of a woman’s breasts. Women choose this surgery for a number of reasons:

• To enhance body contours
• To correct reduced breast volume after pregnancy or weight loss
• To balance a difference in breast size
• To reconstruct breasts following cancer surgery

What does breast augmentation involve?

The procedure increases a woman’s breast volume and shape by surgically inserting a saline or silicone implant behind each breast. Typically, at least part of the implant is placed behind the chest muscle.

Implant choice

Our physicians can help you select the right implant type and size based on several factors, including your breast anatomy, skin elasticity, body type, and desired increase in size.

Options for breast implants

• Saline implants
  These implants can be filled with varying amounts of sterile salt water to provide the right shape, firmness, and feel for you. Should a saline implant shell leak, the implant will collapse, and the saline will be absorbed and naturally expelled by the body. FDA-approved for augmentation in women 18 years of age and older.

• Silicone implants
  These implants are filled with an elastic gel that feels and moves much like natural breast tissue. If a silicone implant leaks, the gel may remain within the implant shell or escape into the breast implant pocket. A leaking silicone implant may not collapse. If you choose these implants, you may need to visit your plastic surgeon regularly to make sure the implants are functioning properly. An ultrasound or MRI screening can assess the condition of breast implants. FDA-approved for augmentation in women 22 years of age and older.

Implants can be inserted and positioned using a few different methods. The incision may be made in the crease where the breast meets the chest, around the areola (the dark skin surrounding the nipple), or under the arm. You and your surgeon will decide which method is right for you, based on your anatomy and goals for augmentation. We will do our best to ensure that your scars are as inconspicuous as possible.

Breast augmentation surgery usually lasts one to two hours. It is performed as an outpatient procedure. We also offer an alternate, less invasive method of breast augmentation, using an endoscope. Check with your doctor to see which procedure is best for you.

What should I expect after breast enlargement?

You’ll be up and around the day of the surgery, though you’ll probably feel tired and sore for a few days. You should be able to return to work within a few days to a week, if your job isn’t too strenuous. There may be a burning sensation in your nipples for about two weeks, but this will subside as bruising fades. Your doctor will prescribe medication to control any pain you feel.

The swelling in your breasts may take about a month to improve. As long as your breasts are sore, you should avoid physical contact. Follow your surgeon’s advice on when to resume exercise and normal daily activity.