Saline Breast Implants

Saline implants have the potential to look and feel natural following breast augmentation surgery. This requires adequate soft tissue coverage of the implant and the selection of an appropriately sized implant.

When adequate soft tissue coverage is present, the breast looks and feels natural. When soft tissue coverage is inadequate, the breast may not feel normal and rippling may be present.

Adequate soft tissue coverage is more likely if the patient has a moderate amount of her own breast tissue and the implants are placed underneath the muscle. Under these circumstances, the breasts are more likely to feel normal and also have less rippling. The use of large implants would have the opposite effect because the soft tissue coverage would be inadequate.

In patients who have minimal breast tissue and a thin body habitus, an artificial feel and rippling may be unavoidable. In this situation, silicone implants in a submuscular position may be necessary to obtain a natural look and feel.

A consultation with a board-certified plastic surgeon will help determine the appropriate style and size of breast implant. It would not be unreasonable to expect a natural feel and look with saline implants. With a reasonable starting breast volume, moderate-sized saline implants and submuscular positioning should give excellent results.

What is a Mommy Makeover Surgery?

The mommy makeover is one of the most popular operations performed by plastic surgeons. The procedure is a combination of cosmetic breast surgery, liposuction, and abdominoplasty (tummy tuck). It has been designed to correct changes that occur normally with pregnancy.

During pregnancy and breast-feeding, the breasts typically increase in size. After pregnancy and breast-feeding, a variety of scenarios may occur. In some cases, the breasts may not return to their previous sizes. In this situation, a breast reduction may be necessary. In other cases, the breasts will shrink to their previous sizes, causing excess, saggy skin that may require a breast lift. Some patients will lose volume and require a breast augmentation, while others will have sag and volume loss and require a breast augmentation and breast lift. 

The abdominal wall is also affected. It becomes stretched and there is usually redundant, saggy skin, stretch marks, and weakened muscles. This will require abdominoplasty, mini abdominoplasty, or abdominal wall liposuction. Women also frequently note an increase in fat accumulation in their hips and thighs—these patients will typically require liposuction. 

There are multiple advantages in performing these procedures in combination. These include an improved overall result, lowered cost, and single recovery. Patients typically report increased self-esteem, self-image, and an overall improvement in the quality of their lives. For these reasons, the mommy makeover is one of the most popular operations that is currently performed in plastic surgery.

Breast Implants: Silicone vs. Saline

The type of breast implant used is one of the most important decisions facing patients undergoing breast augmentation. Silicone and saline implants both offer significant advantages for breast augmentation and are both associated with high satisfaction rates.

Although it’s hard to tell the difference between saline and silicone when looking at patients, there is a significant difference in how they feel. This difference is especially noticeable in women who have minimal amounts of breast tissue.

Silicone implants offer several advantages over saline implants. The most important advantage is how they feel. There is no doubt that they feel more natural than saline implants especially when there is minimal breast tissue present. In addition, silicone implants are less likely to cause rippling than saline implants.