Can A Female Get Deltoid Implants For Upper Shoulder Widening?

Q: Dr. Eppley, I am interested in learning more about shoulder augmentation. I am 24 year female old and the shape of my shoulders have always bothered me. I have pretty narrow shoulders and wide hips, which makes my hips look wider and I want to know what options there are for widening my shoulders in order to make them seem more proportionate to the rest of my body. I saw that the main options are deltoid implants and fat injections, and I am leaning towards implants as I don’t have much extra fat/am at a healthy weight and am nervous about how fat injections would look. I just want to just enhance the top of my deltoid/shoulder area. I will include a picture of one of my shoulders now (labeled “Current”) and one that I altered to be what I am hoping to achieve with implants/injections (labeled “Goal”). I understand this is a less common surgery in general and is more for men, however the narrowness of my shoulders has always been a huge insecurity of mine and I would love to know more about what you think is best and pricing information, if possible. Thank you so much and have a great rest of your day.

A: Thank you for your inquiry and sending your pictures. Looking at them side by side by side you have imaged a high deltoid augmentation of about 1 cm per side. What you are actually showing is a ‘derounding’ of your shoulders which, by definition, is shoulder widening but is more of a shoulder reshaping which seems appropriate for a female. You are correct in that I would have little confidence in fat injections injections in a long person with limited harvest sites. In the opposite end of the treatment spectrum is clavicle lengthening by bone grafting which, while effective, seems an over treatment for the degree of change that you seek. Thus deltoid implants would be a good choice given that it is more effective than fat grafting but less invasive with a more rapid recovery than clavicle lengthening.

Dr. Barry Eppley

Indianapolis, Indiana