Are you considering breast augmentation? With two significantly different options available—natural breast augmentation with fat transfer and implant-based augmentation—it’s important to understand the advantages and disadvantages of each before making your decision.
This post will explore the pros and cons of each method to help you make an informed choice about the best approach for you.
Natural Breast Augmentation With Fat Transfer: The Pros
1. Natural look and feel: The procedure uses your body’s own fat, which is softer and more pliable than silicone or saline implants. Your breasts will look and feel natural, only with subtle enhancements in size and shape.
2. Dual benefits: To augment your breasts, the fat transfer method involves liposuction to harvest fat from other areas of your body. This can create a more sculpted overall appearance—an added benefit of the procedure.
3. Minimal scarring: Fat transfer breast augmentation involves only small incisions. This typically results in less visible scarring than implant-based augmentation, which requires larger incisions.
Fat Transfer: The Cons
1. Limited volume increase: Fat transfer can only add a limited volume to your breasts, which may not be enough to achieve your desired results. This is because there is a limit to the amount of fat that can be transferred safely and effectively.
2. Less predictable outcome: Fat transfer breast augmentation can be inconsistent because not all transferred fat cells survive. In some cases, this can lead to an uneven appearance initially, and adjustments may be needed to achieve your desired results.
3. Dependent on availability of excess fat: Fat transfer requires that the patient has enough excess fat in another area of the body to be harvested for transfer, so the procedure may not be an option for those with a particularly lean body type.
Breast Augmentation With Implants: The Pros
1. More dramatic results: Breast implants can create more dramatic results than fat transfer by adding more volume and shape to your breasts than fat transfer can.
2. Immediate results. While fat transfer breast augmentation may require multiple treatments to achieve the desired results, breast implants immediately provide a noticeable change in breast size and shape.
3. Predictable outcomes: Implant-based breast augmentation is a highly predictable procedure, meaning that you can have a good idea of what your results will look like before you undergo surgery.
Breast Implants: The Cons
1. Risk of Complications: Breast implant surgery carries a risk of complications, such as capsular contracture. While these risks are relatively low, they still should be considered.
2. More Visible Scarring: Implant-based breast augmentation requires larger incisions than fat transfer, which can result in more scarring.
3. Future Maintenance: Breast implants are not intended to be lifetime devices and have a lifespan of 10 to 20 years, sometimes longer. If you choose this option, you should be prepared to remove or replace your implants in the future.
Request a Consultation
If you’d like to speak with a board-certified plastic surgeon about whether natural breast augmentation or implants would best meet your needs, call my office today at (650) 325-1118 or request a consultation.
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