Breast Implant Damage After Car Accident

I had a breast augmentation in June of last year. Everything looked great until after a car accident recently. The damage to my car was over $5,000. Since I didn't have any broken bones, I wasn't sure it was caused by the accident.

My right breast has dropped. I have no pain in the breast, and it is very soft. My left breast has not changed at all. I have before and after pictures of my breast in clothes. Your help is greatly appreciated.

P.S. I did follow up with my surgeon, and only got to see his assistant that day. She prescribed steroids thinking my left breast had a capsular contracture, and recommended that I do breast massages only on my left breast. My left breast isn't the issue here; it is my right breast that changed overnight as you can see in the before and after pictures.

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11 Doctor Answers | Asked by VVN

Doctor Answers (11)
Community Comments (0)

Trauma after breast implants

Thanks for the question. It is difficult to answer without examining you and seeing the issues you're concerned about. After trauma there are several issues regarding implants: First - Are the implants intact or has the trauma caused a leak? With saline implants this can be relatively obvious as deflation occurs almost immediately. With silicone implants this can be harder to detect. Second - Has the envelope (including the capsule or scar tissue) around the implant ruptured or torn?... more

No emergency, but have your surgeon take a look

It's difficult to know what exactly is happening, but it may or may not be related to your car accident. The weight of the implant can affect its position over time, as can capsular contracture (your body naturally creates a scar around the implant, called a capsule, and in some patients that capsule can narrow around the implant, or contract-- this can be only on one breast and will cause the implant to slightly elevate). It would be wise to have your surgeon examine you for capsular... more

The accident may have caused a leak

VVN, Your description of your breast augmentation history and your recent trauma with subsequent change in the breast begs the question of whether the implant was damaged during the accident. Seven or eight months out from surgery is an unusual time for one implant to suddenly drop. Usually, most of the implant settling has occurred by six months. I'm not sure what the 5,000 damage means, as a small amount of damage can cost a lot of money these days. You don't mention whether you... more

Breast implants usually settle with time

VVN, It is hard to tell from your description if the car accident had anything to do with it. If you were not hit in the breast area or had any force from the seatbelt on the breast region, then it is hard to say it was from the accident. However, any unilateral (one sided) change is curious and you should see your surgeon for an evaluation. Good luck.

The right side implant is sitting lower

The right breast implant is sitting lower than the left at this point. Is this from the accident or just the way you healed? We can't say. Will the other side drop too? Don't know that either. I recommend that you speak with your surgeon. Decide which side you like better, and come up with a plan and a timeline. He may tell you to wait a few months and it will be fine, or he may tell you that you need a small surgical procedure to fix the minor asymmetry. Either way, it will be an... more

Recommend you go see your surgeon

It is difficult to tell based on your picture, but I recommend you pay a visit to your surgeon. It is possible it is related to your accident, but there are other reasons that the right breast may have dropped. Good luck!

Hard to tell exactly

Unless you noticed a change almost immediately after your accident, the implant might have moved for other reasons. Larger implants like yours obviously weigh more and are more prone to dropping or bottoming out. Also, a capsular contracture can be present holding the other one up a bit making the right side look low. Your plastic surgeon can examine you and help to differentiate between these causes of the change.

Implant problems vs. bottoming out

It is hard to tell without a clinical exam. I highly recommend that you see a board certiffied plastic surgeon in your area. He will be able to detect implant related problems versus a capsule procedure. In few cases, imaging might be needed. It could be simply a bottoming out of your implant which could be fixed with a small procedure. Hope that helps!

Breasts dropping

I am not sure that your concern is related to your car accident. The breasts dropping is normal. If one is much higher than the other, then is could be the result of one bottoming out, or a firm capsule in the opposite one. It is difficult to give you an answer without examining you and/or seeing better photos.

Steven Wallach, MD

12 reviews

Manhattan Plastic Surgeon

Breast Implant Changes after Car Accident

From your photo, it looks like you may have a history of mild to moderate capsular contractures (scar tissue) on both sides. This shows up as firmness of the breasts, visible definition of the roundness of the implant, and oftentimes a higher, less saggy looking breast. Some patients like mild contractures when they are symmetric. Trauma to the chest can potentially "tear" part of the capsule (scar tissue), which subsequently releases it, so the breast then feels much softer... more

Revision breast augmentation will make breasts symmetrical.

Hi. I don't know what happenned. It may be that your right breast dropped AND your left breast moved up because of capsular contracture. Ultimately it does not matter. You need revision breast implants with reshaping of the implant pockets and capsulotomies.