Breast augmentation is an aesthetic procedure that allows a woman to achieve the desired size of her breasts. You can get a one size increase nonoperatively - with exercises, creams, corrective undergarments, and so on. But these methods do not help everyone, and not all women have enough patience (the results of folk methods appear no earlier than six months later). For a quick effect and for a significant increase in the glands, you will have to go under the knife of a plastic surgeon.
Breast augmentation surgery
Mammoplasty is the name of an operation linked to the field of reconstructive and aesthetic surgery. Breast augmentation is carried out according to the indications:
- Aesthetic: when there are no deviations in the proportions and shape of the breasts, but the woman experiences psychological discomfort from her breasts.
- Medical - when the breast is completely or partially absent (after surgery or injury), malformed (for example, there is a disproportion).
Breast augmentation is performed through the installation of implants or the introduction of fat cells. The second method is new (it was first performed in 2004 in Tokyo) and is used in only a few clinics in the world. The first type of surgery is ubiquitous: in every major city there are dozens of institutions offering breast arthroplasty. The procedure can be performed with a simultaneous breast lift to shape the breast.
The tactics of the operation are compiled individually for each patient. The type of incision (under the breast or in the armpit), the possibility of placing the biomaterial (under the muscle, glandular, mixed tissue), as well as the shape of the implant are determined by the characteristics:
- development of the major pectoral muscles;
- the presence or absence of mastoptosis (acquired lowering of the mammary glands);
- thickness and elasticity of the skin and subcutaneous tissue;
- the presence of deformation of the sternum and ribs.
Women undergoing mammoplasty should be prepared for temporary breast augmentation. After a couple of years, the implants wear out (become less elastic), the size of the mammary glands decreases again and the shape is lost. The new surgery is performed approximately every 7-10 years (the exact expiry date depends on the material).
Choice of implants
The systems differ in the type of filling. The following materials are used in mammoplasty:
Silicone fluid
It has a similar consistency to vegetable oil. Allows you to achieve a significant increase (up to 4 sizes and more), but badly corrects the shape, additional tightening is required. The main drawback is that the contents easily change its position in the torso, which makes the mammary glands look different. Silicone breasts look the most unnatural.
Cohesive gel
This material is harder than silicone and feels like jelly. Breasts with such an implant look more natural, there is less risk of losing their shape. Cases of rupture of the shell and loss of contents are excluded. Less - in a short duration (it will have to be changed every 5-7 years) and relative severity (which is why it is not recommended to increase by more than 2 sizes).
Highly cohesive gel
Material with the consistency of jam. It is considered the safest for breast implants. Provides a natural breast shape. Less - in high "shape memory" - with prolonged exposure to the mammary gland (for example, with constantly falling asleep with the stomach down), a persistent deformation is formed that cannot be corrected.
Salt water solution
The most obsolete and unreliable material. The risk of complications is very high. Already 8 months after the operation, the salts crystallize and can pierce the shell of the implant. Saline continues to be used in cosmetic surgery due to its low cost.
Women will be offered round or drop-shaped implants to choose from. They differ in form. The second variety is considered anatomically correct.
Round implants are recommended for small corrections (for 1 size increase), more suitable for shape correction (for example, after childbirth or after breastfeeding). When used to create meaningful breasts, it will end up looking unnatural (the mammary glands will protrude too much).
Drop-shaped implants have an asymmetrical shape: the upper edge is thinner, it thickens downwards. Their appearance is as close as possible to the natural female breast. A relative disadvantage is their dense consistency (necessary to keep the shape), for this reason, when you feel it, you can guess that the breast is artificial.
Preparation and execution of the operation
Mammoplasty is performed only for absolutely healthy women. For 5-10 days, the patient must undergo a full medical examination to exclude contraindications. They are mandatory:
- laboratory tests (blood for clotting, general and biochemical tests for infections and inflammation);
- ECG;
- fluorography;
- Breast ultrasound;
- examination by a therapist, mammologist, gynecologist.
The operation to increase the size of the breast is canceled in case of mastopathy and other diseases of the mammary glands, infectious diseases of any genesis, any untreated neoplasms, blood clotting disorders. The age limit is 18 - mammoplasty cannot be performed earlier due to incomplete body formation. Another contraindication is incomplete breastfeeding.
In addition to health checks, breast augmentation preparation includes not taking hormones and medications with salicylates (14 days before surgery). Do not smoke or drink alcohol 10 days before surgery.
The operation takes place under general anesthesia. During mammoplasty, the entire surface of the breast and the site of future tissue dissection are treated with an antiseptic to avoid entering the wound and spreading the infection. The duration of the procedure is from 60 to 130 minutes.
The cost
Breast augmentation can only be done for a fee. Prices are determined by the costs of:
- preliminary examination of specialists and analyzes;
- direct work of the surgical team;
- anesthetic drug;
- endoprosthesis (the price of implants depends on the material and size);
- hospital stay and postoperative care (you need to be in the clinic for 1-3 days).
The price is also influenced by the qualifications of the doctors. The more experienced specialists perform the operation, the higher the cost of suturing or breast augmentation without sutures.
Possible complications
Before the operation, it is necessary to carefully weigh the pros and cons, since mammoplasty has one significant drawback - it is a high risk of negative consequences of breast augmentation. If the operation was performed on a patient with contraindications, the safety rules were violated during the operation or during the recovery period, complications can occur:
- hematomas;
- lymphorea (accumulation of tissue fluid in the subcutaneous tissue of a sutured wound);
- keloid scars (as a result, a scar is formed that protrudes above the skin);
- infectious infection;
- rupture or displacement of the endoprosthesis;
- fibrous formations.
Even with the observance of the rules, the risk of such a consequence of breast augmentation as the rejection of the installed implant by the body is not excluded. The only way out of this situation is the complete removal of the endoprosthesis and the long-term elimination of the resulting consequences.
Rehabilitation
Any surgical breast correction requires long-term recovery. A complete rehabilitation protects against complications. In the first week, it is recommended to stay in bed (1-3 days in the hospital, the rest of the time - at home). Pain in the first days after mammoplasty is normal due to skin tension and postoperative edema, but gradually weaken and disappear (by the end of the 10th day, the symptoms should definitely disappear).
Immediately after the operation, the woman should take antibiotics to prevent infection (the course lasts from 5 to 10 days, depending on the prescribed drug). A month or a month and a half after mammoplasty, it is necessary to wear special compression underwear, which will fix the correct shape of the renewed breast and accelerate the healing of the surgical wound.
An important recommendation concerns physical activity. For 2-3 months, you should not lift weights above 3 kg, you should not play sports (including stretching and running). You can have sex after 7-10 days (depending on how you feel), but for the first 8 weeks only use the classic missionary position: on your back.
Photo: before and after
According to statistics, about 65% of requests for mammoplasty services are associated with loss of breast shape after childbirth and breastfeeding. In addition to a facelift, women also order an increase in volume (by 1-2 sizes).
Without medical indications, women more often turn to surgeons to eliminate such a lack of figure as too small breasts (including those with size zero). Even without a photo before and after the operation, it is clear that these women need a mammoplasty to get rid of self-doubts. Natural breast sizes 2 and 3 are the least treated.
According to statistics, more than 2. 5 million breast augmentation surgeries were performed in the world in 2017. Of these, only in 11% of cases large implants were installed to increase the breasts up to size 5 (more than "six" orders only 5%). The most common is medium size 3 (over 71%).
The most common method of breast augmentation is silicone-free (using helium implants) through the armpit. If five years ago round endoprostheses were preferred (about 85%), now women prefer naturalness and choose teardrop-shaped implants.
Non-surgical augmentation methods
It is impossible to achieve significant gland growth without surgery. You can only strengthen the pectoral muscles, correct posture, add some fatty tissue, improve skin elasticity - at best, this will give a 1 size increase, but more often it will simply correct the shape. The main method of breast augmentation is sports exercises and creams. Wearing corrective underwear allows for visual tightening - push-up bras lift the breasts, which makes it look one size larger.
Exercises
Regular exercise will strengthen the muscles - it will tone and "lift" the mammary glands. As a result, the breasts are tight and add some volume. The main disadvantage is that this process is very long and laborious. To achieve a pronounced effect, you will need at least 6-10 months of daily chest exercises (20-40 minutes each).
The five simplest exercises you can do at home are to rotate with your arms outstretched, close your palms in front of your chest, pull your arms back, lift any object in front of and behind your head, lift your chest from a prone position. Add dumbbell swings to this workout.
Food
Scientists have shown that increased consumption of legumes and cereals, as well as all protein-rich foods, contributes to the growth of the mammary glands. But such a diet will be useful only for girls during puberty. With a formed figure, it will not be possible to induce breast growth with nutrition (with a diet, you can only reduce the amount of fatty tissue, that is, reduce the breast).
Folk methods
There is a lot of information on the Internet about non-traditional methods of increasing breast volume. Beware of home experiments, as many of them are dangerous. For example, many forums discuss the popular method of breast enlargement using toothpaste. Presumably, if it is mixed with a cream and applied daily, due to tissue irritation in 1-2 months, the mammary glands will grow one size or even more. This is a myth, nothing but a burn from this method cannot be obtained.
An even more dangerous tip is to inject saline into the chest with a syringe. Such injections give a slight breast augmentation for 1-2 days. But the cost of temporary beauty will be serious problems such as the rapid development of tumors.
Of all the ridiculous advice at first glance, the most harmless is a bust increase by the power of thought. Of course, there won't be a real increase in volume from self-training. But self-hypnosis makes a woman more self-confident: the lady straightens her shoulders, straightens her back, which makes her breasts seem larger than her visually.
Results (photos)
Of all the non-medical ways to change the look of the bust, sports are the most effective. But the result will be noticeable no earlier than six months later (subject to regular training).
In second place is self-training and posture correction. As you can see in the photo, the chest size has not changed formally, but due to the straight back, pulled abdomen and straightened shoulders, the bust looks more attractive.
If a girl is not enough to shape the bust and the visual effect of a tight breast, then she can not do without an operation. Only implants can add different sizes. But before going to the operating table, it is necessary to weigh the pros and cons - to assess whether the desired beauty is worth the possible postoperative complications and whether a woman is ready to change endoprostheses every 5-7 years.