About Breast Implants

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By Mechele Pellebon
eHow Contributing Writer

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With popular reality television shows like "Dr. 90210" and "The Swan" featuring women quickly transformed from small-breasted babes to buxom beauties, interest in breast implants is on the rise. According to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, breast augmentation is the number one procedure performed by plastic surgeons in the United States. Before you consider your new breast size or interview plastic surgeons, thorough research on breast implants and their side effects can help you decide what type of procedure and implant is best for your body.

History

Breast implants are designed to enlarge a woman's breast. According to Wikipedia, the earliest implant was created by Vincenz Czerny in the late 1800s. Various synthetic compounds, particularly silicone injections, were used in the 1950s and 1960s to enlarge a woman's breast. As a result of this experimental procedure, severe hardening of the breast occurred in many women.
Plastic surgeons, Dr. Frank Gerow and Dr. Thomas Cronin, along with the Dow Corning Corporation, developed the original silicone gel-filled breast implant in 1961. Amid lawsuits sighting implant failure and allegations of illness attributed to faulty breast implants, Dow Corning Corporation filed for bankruptcy in 1995. French manufacturer, Arion created saline implants in 1964.

Function

Breast implants are used to: create breasts for males undergoing gender reassignment surgeries, reconstruct breasts in women desiring breast lifts or for mastectomy survivors, and to increase the breast size of women for cosmetic reasons. Breast augmentation is an outpatient procedure, and is performed in a hospital, surgical center or in a physician's office. The average cost of breast augmentation ranges from $6,000 to $8,000.

Types

There are two types of breast implants: saline and silicone. Silicone is a synthetic plastic. Saline is a mixture of salt and water. Due to the ban on silicone implants in the 1990's saline implants were widely used in the United States. After 10 years of clinical studies, the Food and Drug Administration approved silicone gel-filled breast implants for use by American women over the age of 22, in 1996.

Considerations

Breast implants are inserted either between the breast and the chest muscle or directly behind the chest muscle. Location of the incision can be through the belly button, around the nipple, under the breast tissue or underneath the armpit. Surgical times for breast augmentation procedures range from two to three hours. Depending upon the experience of the surgeon and the origin of the incision or type of breast implant used surgical times may vary.

Warning

In comparison to silicone implants, saline is known to cause more rippling and wrinkling of the implant under the breast. Common risks or complications associated with breast implants include: decreased inability to breast feed, hardening of breasts, capsular contracture, infection, impaired nipple sensation and calcium deposits around the implant.
Breast augmentation is primarily an elective surgery that is not covered by insurance companies. Women diagnosed with malignant cancer are not eligible for surgery using breast implants. Breast implants are not intended to last for a lifetime.