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Anesthesia:
General (asleep) Time: about 2 hours
Recovery:
1-2 weeks Total cost approximately: $5,500
No aspirin
products 10 days before surgery
MAO
Inhibitors drugs, diet pills and herbal remedies may need to be
stopped
Surgery
takes approximately two hours under general anesthesia as an
outpatient
Incisions
(about 2 inches) are underneath the breast – stitches 7-10
days.
Someone must
drive you home and stay with you for the next 24 hours
Permanent
change in nipple sensation is rare
This is a
cosmetic surgery, not covered by insurance, fees are paid in
advance. Payment plans are available
Check with
your OB/GYN about presurgical mammograms, particularly if over
40. Do regular breast exams
You must
tell the mammography technicians that you have implants
You will
wake up in a special bra - bleeding and bruising are usually
minimal
Just because
this is a want
and not a need doesn’t mean it’s any
different than any other surgery. It has all the same
consequences - including pain
Pain
medication and antibiotics scripts are called to your pharmacy
in advance
Depending on
your health history you may need preoperative testing
The proper
implant choice, for the most natural look, is guided by the
size, shape and configuration of your breasts and the amount of
skin elasticity – too large an implant looks unnatural
I primarily
use saline implants in cosmetic breast implant surgery.
If you
change your mind, implants can easily be removed as an
outpatient
Saline
implants are generally placed behind the muscle - less shadow on
mammograms which may be read by a radiologist with special
expertise
We recommend
that you avoid breast feeding if you have implants
In areas
with minimal natural breast coverage, the rim, wrinkle, etc., of
the implant might be seen or felt
The shape
and position of the breast I start with influences the look with
the implant
The implant
hardness you used to hear about is uncommon with saline implants
Silicone
implants are now available to the public again but I only use
saline. Some patients would do better with silicone.
If so, I will recommend you to a surgeon using silicone
implants.
Return to
usual activity, including work, moderate exercise and sex is in
4-10 days
No higher
incidence of cancer, etc., in women with implants vs those
without.
The
literature says saline implant deflation is 7% . – In my
practice, what we seem to see is that this usually happens
somewhere between the 5-10 year mark. You didn’t do
anything wrong. It just happens. There’s no
emergency. The fluid which is similar to the body’s
natural fluid is absorbed. Pad your bra and give us a call
the next business day. You
must have sent in your warranty papers when you had your surgery
AND you must have the serial numbers available to get your
FREE replacement implants and what ever expense reimbursement
might be due you. Put your serial number card
in more than one location……where you can always
find them, even if it’s 30 years from now. Give us a
copy, but we usually only keep records for 7 years. You are the
only one who will always
have a copy. We won’t. The surgery center
won’t. It’s your responsibility to keep track of this
information. Without it you do not have a warranty which
means you may have to pay full price for the replacement.
My fee for implant replacement is typically around 50% of my
current augmentation fee. It many cases, depending on the
timing, if a patient has their paperwork the majority of the
expense are reimbursed by the implant company and it is pretty
much a free procedure. No kidding. It’s usually
viewed as a one day inconvenience. Most return to work and
normal activity the next day. There is very little
discomfort. I prefer to replace both implants even if just
one failed. The implants should be replaced in a
reasonable time before the pocket has time to close in.
Now that you are older, your skin may have stretched a little or
you’ve just become used to having more breast volume……..if
you might want to be just a smidge larger, let me know.
The implant company will usually let you bump up an implant size
without any additional expense
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