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FAQ BREAST ENLARGEMENT
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A. What does board certified mean?
It means that the physician has completed all
requirements in his specialty established.
B. Are you board certified?
Yes!
- That means I am a graduate of an accredited medical school.
- Sudden swelling or sudden discoloration
- That I have completed a year of internship and at least 6 years in an accredited plastic surgery residency program.
- That I have then passed a comprehensive written and then oral examination.
C. Do you have hospital privileges to perform Breast Augmentation, Breast lift, Breast reduction and Breast reconstruction procedures?
Yes! My past experiences and training in plastic surgery
has allowed me to obtain privileges in my specialty at
all hospitals that I am on staff.
D. How many breast procedures do you perform in a year?
I average 80-150 breast procedures a year.
E. Do you use approved implants?
Yes! It would be foolish and probably illegal to do
otherwise.
F. Do the implants have a warranty?
Yes! MaGhan and Mentor, the 2 companies with approved
implants, do warranty their product.
G. What are saline implants?
saline implant is a silicone bag filled with salt water
or silicone. They can be round or anatomically shaped,
smooth or textured surfaces.
H. What are silicone implants?
Silicone implant is a silicone bag filled with silicone
gel. They can be round or anatomically shaped, smooth or
textured shaped.
I. What is a smooth surfaced implant?
The implant's outer surface is smooth.
J. What is a textured surfaced implant?
The implant's outer surface is rough. This was developed
to decrease the incidence of capsular contracture
associated with breast augmentation. Texturing does
appear to decrease the incidence of capsular contracture
when the implants are placed in front of the pectoralis
major muscle. This implant may also be used with lifts
as well.
K. Will I get to choose my implant size?
Yes! We have patient's put implants in a one size fits
all bra prior to surgery so they get a very good idea of
what the surgery might look like after with various
sized implants. The actual size then chosen is that
which the patient wants given that this surgeon feels it
is safe for her.
L. Where will my surgery be performed?
In an accredited surgery clinic or hospital.
M. Who will administer my anesthesia?
A board certified anesthesiologist. (We only use medical
Doctors for anesthesia)
N. Where will my incision be?
The site of the incision will be determined at your
consultation. The surgery can be performed through a
small incision underneath the armpit (the axillary
approach), next to the nipple (the peri-areola
approach), under the breast (the inframammary approach)
or next to the belly button (the TUBA or transumbilical
approach).
O. Will I have a scar?
Through whichever approach is used there will be a scar
but scarring is usually minimal.
P. Will I have bruises?
Bruising is usually minimal but varies from patient to
patient. Obviously we recommend that you stop aspirin
products and ibuprofens prior to surgery and also
recommend increasing Vitamin C and adding the herbs
Arnica and Bromelyn to your diet.
Q. When do the stitches come out?
Usually all of the stitches are buried so none need to
be removed. The incisions are covered with a steri-strip
which is replaced at your first post-operative visit 5
to 7 days post-operative. I usually remove them 12 days
after surgery.
R. Do you recommend massage techniques after a breast augmentation?
Yes! The specific techniques will be explained at your
post-operative visits. I cannot guarantee to you that
these techniques will prevent capsular contracture but
they may help to prevent it.
S. When can I return to work?
That is a function of the type of work that you do and
how much pain you are experiencing. Usually patient's
are able to return to work by 4 days post-operative.
Obviously I would not want them to return to work that
soon in jobs that require a lot of manual labor. This
will be discussed in detail before surgery.
T. When can I drive?
When you are off pain medication and have sufficient
pain free use of your arms to drive a car. That is
usually within 4 to 5 days after breast surgery though
everyone's experience is different.
U. When can I exercise?
I generally tell patient's to let discretion be their
guide. If it hurts, don't do it. You can start with
lower body at about 2 weeks post- operative and progress
to upper body at about 3 weeks to a month
post-operative.
V. Can I breast feed with implants?
Augmentation mammoplasty should not affect your ability
to breast feed but there are no guarantees that you
would be able to breast feed even without surgery.
W. Will I lose sensation after surgery?
Though it is certainly possible to lose sensation
following augmentation mammoplasty, this is an unusual
complication of the procedure. Most sensory changes that
do occur with the surgery (and that can include
increased sensation) usually revert to normal with time.
X. Are there any products that help to reduce scarring?
There are but they rarely need to be used as the amount
of scarring following an augmentation mammoplasty is
minimal. I have found that by just leaving the steri-strip
in place for a prolonged period of time makes the scars
almost invisible.
Y. Before and after surgery, can I take aspirin for a headache?
It is not recommended to take aspirin products at all
prior to surgery and immediately afterward. One can take
tylenol, however.
Z. What can I do to help my breast implants settle into place?
Don't wear push up bras and in some instances it is
recommended to wear an ace wrap or bra pulled up above
the breasts at night to push downward on the implants.
The breast exercises also help. For most patients no
underwire bras are recommended immediately following
surgery.
AA. When will I be able to wear an underwire bra?
They can be worn once the implants have dropped into
position. I feel before that they may inhibit the
implants from dropping.
AB. Will a breast augmentation lift my nipples?
No! The implants do not lift anything. They do make the
breasts appear fuller and in so doing may make it look
as if the nipples have been lifted but an augmentation
is just that and a breast lift or mastopexy is the
operation that truly raises the nipples.
AC. If one of my breasts is lower then the other will this change with a breast augmentation?
Through whichever approach is used there will be a scar
but No! The implants will make your natural shape
larger. They do not lift the breasts. Putting in two
different sized implants will help a size difference but
does not lift the breasts. The operation to lift the
breasts is a Mastopexy or Breast lift
AD. What happens if I develop capsular contracture?
There are several different approaches that can be used
to correct capsular contracture. What approach would be
best in any individual patient would depend on the type
of augmentation mammoplasty initially performed and the
type of implant used. The important thing to realize is
that this condition does not occur commonly and there
are options should it occur.
AE. What are some of the common side effects after breast surgery?
Immediately following surgery there is pain and a
variable amount of swelling. The implants may initially
be high and need time to drop. After that there are
usually no problems unless you develop a longer term
complication such as rippling or capsular contracture.
Most patients following this operation are extremely
happy with the results of their surgery. Of course there
are horror stories but, these are rare. That is why this
operation is so popular and patients are so happy with
it.
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