Breast Augmentation: What You Need to Know
Breast augmentation can add volume, restore upper-breast fullness after pregnancy or weight change, and improve some differences in breast volume or shape. The strongest plans begin with a personal goal and a clear understanding of what implants can change.
If you are beginning your research, focus on five parts of the decision: your desired shape, your anatomy, the implant and surgical plan, recovery, and long-term care.
What breast augmentation changes
Breast augmentation uses implants to add volume. That may mean restoring fullness that has changed over time, creating a fuller upper-breast contour, or bringing the breasts into closer balance.
A useful goal is more descriptive than a bra size. Think about the shape, degree of fullness, and proportion you want. Explain what should still feel like you after surgery, as well as what you hope will change.
Augmentation and breast lift are different
An implant adds volume. A breast lift reshapes and repositions breast tissue by addressing skin and support. If position or loose skin is the main concern, adding volume alone may not create the change you want.
Some people need augmentation, some need a lift, and some discuss a combined plan. A consultation should identify the problem first and match the procedure to it.
Implant choice is more than size
Implants vary by fill, width, profile, volume, shape, and surface. These choices interact with your natural breast tissue, skin, chest width, breast position, and frame. Implant placement and incision planning are also part of the design and scar conversation.
No single implant creates the same result on every body. Ask why an option fits your anatomy and goal, what alternatives exist, and what tradeoffs come with each path.
Who may be ready to consider surgery
Candidacy depends on health, fully developed breasts, anatomy, and personal goals. Pregnancy and breastfeeding plans also matter, and elective breast surgery is not performed during pregnancy or active breastfeeding.
Bring your medical history, breast imaging history, current medications, pregnancy plans, and questions to the consultation. This helps your surgeon assess whether surgery is appropriate and how to plan it.
Recovery is personal
Soreness, swelling, bruising, and temporary changes in sensation can occur during early healing. Dr. Emily Borsting will give you instructions for incision care, medications, support garments, activity restrictions, and follow-up based on your operation.
Exact recovery instructions and timing are individualized. Work, driving, exercise, lifting, and caring for children should be discussed as separate milestones. Arrange practical help around your specific plan rather than a generic online timeline.
Understand risks and future care
Breast augmentation risks include bleeding, infection, scarring, asymmetry, sensation changes, implant rupture or deflation, capsular contracture, implant position changes, pain, anesthesia risks, and the possibility of another operation.
Breast implants are not lifetime devices. The chance of a complication and another operation increases with time. Future screening, implant-specific imaging, revision, removal, or replacement may be needed.
The FDA identifies a risk of breast implant-associated anaplastic large cell lymphoma (BIA-ALCL), which occurs more often with textured implants than with smooth implants. The FDA has also received reports of squamous cell carcinoma and other lymphomas in the scar capsule around implants. Some patients report systemic symptoms such as fatigue, memory problems, rash, "brain fog," and joint or muscle pain. The causes of these systemic symptoms remain poorly understood.
Before you decide, read the manufacturer's patient labeling, boxed warning, and patient decision checklist for the exact implant. Ask what routine breast screening and implant monitoring will apply to you. Report persistent swelling, a new mass, pain, or another abnormal breast or implant change promptly. The FDA's breast implant information provides a current overview.
A consultation should answer these questions
Is augmentation the right procedure for the change I want?
How do my tissue, skin, chest width, and breast position affect the plan?
Which implant dimensions and placement options should we discuss, and why?
Where would the incisions and scars be?
What will recovery require in my daily life?
What risks, screening, imaging, and future procedures should I understand?
Can we review the patient decision checklist and labeling for the exact implant?
Good breast augmentation planning should feel specific, understandable, and connected to your life. Read the full guide to breast augmentation in Bend, Oregon, then request a consultation when you are ready to discuss your goals with Dr. Borsting.