Breast Augmentation

Breast Augmentation in San Francisco

Ready to get breast implants in San Francisco? Dr. Kenneth Bermudez, MD is one of the best plastic surgeons in San Francisco and he can add volume, definition, and renewed sensuality to your bust line by performing breast augmentation. He has many years’ experience helping San Francisco breast augmentation patients enhance the size and shape of their breasts and accentuate their natural beauty.

• Breast Augmentation

• Candidates

• Breast Implants

• Saline Breast Implants

• Ideal Implants

• Gel-Filled Breast Implants

• The Procedure

• Recovery

• Risks

• Benefits

About Breast Augmentation

Breast augmentation, or augmentation mammoplasty, involves the surgical placement of breast implants to enlarge the breasts and make them more proportionate to the rest of the body. Breast implants come in many different shapes, sizes, and types, and are designed to create an enhanced bustline. Our San Francisco breast augmentation patients pursue this procedure for a number of reasons, including:

• Unhappiness with current breast size

• To correct a reduction in breast volume following pregnancy

• To bring both breasts into balance

• To rebuild the breasts after mastectomy or other breast surgery

Breast augmentation at our San Francisco plastic surgery offices is tailored to each patient. In addition to performing primary breast augmentation, Dr. Bermudez performs breast implant exchange surgery for patients who wish to change the size or type of breast implant. Dr. Kenneth Bermudez, MD will discuss your breast enlargement goals with you in detail at your initial consultation, and together you and he will decide the best type and size of implants to achieve those goals.

Breast Augmentation Candidates

The best breast augmentation candidates are patients who have realistic expectations for results and who are looking for improvement, not perfection, in the way they look. Good candidates are typically physically and emotionally healthy and have thoughtfully considered their aesthetic enhancement goals. Patients who are generally dissatisfied with their bodies and who have unrealistic expectations for results, and those that feel pressured into surgery by others, are typically not good candidates for a breast augmentation procedure.

Contact our cosmetic surgery office for more information on candidacy for breast enlargement with implants.

Breast Implants

Well before you undergo your breast augmentation procedure, you and Dr. Kenneth Bermudez, MD will determine the type of breast implants to be placed. There are a variety of options, including:

Saline Breast Implants

Saline implants are composed of a silicone shell filled with a saltwater, or saline, solution. These are some of the most commonly used implants, and they have been proven to be safe and effective. However, some saline implants can cause the appearance of rippling under the breast and have been known to rupture and leak. Saline breast implants can also cause a condition known as capsular contracture, a condition in which scar tissue forms around the implant that makes the area feel hardened.

Ideal Implant

Despite being available for decades, saline implants have seen little evolution, apart from updates to the outer shell. Until now. Years of medical research and testing have finally led to the development of an innovative saline implant known as the “Ideal Implant.” Unlike traditional saline implants, which are simply a bag of silicone or saline, the Ideal Implant has a “structured breast implant” design, meaning that it is composed of a complex multishell structure with two separate saline-filled chambers. The Ideal Implant is made from safe and proven breast implant materials and manufacturing processes and contains no silicone gel or new materials. Moreover, it has a natural feel due to its distinctive design and its internal structure, which controls the movement of the saline and reduces folding and wrinkling, thought to be the main cause of implant rupture and deflation. On the outside, the edges have been lowered, allowing it to better fit the contours of the chest wall. The Ideal Implant offers women an alternative that feels natural and eliminates the risk of silent rupture.

Gel-Filled Breast Implants

Cohesive gel-filled implants are some of the newest types of breast implants. Gel-filled breast implants are composed of a strong silicone shell with several layers to prevent leaks. The silicone gel inside is thick and cohesive, similar to the consistency of a “gummy bear,” and is designed to remain stable if the implant ruptures. Gel implants are reportedly much more similar to actual breast tissue than other implant types and have less of a tendency to ripple and fold. However, gel implants require a larger incision for insertion and are typically more expensive than saline or silicone implants. During your initial consultation, Dr. Bermudez can provide you with more information on cohesive gel implants.

You and Dr. Bermudez will determine which type, size, and shape of breast implants will be used to enhance your breasts before the procedure takes place. He will discuss all aspects of the implants and the surgery, and he will advise you on the best options for your particular needs and goals. If your breasts sag, he may advise you that breast implants can be used in combination with a breast lift to eliminate droop and tighten the entire breast area.

The Procedure

Our San Francisco breast enhancement procedure can be performed while you are under general anesthesia, or local anesthesia combined with a sedative. The procedure typically takes about one to two hours to complete. Dr. Kenneth Bermudez, MD will begin by making an incision either in the underside of the breast, around the areola (the dark-pigmented area around the nipple), or in the armpit. He will then place the implant either directly behind the breast tissue or beneath the chest muscle. Incision locations and exact placement of the implants will be decided in discussions between you and Dr. Bermudez before the breast augmentation procedure. Dr. Bermudez will make every effort to make any residual scarring as discreet as possible.

In addition to performing traditional breast augmentation surgery, Dr. Bermudez is a leading provider of fat transfer breast augmentation.

Recovery

There is usually some pain and discomfort for several days after a breast enlargement procedure, but these can be alleviated with medication. Bruising, swelling and a burning sensation or numbness in the nipples should subside within the first few weeks of recovery. Most of our breast implants San Francisco patients are able to resume normal daily activities within five to seven days. However, strenuous exercise and direct stimulation to the breasts should be avoided for three to four weeks after surgery. Although scars from the procedure will never disappear completely, they will begin to fade with time.

Contact our practice today to schedule a consultation.

Risks

There are risks involved in any surgical procedure, and breast augmentation is no exception. Dr. Kenneth Bermudez, MD will work to make any associated risks as minimal as possible. Possible complications that can arise from breast augmentation include:

• Capsular contracture (formation of scar tissue around the implant)

• Excessive bleeding following the operation

• Infection

• Reactions to anesthesia

• Oversensitivity or under the sensitivity of the nipples

• Permanent nipple numbness

• Implant rupture

• Implant rippling

Also, special mammograms must be used for breast augmentation patients who have received silicone breast implants. Dr. Bermudez will discuss all risks of breast enlargement surgery with you at your initial consultation.

Benefits

Breast enhancement can improve your entire body by augmenting the bustline and giving you a more shapely body contour. Breast enhancement can also:

• Add volume and curves

• Bring the breasts into balance

• Restore lift after sagging due to pregnancy or aging

• Rebuild the breasts after mastectomy

• Increase self-confidence

• Provide more clothing options

Breast augmentation has provided satisfying, even exhilarating, results to many women all over the world, and it can give you the “perky” bustline of your dreams.

Contact Dr. Bermudez Today

Breast augmentation performed by the highly recognized breast implants surgeon Dr. Kenneth Bermudez, MD can renew your appearance and self-esteem by adding volume to your breasts and bringing out your natural beauty. In addition to breast augmentation, Dr. Bermudez offers several other sophisticated procedures for the breast, including breast lift, breast reduction, male breast reduction, and breast reconstruction in San Francisco. Please schedule a personal consultation to learn more about these treatments.