When the subject of breast implants or breast enlargement surgery comes up, many people immediately think about size. Large breasts that create eye-catching cleavage are what comes to many minds, a concept that has not been helped over the past two decades from celebrities ranging from Pamela Anderson to Heidi Montag of more recent note.

The reality of breast implant surgery, however, is far from this image. There are certainly a minority of women who do want this look. But the  vast majority of women who choose to have breast implants are much more interested in finding the right size for their body and not to have overpowering breasts that become the focal point of their appearance.

Most breast augmentation patients are average women who simply want to look good in clothes and sport attire. I have seen many women who have told me that they are embarrassed to wear a bathing and won’t go to the pool or beach with their family. While breast underdevelopment is the most common motivation for getting implants, there are numerous other reasons. These include such breast conditions as postpregnancy sagging, asymmetrical breasts, body proportioning, breast asymmetry and reconstruction after mastectomies.

Pregnancy and nursing can have an adverse effect on a woman’s breast shape and size causing sagging and, almost always, a change in the amount of breast tissue. Many women are unaware that it is completely normal to lose breast tissue after pregnancy, a phenomenon known as involution. For some women who have had multiple pregnancies, they lose all of the breast tissue they originally had. When combined with stretched out skin, the change in a woman’s breasts can be deflating for their self-image as well. These are women who simply want to return to their pre-baby size and shape.

There are many women who have breast asymmetry where one breast is larger or different in shape than the other. In some cases the breast size difference can be as much as a cup size, sometimes even more. For women so afflicted, finding a bra to fit comfortably and properly is not as easy as going to Victoria Secret’s and pulling a good fit off the rack. Often they are forced to add padding to create a more even look in their clothing.

One of the most recognized and easily understandable reasons for implants is in breast reconstruction. The physical and emotional devastation of going through any form of a lumpectomy or mastectomy procedure can be softened knowing that an immediate or even a delayed reconstruction can be done. While numerous forms of breast reconstruction exist, including flaps that form the breast mound out of your tissues, implants remain the backbone of how most breasts are recreated.

Dr. Barry Eppley

Indianapolis, Indiana

A common question that some women face today is…are they for real? With more women than ever undergoing breast augmentation, this is not a far-fetched question. It may be inappropriate to ask but the statistical reality is one may be more right than wrong many of the times. According to statistics from the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, the number of women who have had breast augmentation had risen nearly 40% over the past decade. In 2010, nearly 300,000 American women received cosmetic breast enhancement.

One other trend in breast augmentation is a noticeable size difference. Many plastic surgeons have commented that women are asking for bigger breasts than they were a decade ago. Historically women would usually ask to go a cup size bigger. Today it is not uncommon for a women to want two or three cups bigger, particularly the younger they are. Women state they want to get a good value for their investment and they want to make a noticeable difference in their clothed appearance.

What accounts for these trends in breast augmentation? By far I would say that it is simply more accepted than ever before. As we enter the upcoming decade of 2010 to 2020, this is the beginning of the third generation of women who have had access to breast implants for cosmetic enlargement. It is a normal part of society now and younger women’s mothers and soon grandmothers will have had the procedure.

Breast augmentation has a track history of safety as well as effectiveness. Despite the hullaboo of what transpired in the early 1990s, the procedure has been proven to cause no medical problems or makes people systemically sick.. While it is far from a perfect procedure, because after all it is an implant in the body, its complications are local in nature and often aesthetic in significance.

The social trends of today play a major role in its popularity as well. Just go through the checkout counter at the local grocery store and the magazines are full of articles about celebrities who have had or are assumed to have had some form of plastic surgery. Many of these are women actors and performers who have enhanced their top half. The influence of these magazine, TV shows and now the internet have made it seem that having breast enhancement is now the new norm.

There are more choices in breast implants today than ever before. Since 2006, both saline and silicone implants are available in not only differing sizes but projection and styles as well. With the potential for gummy bear breast implants to be available perhaps later this year, increasing implant options appeal to an even broader spectrum of women. Just like the many aisles in a drugstore, multiple options for a single product line result in more sales.

The rise in breast augmentation is a result of greater societal acceptance, safety of the devices, influence of famous people, and a wide variety of implant options. I suspect the upcoming decade will see the number of implanted women continue to rise.

Dr. Barry Eppley

Indianapolis, Indiana