Feel of breast implants varies from person to person.

The feel of a breast implant varies from person to person.   Many factors come into play.  Some factors include the amount of breast tissue a person already has to cover the implants, whether or not the implants will be on top of the muscle, entirely under the muscle, or partially under the muscle; whether they are saline implants or silicone implants; the quality and thickness of the skin, etc...

In general, silicone implants will feel more "natural" than saline implants.   Silicone implants can feel like a thick marshmallow, whereas saline implants can feel like a bag of water.  Some patients will do very well with either type of implant if they have thick skin and a fair amount of breast tissue in either the subglandular or submuscular position.  In general, woman who are quite thin, have little breast tissue with loose skin, and have nursed children will do better with a silicone implant, preferably a high profile silicone implant to achieve a more natural feel.

Implants can feel hard for several reasons.  Some include a saline implant that is way too over-filled.  Another reason can be a capsular contracture.

If you are talking about implants sitting on the table, the saline imlpants feel like a water balloon and the silicone implants feel like cooked oatment. However how they feel in a breast depends on a number of things.

If the implants are working the way they should, the saline implant will generally start out feeling a bit more firm than a silicone implant which may be virtually undectable by feel. Over a period of time, more of the silicone implants will more often become more firm than saline implants (i.e. the contracture rate for significant hardening is higher for silicone gel implants).

However, if the implants do not develop capsular contracture, it is the relative proportion of implant to natural breast and the relative dimensions in the post-op breast that will determine what the implant feels like. For example, if I put a small  (by volume and width) saline implant into a relative full breast, the implant will be general "hidden" by the natural breast and the breast will feel relatively natural. If, on the other hand, I put a relatively large implant into a small breast, the breast will beginto take on the charactertistics of the implant. So, it is not the implant itself that is as important as the way it is being  used.

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