| Dr. James Blackburn is a plastic surgeon certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery. Here the Doctor has answered some of the common questions bizymoms visitors have about Breast Augmentation.
Q. What is Breast Augmentation?
A. In the simplest form it is a procedure to increase the size of a breast. In more detailed form, it is to provide the patient with both a breast volume and shape pleasing to her. An augmentation can therefore include a subtle or not so subtle lift or reshaping of the breast gland itself. Each augmentation needs to be tailored to the patient’s desires and to each breast, sometimes requiring a different approach from one side to the other.
Q. How should one prepare for breast augmentation surgery?
A. Ask lots of questions. Talk to friends that have had augmentation, visit both the Allergan ( www. Natrelle.com ) and Mentor (www.mentorcorp.com ) web sites. Visit the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (www.plasticsurgery.org) and the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (www.surgery.org ) web sites. Most importantly though, is sit down with your surgeon and ask lots of questions.
Q. How is a breast augmentation surgery performed?
A. There are three main approaches and one alternative approach. The primary approaches are an incision under the fold of the breast, at the lower outer arc of the areola/nipple complex and thru the arm pit. The alternative approach is thru the umbilicus and only allows for saline implants. Both the fold of the breast incision and the arm pit incision allow silicone or saline implants. Once the patient has elected what size implants she wants and where she wants her incision, the actual surgery can be arranged. A typical augmentation is performed at an outpatient surgery center. The patient comes in the morning of the surgery, meets with her anesthesiologist and then is taken to the operating theater. She is helped on to the table, gently put to sleep and then prepped and draped with sterile drapes. The incision that she chose is then infiltrated with local anesthetic followed by the actual incision. The next step is to create a pocket for the implant either below the gland or muscle, insertion of the implant, check for appropriate size and shape, followed by closure and discharge to recovery. The patient then goes home from the recovery room and follows up with her surgeon in the next few days.
Q. Who is a good candidate for breast augmentation?
A. The best candidates are non-smoking women older than 21 for silicone and older than 18 for saline implants.
Q. What are the risks associated with breast augmentation?
A. This question is best answered with a copy of our consent form or one of the FDA approved booklets on Augmentation. We will send you a copy of each.
Q. What is the recovery time for breast augmentation?
A. This really is variable depending on both the surgical approach and the patient. As a general rule, the armpit approach has the shortest recovery (as little as 24 hours) and the fold approach has the longest (2 or more weeks).
Q. How much does breast augmentation cost?
A. Again, variable numbers, silicone implants cost more than saline by about $800. Different facilities charge different amounts, as do different anesthesia groups. Surgeon’s fees tend to run in the $3,500 to 5,500 range, Anesthesia runs in the $1,000 an hour range and facility fees run in the $1,000 an hour range. My typical augmentation time is around 1 hour.
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