BREAST ENLARGEMENT (AUGMENTATION)
Contents
WHAT IS A BREAST ENLARGEMENT (AUGMENTATION)?
A breast
enlargement is performed by inserting a breast implant behind a
woman's natural breast tissue. The inserted breast implant pushes
and projects the natural breast tissue forward, giving a fuller and
larger breast appearance. This procedure is performed on women
within a broad age range who wish to improve their breast size and
shape for the following reasons:
- A dissatisfaction with their original breast size
- A desire to regain or improve breast shape and size following
significant weight loss or child birth
- A wish to correct uneven breasts (asymmetry)
- Correction of a congenital deformity of one or both
breasts
Breast augmentation surgery can provide both physical and
psychological benefits. who have undergone a procedure of this type
report that they feel more feminine and personally confident about
their new body image and can experience improved self esteem as a
result of having surgery.
HOW IS THIS PROCEDURE PERFORMED?
Breast enlargement surgery is generally performed under general
anaesthetic. The procedure takes around one hour to perform and
patients may be able to go home the same day.
Breast augmentation surgery is performed by making a fine
incision in the crease-line beneath the breast itself (sub-mammary
route), or through the armpit (axillary), or around the underside
of the nipple area (periareolar). In the UK the sub-mammary
incision method is generally favoured, though any decision is made
on the basis of a patient’s personal preference, in conjunction
with the surgeon’s advice and judgement. The implant can be
positioned in one of two places within the breast cavity in order
to push the breast forward and to enlarge the original breast
volume.
The two potential sites are:
a) In front of the pectoral muscle. This route is typically
chosen when a patient has sufficient skin and breast tissue to give
good natural looking coverage over the breast implant.
b) Behind the great pectoral muscle. This route is typically
chosen when a patient has insufficient skin and breast tissue to
give a natural looking coverage over the breast implant. This
method is often favoured for very slim or particularly flat chested
women.
WHAT ARE THE RESULTS LIKE?
This procedure can provide excellent results in women wishing to
improve and increase their breast shape and size. This corrective
procedure should be performed in order to obtain the best
possible breast shape and size and should only be undertaken
by a Consultant Plastic Surgeon who is fully qualified and well
experienced in this type of specialist breast surgery. The final
result will be obscured by swelling, which nearly always develops
following this type of surgery.
It can take up to 14 days for initial swelling and bruising to
settle to an acceptable appearance, but residual swelling will
settle down gradually over several months. Typically the fine
incisions and subsequent scars that are made by performing this
procedure are well hidden in the natural breast crease, or arm pit,
or in the pigmented margin (areola) surrounding the nipple area.
Every surgeon's breast augmentation procedure technique can differ
slightly and wounds can be sutured (stitched) with either
dissolvable or removable fine line sutures, or by surgical glue.
Sutures are typically removed 10-14 days following surgery.
HOW WILL YOU FEEL AFTER A BREAST AUGMENTATION?
Most women experience some discomfort following breast surgery
and take analgesic tablets (pain killers) for up to one week
following surgery. It is important to allow for a natural period of
healing to take place and for women who lead busy lives to abstain
from strenuous activity or from heavy lifting for six weeks
following surgery.
Initially, breasts will be firm and swollen and they will take
at least six weeks to soften to a more natural appearance and feel.
Breast swelling will settle down completely after several
months.
Patients will always be advised to take a specific amount
of recovery time away from work, dependant on the type of work they
perform, but it is usual to take 10 to 14 days away from work to
rest and recover at home following this type of procedure.
ARE THERE ANY RISKS INVOLVED HAVING A BREAST AUGMENTATION?
All surgery involves an element of risk from developing
complications. However, cosmetic surgery is usually undertaken
voluntarily and only when a patient is in good health. Therefore,
the probability of experiencing complications from this kind of
surgery are substantially lower than those who undergo surgery due
to ill health.
General risks such as bleeding, infection and asymmetry and
scarring will be discussed openly at consultation, as well as our
scrupulous efforts to manage and minimise these risks to their
lowest possible potential. However there are also specific risks to
this procedure that need to be considered. These are:
Capsular contracture (hardening)
- Modern day implants have ensured that the risk of
capsular contracture has never been so low; however, capsular
contracture is still the most common complication experienced by
women following breast augmentation. Capsular contracture occurs
when the human body puts a wall of scar tissue (fibrous capsule)
around an implant. This scar tissue can then thicken and shrink and
is noticed by the patient as an apparent hardening of the breast
implant. Where a capsular contracture becomes noticeable or
unsightly to the patient, remedial surgery to correct this problem
can be performed.
Rupture rates and life expectancy
of breast implants - Recent advances in implant
technology and manufacture mean that breast implant ruptures are
highly unlikely. A true evaluation of the life expectancy of
modern-day implants is difficult to predict accurately, as new
implants may have the potential to last a lifetime, but they have
not been in use for long enough to produce proof to substantiate
such a claim. Consequently, the Department of Health asks
manufacturers and plastic surgeons to advise women that they may
need to consider renewing their implants after a ten-year
period.
Scarring - Scars
resulting from breast augmentation surgery are typically fine and
insignificant once the healing process is complete. However, very
occasionally a scar may heal abnormally and become thick, raised
and painful (hypertrophic). This condition can be treated with a
special dressing or with anti-inflammatory injections or
occasionally with corrective surgery, although results cannot be
guaranteed.
Infection and rejection
- It is important that all patients quickly recognise any
signs of infection, such as excessive pain, fever or offensive
wound discharge. Antibiotics given during your operation will help
reduce this risk to a minimum, as will meticulous attention to your
personal hygiene. On very rare occasions a patient’s body may be
unable to cope with the introduction of a foreign body (such as a
breast implant) and a resulting infection may lead to a total
rejection of the new breast implant.
Changes in
breast sensation - It is typical for most patients to
notice an alteration in breast sensation following surgery. These
changes usually subside when the breast has fully recovered from
surgery. Occasionally, patients report that their nipples or breast
skin remain either more or less sensitive in the long term
following surgery.
Palpability - Women
with very little natural breast tissue should be advised that the
rim of the breast implant may be visible or detectable to touch
(palpable). Your surgeon may recommend placing an implant behind
the pectoral muscle to minimise this effect if he believes that the
implant ridge would appear unsightly.
GENERAL ISSUES
Implants do not interfere with a woman’s ability to breast feed.
There is no known association between breast cancer and breast
implants.
Mammography - Women
with breast implants should inform any future radiographer that
they have breast implants, so that the most appropriate method of
breast screening and mammography can be performed.
Travelling at high altitudes
- Breast implants are not subject to strain, pressure or
rupture when travelling in an aircraft or at high altitudes.
Smoking - Heavy smokers
may be precluded from having breast implant surgery due to their
increased risk of infection and rejection complications.
WHAT NEXT?
At Vive Life Care we believe that it is important for all
prospective patients to have realistic expectations of the
improvements that can be achieved through breast augmentation
surgery. Your Consultant Plastic Surgeon will take into account
your age, skin texture, and the existing shape and position of your
breast tissue and nipples when predicting the outcome of your
results. It is therefore essential to have a thorough consultation
with a surgeon who specialises in breast surgery before you make a
decision to go ahead with a procedure.