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Stretch marks are common in parts of the body that are prone to expanding and contracting.  Especially for women who have been pregnant, nursed an infant, or gained and lost weight, stretch marks on the breasts can detract from the beauty and femininity of the breasts. Many women with stretch marks on their breasts wish for the smooth, unmarred skin of their youth.

Will breast implants fix stretch marks? Maybe yes and maybe no. Let’s look at what stretch marks are and what causes them, then consider how breast implants might help.

What Are Stretch Marks and What Causes Them?

Stretch marks are the streaks and stripes that appear in the skin when it is stretched. They are often pink, purple, or red when they first appear, then gradually fade to more closely match your natural skin tone. They are a type of scar tissue, left behind when the skin — most often on the breasts, abdomen, and thighs — stretches with puberty, pregnancy, breastfeeding, or weight changes.

Hormones play a role in their formation, as do genetics. If other women in your family have stretch marks on their breasts, you’re more likely to get them too. People who take steroids for long-term treatment of an illness are also more likely to develop stretch marks.

Will Breast Implants Fix Stretch Marks?

Breast implants that moderately increase the size of the breasts can make certain types of stretch marks less noticeable. If you have stretch marks that take the form of wrinkles and creases, adding volume to the breasts with implants will firm and smooth the surface skin and make these marks much less visible. A plastic surgeon can advise you about whether your stretch marks might be made less visible with implants.

Care must be taken, though, to choose a skilled and experienced plastic surgeon. If you are prone to developing noticeable stretch marks, getting implants that are too large can stretch your skin so much that it worsens the marks or creates new ones. If stretch marks are a concern, a good plastic surgeon will factor that into decisions about the size and placement of the implants.

Stretch marks on the underside of the breast can also be removed as part of a breast lift procedure.

What Else Can I Do to Make My Stretch Marks Less Visible?

Fortunately, most stretch marks fade over time. If yours appear dark or discolored now, chances are they will be less visible in a year or two in the same way scars from surgery or injury gradually come to more closely match your skin tone.

Stretch marks that don’t fade with time can be treated with topical creams and lotions. RetinA cream can help speed the fading of stretch marks when they first appear. Other creams and lotions work to exfoliate the skin or boost the concentration of collagen and elastin for improved skin resilience. But read the instructions and cautions carefully, as some of these treatments are not to be used during pregnancy or with certain medical or skin conditions.

Learn More With a Personal Consultation

While getting rid of stretch marks shouldn’t be your primary reason for considering breast implants, making these marks less visible can be an added benefit of the enhancement in some cases. Dr. David Kim and Dr. Eugene Kim at Beverly Hills Plastic Surgery have developed an impeccable reputation for stunning, natural-looking breast augmentation results, attracting patients from all over the world. Contact our practice today at (310) 746-5475 or send an online request to schedule a consultation.

When you think of breast implants, dramatic changes and deep cleavage probably come to mind. But there’s a hot trend in the other direction, to smaller implants. Full curves in the style of Pamela Anderson are giving way to the subtler lines of stars like Ariana Grande, Kendall Jenner, and Rihanna. 

As you consider breast implants, it’s worth taking time to weigh the advantages of a smaller enhancement. Here are four of those benefits for you to consider.

1. Natural-Looking Results

The main goal of breast augmentation is to bring the shape of your breasts into harmony with your figure so that you feel more beautiful. The ideal breast size for you is unique to your frame and physique. That might mean opting for much more volume, or it might not. A small increase may be all you need to bring your silhouette into better harmony. 

You might also be considering implants to change the shape and firmness of your breasts or to improve their symmetry. For these kinds of enhancements, smaller implants can be exactly the solution.

Smaller implants tend to look more natural for other reasons, too. If your breasts are small to begin with, adding implants that are too large can give them an unnatural spherical shape. If there’s little natural tissue to cover larger implants, they can be more visible and give your breasts an unnatural texture. 

A drastic change in your breast size can also draw unwanted attention. Many women prefer to make subtle changes with cosmetic surgery, ones that fly under the radar rather than broadcast themselves. You want people to see you as beautiful, not focus on your enhancements.

2. A Better Choice for an Active Lifestyle

If physical activity plays a vital role in your life — if you enjoy running, tennis, cycling, CrossFit, kickboxing, or rock climbing — you’re probably looking to enhance your beauty without sacrificing flexibility and athleticism. You might regret choosing overly large implants when they get in the way of your tennis swing or add an uncomfortable bounce to your running stride. This issue isn’t merely distracting. It can hurt your performance and make your favorite activities less enjoyable.

If you lead an active lifestyle but want to look more feminine and attractive, small implants may be an ideal option. You’ll get more enticing curves without giving up speed, agility, and range of motion in the activities you love. It will also make shopping for a supportive sports bra easier.

3. Reduced Risk of Complications

If you are naturally thin and have smaller breasts, larger implants can increase your risk of complications. Large implants in small breasts can cause trauma to the surrounding breast tissue, including tearing. They can cause nerve damage, resulting in loss of sensation. They can expand the skin to the point where stretch marks are visible. They weigh more, so they can cause the breasts to sag over time. 

Small implants reduce the risk of these unhappy outcomes. They also minimize another notable complication — of capsular contracture, a condition in which scar tissue thickens and hardens around an implant, squeezing it and distorting the shape of the breast. Capsular contracture, while relatively rare, is one of the more significant risks of having breast implants. When it occurs, the remedy is surgery to remove the implant and scar tissue, then time to allow the tissue to heal.

4. Long-Term Satisfaction

Trends change over time, and so might your ideal for your body shape. Five or 10 years from now, you may regret the choice of large implants. Smaller implants tend to weather the passing changes of time and fashion well. They free you to dress in a wide range of outfits, from revealing bathing suits and evening wear to conservative corporate dress. 

Smaller implants are also a better choice when anticipating the effects of aging and gravity. They enable you to maintain a chic and stylish figure into middle age and beyond.

Schedule a Consultation With an Expert

Implant size is a personal decision, but it can help to get guidance from an expert. Dr. David Kim and Dr. Eugene Kim at Beverly Hills Plastic Surgery have developed an impeccable reputation for their stunning, natural-looking results. Contact us today at (310) 746-5475 or send an online request to schedule a consultation.

Congratulations! You made the decision to enhance your bust size with breast augmentation! You’re not alone – in 2018, over 313,000 augmentations were conducted across the United States, a 4% increase from the year before. Now, its time to find the perfect implant size – but where to start? 

Choosing the right implant size is an incredibly personal decision that is based on several factors: your lifestyle, your ultimate aesthetic goals, and long-term appearance. Needless to say, each of these factors requires careful consideration on the part of patients. When in doubt, always consult a trusted expert. In Beverly Hills. Cosmetic surgeons Dr. David Kim and Dr. Eugene Kim have developed a strong reputation for highly professional care that creates stunning results. Our Beverly Hills surgeons welcome all individuals to schedule a private consultation regarding breast augmentation.

Size Matters with Implants

When it comes to choosing the perfect implants, the size of implant you choose has a ripple effect on the long-term results of your procedure. How your clothes will fit, how noticeable your augmentation is, and even future breast health are all impacted by the size and shape of the implants you choose. Depending on the patient, the desired results may vary. While some may be looking forward to the noticeable change, others prefer a more subtle augmentation. 

Likewise, there are certain factors that influence the size of implant a person should get. The person’s figure is an especially important consideration when choosing the best implant. Too large of an implant can look disproportionate on a person’s figure and may cause them to look more top-heavy than they initially intended. Improperly sized implants may also create health issues down the road such as back pain, sagging, and thinning tissue around the implant. As a result, many patients who choose very large breast implants during their initial treatment return for corrective surgery or to replace their initial implants with smaller ones.

Easy Steps When Choosing Your Breast Implants

Are you in the process of considering the best implant size for your figure? Here are some considerations to keep in mind when weighing your options. One way you can determine what size implant may be best for you is to perform the Rice Test in the comfort of your home.  To do the rice test, simply put rice in a plastic baggie or nylon hose. Adjust the amount of rice in the bags to experiment with different sizes. You should wear the rice in a bra or swimsuit top for a couple of hours to get an approximation of how the new size will look and feel. 

In addition to using the Rice Test to get a preliminary feel for your personal preferences, there are several other factors you should consider:

What’s Your Lifestyle?

For active women, implants can help restore femininity and build self-confidence. However, going too large with implant size can begin to impede performance and make certain activities such as jogging or running uncomfortable.

What is Your Current Goal?

At the end of the day, breast augmentation helps patients achieve their desired aesthetic goals. However, it’s important to know exactly what that end goal is and how augmentation fits in. It’s important that the size you choose is the size you will feel comfortable and confident in. Going for an ultra-dramatic change can cause some to feel their implants look unnatural post-surgery, leading some to return for breast implant replacement down the road.

Think Long Term

While implants may not last forever, they do last a long time and you can expect to have them for many years to come. When choosing implants for your augmentation procedure, be sure to consider how you’ll feel about their appearance five and ten years in the future. 

Meet with Our Specialists

While we can’t make the final decision for you, our team of experts can certainly help. Call Beverly Hills Plastic Surgery today and schedule your consultation with our plastic surgeons. During your session, our specialists will guide you through your options and help you explore all considerations before settling on your implants. Call today to get started!

While the last several decades have seen countless innovations in modern plastic surgery, its hard to name a procedure that has changed as dramatically as breast augmentation. Within the last two decades alone, this cosmetic surgery has become less invasive and more personalized to each individual – factors that have allowed this procedure to quickly become one of the most popular plastic surgeries available. Whether you’ve been considering breast augmentation for a long time or are just now exploring your options, considers these reasons why the treatment is better now than ever before.   

Better Surgical Techniques 

Plastic surgery techniques have come a long way in the last five years, much less the decades since breast augmentation first gained popularity among female patients. Before, implant placement was a rigid procedure, with little accommodation for a patient’s unique figure. 

Today, women have options at all stages of the surgery, starting with placement. Where patients were once restricted to a one-size-fits-all approach, new innovations in creating more aesthetic treatments mean that woman can choose where their incision is made to maximize discretion. For some, an inframammary incision made below the breast is discreet yet allows the placement of larger silicone or gummy bear implants without requiring a large visible scar following treatment. In other instances, patients opt for peri-areolar incisions in order to hide the resulting scar with the edge of the areola. 

More Implant Options

Final results that look and feel natural are primarily determined by the type, shape and size on implant a patient selects. Much like surgical placement and incision, earlier forms of breast augmentation surgery offered patients only a few options to choose from. 

Today, patients today have an array of implants to choose from. Starting with the filling type, patients can choose from options like saline, silicone and “gummy bear”, which each offer their own advantages and can look fantastic on any figure. Beyond implant type, patients also have expanded options when it comes to determining size – for some, the bigger the better, while others may opt for more subtle enhancement. Regardless of what your ultimate goals are, rest assured that you have plenty of options to select from in order to achieve your ideal figure. 

Get Started at Beverly Hills Plastic Surgery

When it comes to choosing a plastic surgeon, experience and expertise make a difference. The surgeons and staff and Beverly Hills Plastic Surgery are committed to helping all patients feel comfortable and confident with their looks and over a wide range of cosmetic treatments to help them accomplish their goals. Our boutique plastic surgery practice uses the latest state-of-the-art technologies to craft personalized cosmetic treatment strategies, include breast augmentation. Learn more about developing your customized plastic surgery procedure by calling (310) 746-5475 and scheduling your consultation today!

The decision to undergo breast augmentation is a big deal for many patients. In addition to researching the right surgeon and deciding implant type, the size of the implant is another important question patients must answer in preparation for their treatment. While many follow the mantra, “go big or go home,” others choose a conservative size for their procedure. Those that choose smaller implants, however, often feel underwhelmed with their results and end up back at their surgeon’s office for larger implants.

Why Women Go Too Small

At BHPS, we’ve heard multiple reasons why women feel underwhelmed by their augmentation size. Some of the most common include:

Concerns Over the Results

While breast augmentation is among the most popular cosmetic surgeries, there is still a sense of taboo for many patients over getting work done. For these women, fears of going large are compounded by worries that if they go too large, their new breasts will look unnatural, overdone, or fake. These concerns are often compounded with negative feedback from friends and colleagues about breast augmentation to the point where once-confident patients start second-guessing their choice in breast size and even reconsider surgery. As a result, many breast augmentation patients choose conservatively sized implants only to feel underwhelmed with their results.

Underestimating the Results

From a surgeon’s perspective, procedures are more than just changes to your appearance. They present an important opportunity to improve self-confidence. We have seen time and time again how dramatic breast augmentation can change a patient’s mindset and outlook – the trouble comes with helping patients recognize the full potential of their procedure beforehand. Often, patients underestimate the long-term mental benefits of the procedure and end up choosing smaller sizes only to realize that they’d feel even better if they had they gone larger. Many of our breast revision patients are women who have come to this conclusion and are ready to turn their self-confidence to the max.

Clothing Fit

When women choose breast augmentation as a way of improving their appearance and ability to wear certain clothing, even a small jump can make a big difference; going between 325CCs and 350CCs can cause a significant impact. Whereas some women may be worried that going too large will make them too top heavy, women who choose too small implants may find that their figure looks proportionally off or that they still haven’t achieved their dream of filling out their favorite tops and dresses. After going through the mental, physical and financial investment of surgery, this realization can be especially underwhelming.

Finding Your Right Size at BHPS

At our Beverly Hills surgical practice, our experts understand how life-changing cosmetic surgery can be, especially the concerns associated with breast augmentation. Luckily, amending too small implants is an easy procedure. Also called secondary breast augmentation surgery, breast revision can be performed to correct the results of prior augmentations. For women left unsatisfied with their results, this treatment is an excellent way of restoring lost self-confidence.

Whether you feel dissatisfied with your prior treatment or are still weighing if breast augmentation is right for you, our team is here to help. To learn more about breast revision surgery, call (310) 746-5475 to schedule your consultation with our Beverly Hills surgeons today!

 

Completed breast augmentation? Check. Made all post-surgery appointments? Check. Finished recovery? Check. Once you’ve made it through the recovery process, it’s easy to assume that your new breasts are in their final position. However, recovery following breast augmentation can often be a month’s long process thanks to the condition known as drop and fluff. While the name may sound innocuous, understanding this process and its role in the overall recovery timeline has helped many augmentation patients better prepare for treatment.

What Exactly is the Drop and Fluff?

Like all other surgical procedures, breast augmentation is a process from which the body continues to heal months after surgery. Whereas other cosmetic procedures usually heal and that’s the end of it, the body must adjust to accommodate inserted implants following breast augmentation. Immediately following surgery, the muscles around the implant and skin tissue experience significant swelling. This results in larger looking breasts that appear to sit high up on the chest and look rounder rather than teardrop shaped. Over the course of several months, inflammation decreases while the muscles and skin gradually adjust to the new additions through a process surgeons and patients alike refer to as the “drop and fluff.”

While the name is amusing, this condition is common among breast implant patients. Usually occurring in the first few months after surgery, drop and fluff starts when the breast skin and muscles start to stretch and relax to accommodate the new implants. No matter how the implants are placed, or the types of implants used, they all begin to slowly shift down the chest and point outward. As the implants gradually move into their final position, they naturally begin to fill out the bottom portion of the breast or “settle” into the pocket they’ve created. Known as the “fluff” phase of implant recovery, this second step is what provides the natural-looking teardrop shape rather than a high and tight appearance common in the first weeks following surgery.

Ultimately, the drop and fluff process is what provides patients with a natural-looking augmentation.

What to Expect During Drop and Fluff

The first thing patients should know about this recovery step is that every patient heals from surgery in their own way. While some face shorter recovery time and a longer period of descent, other individuals can spend months healing from the initial surgery and several more months waiting for their breasts to achieve their final position. Every patient’s journey is unique and therefore should be carefully planned with each individual’s specific concerns in mind.

Similarly, everyone’s unique recovery timeline also determines when their breasts will start their journey south. Gravity, surgery and how well your body heals also determine when the breasts completely drop and fluff. As such, it is important for patients to stay patient in the weeks and months following surgery. On average, it can take up to three months for the breasts to complete the entire recovery plus drop and fluff process.

How to Help Your Breasts Settle

During each follow-up appointment with our Beverly Hills surgeons, our team will examine and check your recovery to ensure the implants are on their way to correctly settling into their final position. Dr. David Kim may also recommend at home solutions to help encourage proper settling. This can include breast bands or compression bras and massaging techniques.

Schedule Your Consultation Today!

At BHPS, our surgical team is your resource for understanding the immediate and long-term impacts of plastic surgery. To learn more about comprehensive cosmetic care, call 310-746-5475 today and schedule your consultation with our Beverly Hills surgeons!