The debate over which Breast Implant is the best continues. Textured or Smooth, Round or Shaped, Silicone or Saline, which implant makes the best breast? Having choices is good; however, if you are a woman considering Breast Augmentation, the choices can be confusing. The best implant for you depends on what you need. On the San Francisco Plastic Surgery Blog I can provide information, but I cannot provide guidance without knowing the details of your specific situation. That being said, let’s weigh the pro’s and the con’s.
Textured Breast Implants vs. Smooth Breast Implants
For decades, Board Certified Plastic Surgeons have debated the advantages and disadvantages of smooth vs. textured Breast Implants. More often, Smooth Breast Implants feel softer, move better and age better than their textured sisters. Advocates of Textured Breast Implants have proposed that the rough texture helps keep the Breast Implants in place and decreases the risk of Capsular Contracture.
This week, an Australian paper recently selected for inclusion in the American journal Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery provides more ammunition for Smooth Breast Implant proponents. According to the Canberra Times Article, “Australian researchers have discovered that newer implants with a textured surface are about 70 times more likely to harbour(sic) bacteria than the alternative smooth implants.”
The article goes on to claim that this can lead to higher rate of Capsular Contracture. Unfortunately, this claim is in opposition to just about every other paper trying to discern the causes of Capsular Contracture. In another article from the Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery journal appearing last November, Smooth Breast Implants not Textured Breast Implants were associated with higher rates of Capsular Contracture.
When Do I Use Textured Breast Implants?
The only absolute indication I have for using Textured Breast Implants is for Shaped Breast Implants. Shaped Breast Implants by definition are not round. For women who develop very little breast tissue during adolescence, and for women who have had a mastectomy for Breast Cancer, a Shaped Breast Implant can often give a better result than a Round Breast Implant. The most important detail for a good result with a Shaped Breast Implant is proper positioning. In order to keep the big end of the shaped implant in the lower half of the breast, the surface of the implant is textured. Texturing allows the scar to attach to the surface of the implant like Velcro, thus preventing the implant from rotating. As you can image, a rotated breast implant would not give the best breast shape.
For patients who have had problems with Capsular Contracture, changing to a Textured Breast Implant may help reduce the risk of recurrence. Moving the Breast Implant behind the muscle, reducing the size of the Breast Implant and using the inframammary incision for the procedure can also provide benefits.
So Why Don’t I Always Use Textured Breast Implants?
So why don’t I always use textured breast implants? Textured Breast Implants tend to feel firmer than Smooth Breast Implants. It’s not that the Breast Implants are harder, it’s that the scar is firmly attached and effectively gives the implant a thicker shell. Textured Saline Breast Implants leak more often than Smooth Saline Breast Implants. The difference in leakage has not been demonstrated for Silicone Breast Implants. Both Textured and Smooth Breast Implants can ripple. Textured Breast Implants have higher rates of rippling, probably because of the capsular adherence. If a Textured Breast Implant wrinkles, it will wrinkle its capsule, and this is more likely to become a wrinkle visible on the breast’s surface. When a Smooth Breast Implant wrinkles, it can pull away from its capsule.
Why See A Board Certified Plastic Surgeon for Breast Augmentation?
For every breast, The Best Breast Implant will vary. A Board Certified Plastic Surgeon can help you make the best possible choice.
With options come trade offs, and with all the options currently available in Breast Implants, an experienced and well trained, Board Certified, Plastic Surgeon can help guide you to the best results. The size of the breasts before surgery, the thickness of your skin, the final goal size and the shape of your breasts all influence which Breast Implant is best for you. A Board Certified Plastic Surgeon can go over the options with you, so you can feel confident that you are getting the best possible results.
If you would like to schedule a personalized Breast Implant Consultation, call (925) 943-6353 now, or complete the contact form in the margin and we will get back to you. Our San Francisco Bay Are Plastic Surgery Office in the East Bay City of Walnut Creek, CA is open weekdays, 9AM to 5PM, and is accepting new patients.
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