Second opinion: Breast surgery – Dr. Mitchell Brown
Elevate Magazine, January 2004
Breast Enhancement
Breast augmentation is one of the most commonly requested cosmetic surgical procedures by North American women. Last year, more than 200,000 women underwent breast implant surgery in Canada and the United States.
Women cite the following as reasons for under-going breast augmentation: to bring breast into better proportion with the rest of the body, to restore size and shape after pregnancy, breast between the two breasts. Following surgery, women often feel a sense of improved self con-confidence and experience an improvement in their body image. For the past fifteen years, saline implants have been the most commonly used breast implants in North America. They have a silicone rubber shell and are filled with saline (salt water) solution. Since November 2000, a newer type of implant has been available in Canada and is gaining popularity – the cohesive gel implant. This has the same silicone rubber shell but it is filled with a cohesive silicone gel, instead of saline. The consistency is similar to a gummy bear so if it were to break, there would be no liquid to run out of the implant shell. Cohesive gel implants come in a variety of shapes, sizes and projections, allowing the surgeon to select an implant that will provide a natural and proportionate breast augmentation.
This is useful in cosmetic breast enhancements, correction of breast asymmetry and reconstructing a breast following removal for breast cancer.
