This may be done if a woman feels her breast size is too small, for correction of asymmetry or for breast reconstruction after cancer surgery. Women who have had implants for augmentation or reconstruction often report that they have new found self confidence and feel more normal and less depressed. The volume of expansion, and subsequent breast size, is determined by the desires of the woman and her body shape and contour.
Some women desire a slight increase in fullness while others wish very large sizes.
The implants used today are a silicone shell and inflated with saline. The procedure usually takes one to two hours and the patient most often goes home the same day. Incisions are places around the nipple, under the breast or in the armpit. A pocket is made either deep to the pectoralis major muscle or between the muscle and the breast gland tissue. The implant is inserted into the pocket and then inflated with saline.