15 Frequently Asked Questions about Breast Augmentation Surgery
In Argentina, the breast augmentation surgery remains the most popular cosmetic surgery for women between 20 and 45 years of age. Despite of the vast information available, it is common to hear questions and myths. Here are the 15 most common questions:
1- Can I get pregnant and breastfeed after a breast augmentation surgery?
Breast implants do not cause any inconvenience to get pregnant or breastfeed since they had not demonstrated consequences, neither to the mother or baby. This is regardless of whether they are placed in front of or behind the pectoral muscle.
2- Do breast implants cause cancer?
Despite some alarms over 20 years ago, is scientifically proven that the implants do not trigger this type of illness and there is no confirmed relationship with autoimmune diseases.
3- Is it better to place the implants from behind the chest?
This is seen from aesthetic criteria and will be better or worse according to the characteristics of each patient and the surgeon’s criteria.
4- If I have sagging breasts, do I need prosthesis?
Implants only provide volume; they do not lift nor hold. For a breast lift (mastopexy) we must use techniques for this purpose, and if we also want to increase we will add a prosthesis.
5- It is possible to have my breasts more together?
Anatomically, in general, the breasts are located outside of the sternum. Therefore there must be a 2 or 3 cm between them. Usually we used as a parameter the distance between the midline and the nipple. This must be between 8 and 10 cm, according to the width of the chest and texture.
6- Round or “tear drop” shape?
Basically implants add volume. The form will depend on the pre-existing form. In general, the anatomic “tear drop”are used for cases of total breast reconstruction post-mastectomy.
7- Do you have to replace the breast implants or are they definitive?
The prosthesis does not have “due date” but over time they wear out as the same prosthesis. For this reason, manufacturers recommend changing them every 10 or 15 years. After that time, if they are in good condition and there have not been major aesthetics changes, you can proceed without problems. There are no definitive prosthesis but there are different qualities.
8- What happens if the breast implants break or encapsulate?
They can break or encapsulated for many reasons. However does not imply an alarm condition or disease. The current prosthesis have evolved in its production, stronger outer layers and filled with cohesive gel. If this situation occurs, does not constitute an emergency and a replacement should be scheduled.
9- Is it better a surgery with local anesthesia?
Usually, the type of anesthesia will depend on the surgeon criteria and anesthesia team. The anesthesia should be adapted to the type of procedure to be performed. It is important to be operated in a clinic, with appropriate authorizations, with appropriate technology and infrastructure and trained professionals.
10- Are the textured surface breast implants better?
Currently the most commonly used are the textured surface breast implants, as it is found to have less chance of capsular contracture. However, some surgeons still use smooth-surface when placed behind the muscle.
11- How is the breast enlargement surgery and its recovery?
The breast augmentation surgery is performed in the morning and you usually are discharged in the afternoon. You have to rest for 3 days and then you can do daily activities but you cannot practice sports or sun tanning for 30 days. You will need to use a special bra and stay in Argentina for at least 7 days for a close monitoring.
12- Do I need a pre-surgical check-up before a breast enlargement?
Yes, the medical tests that you will need to have done are blood test, urine test, electrocardiogram (ECG / EKG) and a mammography.
13- After having a child, how long do I have to wait to perform a breast implants surgery?
To perform a breast augmentation surgery you have to wait 2 months after you stop breastfeeding. If you have never breastfed your baby, it wouldn’t be necessary to wait this time.
14- Can I have a breast augmentation with fat injection?
Breast augmentation by lipofilling (fat transplantation) is still in the experimental stage. One of the main problems is that the fat can produce calcifications that looked like breast cancer on mammograms. Nowadays, the only method to increase the volume of the breast is with silicone implants.
15- What are breast implants risks or side-effects?
The silicone implants have been used for over 30 years with minimal problems. Although this type of operation has virtually no side effects from the possible risks and complications include infection, fluid accumulation, swelling, skin discoloration, capsular contracture and implant leakage or rupture.
Extra:
16- How much does breast augmentation cost abroad?
The price for a breast augmentation surgery in Argentina is usually around USD 2,850 but this may vary according to the needs and requirements of each patient. Contact us to get your Free quote!
Irvine, CA – Two new studies published in the current issue of Surgery for Obesity and Related Diseases, a peer-reviewed journal, add to the large body of scientific evidence which supports that the LAP-BAND® Adjustable Gastric Banding System, made by Allergan, Inc. (NYSE: AGN), is a safe and effective weight-loss procedure. One study concluded that laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding (LAGB) procedure can be safely performed in a community medical practice, with patients experiencing meaningful excess weight loss. The second study examined patients who received LAGB following the failure of gastric bypass and found they achieved significant weight loss two years post-banding procedure.
While a wealth of data has been published in the literature worldwide, questions have recently been raised about the safety and effectiveness of the LAP-BAND® System, specifically with respect to average weight loss and complications. These two new studies support that the advanced product technology of the LAP-BAND® AP System, combined with surgical technique and patient aftercare result in positive clinical outcomes. The LAP-BAND® System has an 18-year safety and effectiveness record, including almost 10-years in the United States, with more than 650,000 procedures performed worldwide, leading to more than two million patient years of exposure for the device.
Statistics released by the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) show that more men are going under the knife. Overall cosmetic plastic surgery procedures in men were up 2 percent in 2010 compared to 2009. However, many male surgical procedures increased significantly. Facelifts for men rose 14 percent in 2010 while male liposuction increased 7 percent.
2010 ASPS statistics show that men underwent more than 1.1 million cosmetic procedures, both minimally-invasive and surgical. The majority of the Men’s Top 10 fastest-growing cosmetic procedures are surgical, which bucks the previous trend of growth in minimally-invasive treatments.
“The growth in cosmetic surgical procedures for men may be a product of our aging baby boomers who are now ready to have plastic surgery,” said ASPS President Phillip Haeck, MD. “Minimally-invasive procedures such as Botox® and soft tissue fillers work to a point. However, as you age and gravity takes over, surgical procedures that lift the skin are necessary in order to show significant improvement.”
A breast augmentation procedure in which fat from other parts of the body is transferred to the breasts causes / can cause false suspicion of breast cancer on follow-up mammograms, according to a study in the April issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS).
The mammographic changes occurring after fat injection are indistinguishable from abnormalities associated with breast cancer, according to the study by Dr. Cong-Feng Wang of Meitan General Hospital, Beijing. Based on this “mammographic confusion,” the authors conclude that the use of autologous fat injection for breast augmentation should be “prohibited continuously.”
Before and After breast augmentation with breast implants
Microcalcifications Cause Confusion on Mammograms after Fat Injection
Dr. Wang and colleagues report on 48 women who underwent autologous fat injection for breast augmentation between 1999 and 2009. In this procedure, small amounts of fat obtained by liposuction from one area of the body (such as the hips or thighs) are injected to shape the breasts.
In the study, mammograms obtained some years after fat injection showed “clustered microcalcifications” in eight of the 48 women – a rate of 16.7 percent. In all eight cases, the microcalcifications were regarded as “highly suspicious” for breast cancer.
Alexandria, VA – New survey results released by the American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery (AAFPRS) showed three-fourths of the procedures performed by the Academy’s surgeons in 2010 were non-surgical procedures, highlighting a trend that more people are choosing non-surgical procedures to delay more invasive surgical procedures. The survey results also showed that the number of procedures performed annually has risen 45 percent over the last two years, with a 16 percent increase in non-surgical procedures.
A majority of surgical procedures, including facelift, revision surgery, rhinoplasty, forehead lift, chin augmentation, lip augmentation, and scar revision, increased in cost from 2009, which may be one reason why people opted for less invasive surgeries. In addition, surgeons reported performing fewer lip augmentations, hair transplants and collagen/cosmoderm/cosmoplast procedures in 2010.
“Non-surgical cosmetic procedures are an excellent option for some people, with the added benefits of lower costs and shorter recovery time; two things that are consistently important to those considering facial plastic surgery,” said Jonathan M. Sykes, M.D., President of the AAFPRS. “We have been seeing a trend over the past few years that people who want to look and feel younger and rejuvenated are turning to non-surgical, less invasive procedures to obtain the refreshed look they want.”
The most common non-surgical procedures last year were Botox and hyaluronic acid injections. Surgery is still popular, with the most popular cosmetic surgical procedures in 2010 being rhinoplasty, facelift, and blepharoplasty (eyelid surgery).
- PIP breast implants were sold under a different brand name in Europe
The British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons issues a warning to women who have gone abroad for breast augmentation – following reports of implant rupture from patients who never suspected they were given controversial devices now taken off the market. PIP implants, it has emerged, were being sold under a different name in some of the most popular cosmetic surgery tourism destinations around Europe, regularly visited by British patients seeking low-cost procedures.
It has been estimated that around 50,000 women in the UK have Poly Implant Prothese (PIP) breast implants, but the discovery that the fraudulent devices were also sold in countries such as Belgium, Poland and the Czech Republic under re-branded name ‘M-Implant’ by Dutch firm Rofil Medical means that the number of women who should be on the alert is much higher. Studies last year found that the company originally making the low-cost implants, which has since gone into administration, not only dispensed with a protective shell but used an untested gel, said to have been intended for use in mattresses.
- Breast Implants (no specific brand)
Although the French medical device regulatory authority (AFSSAPS) found no acute toxicity (cytotoxicity) effect on tissue, tests for genotoxicity (effect of the gel on DNA of cells) did not give a conclusive result and further extensive testing will need to take place.
PIP implants were known to have been popular with the larger domestic chains and commercial clinics because of their low cost. It has been estimated that 60,000 people travel out of the UK for medical tourism every year, and roughly a third of those do so specifically for cosmetic surgery.
Plastic Surgery Team Perform First Full Face Transplant in USA
A Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH) plastic surgery team, led by Dr. Bohdan Pomahac, performed the first full face transplant in USA last week, the second face transplant procedure to be performed at BWH.
The team of more than 30 physicians, nurses, anesthesiologists and residents worked for more than 15 hours to replace the facial area of patient Dallas Wiens, including the nose, lips, facial skin, muscles of facial animation and the nerves that power them and provide sensation.
- Bohdan Pomahac, MD, of BWH Plastic Surgery
“Today’s tremendous news marks a new milestone in Brigham and Women’s legacy in transplant surgery. The pioneering achievement accomplished by the entire transplant team is a gift made possible by the most selfless act one human being can do for another, organ donation,” said Betsy Nabel, MD, president of Brigham and Women’s Hospital.
“This remarkable, anonymous gift is another example of the life-affirming power of organ and tissue donation,” said Richard S. Luskin, president and CEO of New England Organ Bank. “As always we are immensely grateful to the donor and the donor family for their generosity.”
Below you will find the press conference highlights:
IVF Babies’ Birth Outcomes are Influenced by Treatment Type and Diagnosis of Infertility
In a new study published in Fertility and Sterility, researchers observed that differences in obstetrical outcomes for singleton pregnancies in patients using assisted reproductive technology (ART) depend on which techniques the patients used and their infertility diagnoses. These findings indicate that the uterine environment is perhaps the most important influence on the key outcomes of birth weight and length of gestation in ART pregnancies.
William Gibbons, MD and his colleagues Marcelle Cedars, MD and Roberta Ness, MD, MPH reviewed data collected by the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technologies (SART) for the years 2004 through 2006 and compared average birth weight and gestational age for singletons born as a result of standard IVF, IVF with donor eggs, and IVF with a gestational carrier. The data were further analyzed in relation to the patient’s primary diagnosis and whether donor sperm or sperm from the patient’s partner were used.
They found that the birth weight associated with standard In Vitro Fertilization (in which the patient carried the embryo created with her own egg) was greater than that associated with donor egg cycles and less than that in gestational carrier cycles. This finding held true even when other factors, including mother’s age, number of fetal heartbeats in the first trimester, and male factor were considered. While a diagnosis of male factor infertility did not affect birth weight or gestational age, every “female” diagnosis was associated with lower birth weight and, except for “unexplained” infertility, a reduced gestational age. Patients diagnosed with “uterine factor” had babies with the lowest birth weights and gestational ages.
The uterine environment as related to treatment type was also considered. In standard IVF an embryo is transferred to a woman who has just undergone controlled ovarian hyperstimulation, while in donor egg IVF and gestational carrier IVF, the embryo is transferred to a “natural” or unstimulated uterus. Therefore the researchers looked at IVF utilizing frozen embryo transfer- in which an embryo created with a patient’s own egg is transferred to her own unstimulated uterus- for additional information. They found that babies born of frozen embryo transfer cycles had markedly greater birth weights than those born as a result of standard IVF.
R. Stan Williams, MD, President of the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology, observed, “The study shows that many interrelated factors affect the health of babies conceived using ART. Studies like this one increase our understanding and show us where further research may enable us to improve outcomes for our patients.”
Source: American Society for Reproductive Medicine
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