Breast Implant Removal

June 3rd, 2016 | Posted in: Breast Implants |

Breast Implant Removal: What You Need to Know

While breast augmentation has been the most common plastic surgery procedure in the United States for many years, fewer and fewer women are opting for the procedure while more and more women are having their implants removed. While the number of breast augmentations fell by about 3 percent from 2010 to 2014, at the same time “explant” procedures, or the removal of breast implants, increased by almost 10 percent during the same time, according to the American Society of Plastic Surgery. According to the FDA, almost a fifth of women who have breast implants get them removed in eight to ten years.

Why Have Implants Removed?

Women have their implants removed for a variety of reasons. Some women experience capsular contraction, some women don’t like the way their implants look, some don’t feel like themselves with their implants or feel like they were pressured by friends, partners, or the need to live up to beauty standards to get their implants in the first place. Some women experience hardening or rupturing of their implants. Regardless of why women got their implants in the first place, removal is always an option and requires essentially the same process. Some women choose to have their implants replaced to achieve a different look, but many choose not to.

The Procedure and Recovery

Patients should stop smoking for the few weeks before and after their procedure. During your consultation, talk to you doctor about any medications or supplements you take. Your doctor may tell you to stop taking certain medications, like blood thinners, for some time leading up to and following your surgery to prevent complications. Arrange to have someone to drive you to and from the clinic, and around your house to help you during your recovery. You should also ask your doctor about bathing before the procedure. Don’t eat or drink after midnight the evening before your procedure.

Breast implant removal typically takes less than an hour. The procedure may be performed under full anesthesia, so the patient is asleep during the surgery, or under partial anesthesia, so the breasts are numbed, but the patients is awake during the procedure. Incisions are generally made along the patient’s scarring from the original placement of their implants.

Incisions will be visible for several months after surgery, but eventually fade into the patient’s existing scars. Gauze and an elastic bandage or bra will be applied. Patients can typically go home a few hours after their procedure.

The patient is typically given medication afterwards to alleviate any discomfort. Patients generally experience less pain and an easier recovery following the removal of their implants than they experienced when their implants were first placed. Support garments should be worn for about a week following surgery to keep tissue in place while the incisions heal.

Most patients are back to normal within the four weeks following their surgery. Almost all patients who undergo breast implant removal report that their results met their expectations, and over half of patients reported that their results were better than they expected.

The Risks

There are aesthetic risks to having implants removed. Women who have implants, especially subglandular implants or implants much larger than the woman’s natural breast size, removed without being replaced may experience unsightly dimpling, puckering, or sagging of their natural breasts. It is also important to note that some insurance plans do not cover breast implant removal or replacement, even if the initial augmentation was covered. Talk to your doctor to find out what options are right for your body and your wallet.

The procedure itself is routine and low risk. An anesthesiologist monitors the patient’s vital signs throughout the surgery. If you’ve had adverse reactions to anesthesia in the past, discuss these symptoms with the doctor during your consultation.

If you experience nausea, vomiting, chest pain, shortness of breath, redness, discharge or excess bleeding at the incision site, signs of infection, fever, chills, or pain or swelling in your feet, calves, or legs contact your doctor for follow up care.

Get the Body You Really Want

If you’re no longer happy with your breast implants, there’s no reason to live with them and every reason to remove them so you can love your body again. Contact Beverly Hills Plastic Surgery, Inc. today to find out what experienced, board certified plastic surgeon Dr. Gabriel Chiu can do for you.