Am I A Good Candidate For Custom Hip Implants?

Q: Dr. Eppley, Attached are the pictures that you requested of my hips. Please let me know if it would be possible to get the customized hip implants placed in. I was wondering if the doctor can have them plunged into my thighs as far down as possible to give me fuller legs as well.

A: Thank you for sending your pictures. Some basic concepts to be aware of with hip implants is the following: Hip implants have a fairly high rate of complications due to the more superficial tissue location in which they have to be placed so patients have to be selected very carefully to try and lower those risks. There are two major risk factors, 1) thin patients with little subcutaneous fat (inadequate soft tissue cover) and 2) implants that are too big. (too thick for the tissues to adequately support them) Both of these hip implant considerations are judgment issues with no absolute measurements to them.

As this applies to you….1) your hips appear to have a fairly thin subcutaneous layer despite the thick muscles of your legs. So unless the amount of hip augmentation is small there will eventually be issues with implant show. 2) Hip implants can not be extended into the thighs as those are two independent tissue planes. This is why hip and thighs implants are separate implant sites. 3) When a patient speaks oif having fuller legs this indicates to me their augmentation goals are not modest and, as a result, a high risk implant patient.

Dr. Barry Eppley

World-Renowned Plastic Surgeon