Breast Enlargement

Women seek breast enlargement surgery for a variety of reasons including to improve body confidence. Most women who seek natural-looking results wish to improve the balance of their body figure. Common reasons for feeling this way include not developing the breasts you desire during puberty, change in size or shape following pregnancy and breastfeeding, and changes following weight loss.

If you are over 18, generally healthy, not overweight and a non-smoker, you are suitable for breast enlargement surgery. Occasionally, some women who seek breast enlargement surgery may actually not be suitable, and may require a different technique (such as a breast uplift, fat transfer or breast auto-augmentation – all procedures that use only your own breast tissue) or a combination of techniques. During your consultation, you will be advised on whether breast enlargement surgery is suitable for you.

At your consultation, you will meet Dr Kian, a fully-qualified plastic surgeon who is trained in cosmetic breast surgery. He will take a full medical history including details of medications, allergies, smoking and family history of breast cancer. Dr Kian also always takes time to understand what your goals and concerns are.

During your examination, the following will be assessed systematically and standard clinical photographs will be taken for your medical record:

• breast and chest wall measurements
• pre-operative asymmetry
• chest-wall abnormalities
• skin thickness & quality

You will then have the opportunity to try on different sizes of implants. You can bring different clothes to try on over the top if you wish. Dr Kian will give you time to choose the size of implant you wish to have.

Dr Kian will then discuss the different implant types, shapes and surface texturing. He will also discuss the implant placement/pocket and incision site. He will explain the potential risks and complications of surgery so that you make a fully-informed choice. There will be plenty of time to answer any questions that you may have and you can rest assured that Dr Kian will give you his honest, professional advice.

Dr Kian’s philosophy is to achieve natural-looking results. The size of breast implants that you choose will depend on your body frame and chest wall measurements that are taken during consultation. You will be given a range of implant sizes to try on. You will be given time to try on different sizes before you make a decision on which implant to have. Most patients seek an increase by approximately 1 or 2 cup sizes (although post-operative cup sizes are never guaranteed).

There is a range of texturisation of implants and this ranges from smooth to “macro-textured”. There are pros and cons to smooth and textured implants and this will be discussed in full during your consultation. In general, there is better long-term experience using textured implants in the UK, especially in relation to capsular contracture.

Subglandular placement means placing the implant above the muscle, but under your breast tissue. Submuscular placement means placing the implant under the muscle and dual-plane placement means having some of the implant under the muscle and some under breast tissue.

Dr Kian is trained in all these different variations of the procedure and will advise on which options are available to you. He will discuss the pros and cons of each.

Implants do not have a “shelf life” however they may require changing in the future if they become symptomatic. As a general guide, about half of women will require some form of revision procedure over the course of 10 years. However, this is just a general guide and some implants last much longer than others.

During your consultation, Dr Kian will explain the potential risks and complications of your procedure. Some of these include:

• Scar – this will commonly be a hidden inframammary fold (IMF) incision which is in or adjacent to the crease under your breast.
• Capsular contracture – Dr Kian has published award-winning research in the science of capsular contracture. The body’s natural reaction is to form a scar tissue all round the implant called the ‘capsule’. This is completely normal. In some patients, this capsule contracts causing the breast to feel firm, change shape and sometimes cause pain. If this occurs, you may need revision surgery in the future.
• Implant rupture – if the shell of the implant breaks, modern form-stable silicone implants normally do retain its shape. Silicone can leak within the capsule (intra-capsular rupture) or outside the capsule (extra-capsular rupture). If this occurs, you may need revision surgery.
• Infection – some minor wound infections may require antibiotic treatment. However, serious infection may result in implant removal.
• Seroma – this is a collection of fluid in the pocket of the implant. Small seromas may be left alone if they do not produce any symptoms, however larger or symptomatic ones may be aspirated.
• Bleeding/haematoma – Bleeding in the pocket after surgery may require a second operation to remove the blood clot and stop any bleeding.
• BIA-ALCL (Breast-implant associated anaplastic large cell lymphoma) – this is a rare form of lymphoma that is still being researched and is not clearly understood. As it is still being researched, the incidence of this is still evolving, but at the time of writing it is approximately 1 in 35,000 to 1 in 40,000. Breast implants with a higher incidence of BIA-ALCL have been removed from the UK and European market.

Dr Kian only uses breast implants with excellent data and safety profiles. Some implants that Dr Kian use also come with a lifetime guarantee for the cost of your implant should you require replacement in the future.

Recovery time is very individual, however for most people this will be between 7 to 14 days. We would normally advise to take a week off work, however you may return to work sooner or later depending on how you recover and the type of work that you do. You may be asked to wear a post-surgical garment/band or sports bra after your surgery for 6 weeks. Full results take at least 6 weeks, however this will vary from person to person.

Dr Kian believes that good aftercare is as important as the surgery itself. You will be given contact details to get in touch should you have any concerns after your surgery. You will have a clinic appointment approximately 1 week after your procedure. At this time, the wound is inspected to ensure that it is healing well and there is no infection. You will have a full review appointment with Dr Kian at approximately 6 weeks after your surgery to check that you are happy with your results and to give you long-term aftercare instructions.

Dr Kian has had experience with a wide range of implants. Some of the implant brands that he uses are Motiva (including Ergonomix implants), Nagor, Mentor, Eurosilicone and Polytech (including B-Lite implants). The choice and suitability of different implant types will be discussed at your consultation.