With almost 250,000 breast augmentations performed last year, the world certainly isn’t at a loss for positive accounts surrounding the surgery. From a very personal case to a recent, age-defying makeover, here are the stories—straight from the plastic surgeons who performed the procedures.
Confidence Boost
“There are generally two types of opinions regarding breast implants—those who are for it, and those who don’t understand why one would consider getting them. Regardless, it’s important to understand breast implants aren’t just tied to aesthetics. Recently, I had a patient come in who had asymmetrical breasts. She had a very hard time finding a bra and clothing that fit. It was pretty clear during the consultation that she wasn’t overly happy; I could see it in the way she spoke and carried herself. After her implant surgery, she was thrilled with the results. Her entire energy changed. She is now a person with confidence, and you can immediately see her happiness when she walks into a room. That kind of result goes beyond aesthetics.” —New York plastic surgeon Elie Levine, MD
Timeless Beauty
“Recently, a woman in her 80s came to the office asking to have her breast implants replaced. She had undergone a silicone augmentation more than 50 years ago and only recently started to notice firmness. At surgery, we discovered 50-year-old silicone implants that were without evidence of any leakage. We removed the scar tissue, placed new and larger implants, and now she’s considering further modifications! The desire to improve one’s appearance is truly timeless.” —Encino, CA plastic surgeon George Sanders, MD
Seeing Double
“One story that sticks out to me from years ago is a pretty straightforward breast augmentation on a young woman. The part of the story that is memorable is that she is an identical twin, and a few months post-op, she came in with her twin sister for a consultation. After a few months of seeing how great her sister looked, she decided to go ahead with her own augmentation, and I did a breast augmentation on her as well. The cool thing was I had the before-and-after right in front of me at the same time! The story is also personally meaningful as I am also an identical twin, and my brother is also a doctor.” —Miami plastic surgeon Sean Simon, MD
Crystal Clear
“One of my most memorable breast augmentations was with a woman who was into self-hypnosis and crystals. She wanted a breast augmentation and was adamant that she could manage any discomfort with self-hypnosis. She did not want general anesthesia. On the day of surgery, she was able to relax and disassociate herself from surgery and discomfort through meditation and self-hypnosis. I performed her breast augmentation using Natrelle Inspira implants under local anesthesia without much discomfort. When her surgery was finished, she sat up and walked out of the operating room without any issues. I have found that patients can mentally prepare themselves for surgery and have procedures under local-only or local with IV sedation and low-dose Ketamine infusions without narcotic pain medicine.” —Eugene, OR plastic surgeon Mark Jewell, MD
First Class
“My most memorable breast augmentation would have to be my first one. I was a chief resident at Baylor. We had the nicest patient come in for a rhinoplasty consult. She had heard from nursing friends that I was interested in rhinoplasty and that she could get a good price with me in the Baylor Resident Clinic. During the consult, she asked if she could get breast implants done at the same time. I was very excited to get my first rhinoplasty and breast augmentation in on the same day. I was very nervous that morning. My overseeing staff didn’t realize that he was overseeing me that day, so he was nowhere in sight. I was all by myself—it was nerve-wracking, but also exciting. The case ended up taking more than six hours. Today, rhinoplasty and breast augmentation would be a two or two-and-a-half hour case for me.” —Nashville, TN plastic surgeon Dan Hatef, MD
