If there is one thing that I have learned in my years as a board certified plastic surgeon, it is that every patient is completely unique. Even for something as well-known and common as breast augmentation surgery, there is no such thing as a “one-size-fits-all” plastic surgery procedure. Fortunately, however, advancements in plastic surgery technology have made it more efficient and effective to customize each technique to the individual patient’s needs. In my capacity as a consultant to companies developing the latest plastic surgery technology, I am often among the first in the nation to gain access to the most innovative products, and in my opinion one of the most revolutionary of these is the shaped breast implant.
Traditionally, breast implants are round (or more accurately spherical) in shape. This allows them to provide exceptional lift and projection while adding additional fullness to the upper portion of the breast, a characteristic that many women find desirable. However, today’s breast augmentation patents often want a less obvious change and a more natural looking final result. For these women, I will frequently recommend shaped breast implants. Thicker at the bottom and tapered at the top, shaped implants are designed to look like a tear-drop, more closely mimicking the natural contours of the female breast. Furthermore, while many people might understand the basic differences between shaped and round breast implants, fewer are aware just how many different options are available. The specific dimensions of a shaped implant are, to a degree, variable. Some may be taller than they are wide, while others may be wider than they are tall. This variability allows an experienced plastic surgeon, with the help of an advanced computer imaging system, to help guide the patient towards an implant that will give her exactly the look she desires.
One potential problem with breast augmentation surgery that many patients fail to consider stems from the fact that the human body naturally changes over time. Not only do tissues tend to sag or droop, but fluctuations in weight and pregnancies can sometimes completely change the contours of the body. In short, women sometimes find, several years after their procedures, that the results they initially loved are no longer what they want. In my experience, shaped implants tend to hold up much better over time and, if used judiciously in a well-informed patient, can achieve longer lasting breast surgery results.
Breast augmentation surgery may be extremely popular, but it is only one of the many reconstructive and cosmetic plastic surgery procedures that I have been performing at Atlanta Plastic Surgery, P.C. for nearly twenty-five years. If you are interested in scheduling a plastic surgery consultation so that you can learn more about a specific procedure that you think might be right for you, contact me, Dr. James Namnoum, today or connect with me on social media for more plastic surgery news and updates.
