Breast Augmentation

Breast augmentation is one of the most popular procedures Dr. Shuster performs from his office in South Florida. In fact, it is one of the most popular procedures in plastic surgery with over 200,000 performed in the United States last year. Breast enlargement can improve the size and shape of the breasts, improving the silhouette of women with small breasts or restoring volume for women who have had a decrease in size following pregnancy or weight loss.

Surgery of the breast is one of the few areas in which Dr. Shuster has chosen to specialize. Dr. Shuster combines his experience with the most recent techniques to offer his patients the very best individualized care possible. Just as every woman's breasts are unique, their breast surgery needs to be individualized specifically for them. Dr. Shuster spends an extensive amount of time with each patient planning their surgery. This individualized approach includes determining the size of the breast implants, the location of the incisions (through the armpit, around the nipple, or under the breast), the shape of the implant (round or tear drop), and the location of the implant (under or over the pectoralis muscle). It is this type of personalized attention that allows Dr. Shuster to help achieve the optimum result for each patient.

Dr. Shuster has a long history of commitment and dedication to breast augmentation. He is fluent with the use of a variety of breast implant types and shapes. In addition to saline filled implants, Dr. Shuster is also a principal investigator with the FDA study for the use of silicone gel implants, and when appropriate, can offer these for his patients. It is during a thorough consultation that he discusses the options with his patients and determines an approach which will offer them the best results. Dr. Shuster's philosophy is to learn what his patients wish to achieve, educate them about breast implants and what is possible, and then use the varied techniques in his repertoire to accomplish this.

For women considering breast augmentation, an important early step is to become educated about the procedure. There are many areas of importance which Dr. Shuster wants his patients to be well acquainted with.

Your individual needs can be assessed and discussed further with Dr. Shuster through a Virtual Consultation. A careful analysis of each patient's unique needs is an important step in breast augmentation. As with all personal information in our office in South Florida, the information provided will remain secure and confidential.

Types of Implants

Saline

Saline implants account for over 90% of all implants placed for primary breast augmentations. These implants have a silicone shell and are filled with saline.

Silicone

Silicone gel filled breast implants are only used as part of an ongoing FDA study. Dr. Shuster is a participant in this study as a lead investigator. For a patient to be a candidate for the study they must meet strict inclusion criteria.

Implant Shape

Breast implants come in several shapes. The two main categories are round and tear dropped shaped.

Selection of Implant Size

Determining the appropriate implant size is one of the critically important steps in breast augmentation. An implant that is too small or too large produces an unsatisfactory result. Dr. Shuster believes that the best and most natural results are achieved by selecting an implant that is proportional to a woman's anatomic features. During each consultation, Dr. Shuster devotes much time to this process and together with his patients finds an appropriately sized implant to help them achieve their desired results.

Location of Incision

There are several places where an incision can be placed for breast augmentation: in the axilla (armpit), under the areolas, or under the breasts. While Dr. Shuster is fluent in the use of all of these approaches his preference is to insert implants through the axillary approach. His reason for this is that he would rather avoid a scar on the breast. Not all patients are candidates for the axillary approach and for these patients, as well as those who prefer, he utilizes the areolar approach. Dr. Shuster reserves using an incision under the breast for patients who have a preexisting scar in this location.

Location of Implant Placement

Breast implants can be placed either under the breast tissue and over the pectoralis muscle or under both the breast tissue and the pectoralis muscle. The vast majority of patients who undergo breast augmentation today have implants placed under the muscle. The reasons for this include a more natural result by having more tissue cover the implant and a lower rate of complications.

If you would like more information about Breast Implants and how a personal consultation from our South Florida office can help determine the right type for you consult our Breast Implants Page.

Recovery

Recovering from breast augmentation, as with any surgery, is a gradual process. Some patients recover more quickly while others may be a bit slower. In general, the recovery following these procedures is not difficult. The typical patient will experience some pain and discomfort and use pain medication for 2 to 3 days following surgery. Depending upon the patient's occupation, most patients will return to work 4 to 5 days after surgery. After 1 to 2 weeks patients can resume non-impact lower body exercise. Four weeks after surgery they can resume impact exercises and 6 weeks following surgery they can resume upper body exercise.

Results

While patients will of course see results immediately after surgery, there is always swelling that develops. During the first week after surgery, the breasts and surrounding area are swollen and the implants appear high. Over the course of several weeks the swelling subsides and the tissues stretch to accommodate the implant creating a more natural appearance.

Complications

As with any surgery, complications can develop following breast augmentation. Fortunately complications are unusual. Some of the complications which can occur following augmentation are: bleeding; infection; capsular contracture; and deflation. Dr. Shuster will discuss these with you in detail.

Follow Up

In order to ensure each patients' care and well being, Dr. Shuster sees his patients frequently in the postoperative period and continues to follow their progress for an extended period following a breast augmentation procedure. Should a question or concern arise, please call our South Florida office at any time.

For directions to our office, which is easily accessible from both Miami and Fort Lauderdale, please see our Location Page .

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