From lip fillers to facelifts to BBLs and more, advances in plastic surgery procedures have secured the treatments a place in many of our daily lives. Whether you have regular cosmetic treatments or want to dive into cosmetic surgery for the first time, you can be sure that today’s options are not your grandmother’s plastic surgery procedures.
One such plastic surgery procedure that has remained consistently popular for years is that of breast augmentation. Whether it’s for gender confirmation purposes or a general confidence boost, there are hundreds of reasons to get breast augmentation, and the surgery has come a long way since it was first used. Ahead, plastic surgery experts guide us through the fascinating story of breast augmentation.
Featured experts
- Mark Jewell, MD is a plastic surgeon in Eugene, OR
- Mokhtar Asaadi, MD is a plastic surgeon in West Orange, NJ
When did breast augmentation start?
While we may associate breast augmentation with the Hollywood stars and influencers of the 2000s and 2020s, breast augmentation procedures have been around for over six decades. “Breast augmentation with silicone gel implants began in the early 1960s with Thomas Cronin and Frank Gerow in Houston,” says Dr. Jewell. We know that breast implants today come in a number of different forms, but as Dr. Asaadi notes, “60 years ago, breast implants were all silicone and patients used to have ‘hard and unnatural breasts’ due to capsular contractures,” he says. Dr. Asaadi.
The evolution of breast augmentation: How we got here
“Much has been learned in the last 60 years about making breast augmentation a better, safer procedure with a high degree of patient satisfaction,” says Dr. Jewell. “Now, the risk of capsular contracture depending on the technique is low. Women with breast implants are able to breastfeed their babies successfully and do not experience any greater breastfeeding-related problems than women without breast implants, which was not always the case.”
One of the biggest changes in the history of breast augmentation has to do with the surgical technique itself, namely the addition of pockets for implants, making the procedure significantly safer, explains Dr. Asaadi. “Today breast augmentation is done with direct visualization of the pocket for implant placement. The most common complication after breast augmentation is capsular contractures, but by gently creating pockets for implant placement, there should not be a drop of blood loss, thus avoiding the use of pocket sponges. That, apart from practices such as not using powdered gloves and not touching the implants to the skin at the time of inserting the implants, the incidence of capsular contracture is almost nil, at least in my practice.”
Breast augmentation today: Safe and effective
As with any plastic surgery or cosmetic treatment, consulting and working with a trusted, board-certified plastic surgeon is key to ensuring your breast augmentation is successful, satisfying, and most importantly, safe. According to Dr. Jewell, tons of practical and procedural innovations in the world of breast augmentation over the past 60 years have led us to the surgery we know today.
“The placement of a retromastillary subfascial implant through the inframammary fold incision is one of the greatest advances in the history of breast augmentation,” says Dr. Jewell. The use of betadine implant pocket irrigation to reduce the risk of contracture and infection of the capsule, the “no contact” technique for insertion using the Keller funnel, the use of protective nipples, stabilizing surgical techniques to prevent the implant from falling into the inframammary fold , diagnostics Post-operative ultrasound screenings and the use of intravenous tranexamic acid during surgery are all important developments that have shaped the world of breast augmentation in recent decades.
