Breast Implants: Q&A

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Are Breast Implants Safer Than Fat Transfer for Breasts?

Are Breast implants really safe? I'm 44 and always wanted larger breasts, especially after breast feeding two children (I lost what volume I had). I'm torn about having implants however.

So many women say they have become ill from them and my grandmother had an autoimmune disease thus I may have a genetic predisposition for such, thus I worry whether I should have the implants or try the Fat transfer augmentation method.

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age 35-44 breasts fat female breast feeding autoimmune disease

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14 Doctor Answers | Asked by magic11 in Alabama

Doctor Answers (14)
Community Comments (0)

Are Breast Implants Safer Than Fat Transfer for Breasts?

This is not an easy answer. The complications of breast implants are better understood than the complications of fat transfer to the breast since it is a relabively novel practice.

Otto Joseph Placik, MD

32 reviews

Chicago Plastic Surgeon

Breast Implant Safety

The studies have been done and all the accusations of breast implants causing autoimmune problems never proved true. At this point this is the only safe way to enlarge the breasts. Fat grafting is being done but it is a bit risky as we dont know what it will do when it comes to breast cancer screening. Also, fat grafting has its limits as far as size goes and its limits are at the small scale. Hope that helps.

Safety of fat transfer to breasts

I think that the question that needs answered is whether or not fat transfer is safe. We know the safety of breast implants. What we do not know is how fat transfers will affect future mammography of the breasts. Calcifications from non viable fat may produce a need for breast biopsies or increase the difficulty in reading mammograms.

Breast Implants or Fat Injection

Multiple studies have conclusively proven the safety of breast implants. This includes proving that they do not cause autoimmune disease. Fat injection, on the other hand, does not have enough data yet to prove whether it is safe. Even if it is eventually proven safe, the technique does not add significant size to the breasts.

Breast implants are very safe

Breast implants are very safe. They do not cause autoimmune disorders. As to the question of fat injections, this is still controversial and I would not recommend it now.

Steven Wallach, MD

12 reviews

Manhattan Plastic Surgeon

Safety of fat transfer vs. Implants for breast enlargement

Fat transfer for breast augmentation is not yet an accepted method. There is no safety track record for the procedure. Breast Augmentation with implants has been around for a long time and is safe. There is no link to autoimmune disease, so you should be fine. Also, you should be seen by a plastic surgeon and evaluated. You may also want to consult with an immunologist to see if you have any autoimmune time bombs. sek

Safety isn't really the issue for breast implants vs. fat transfer

It is truly remarkable that people are still talking about autoimmune disease and implants, since any questions about a possible association were dispelled by several large studies in the 1990's. Even the National Instututes of Health have confirmed, in a detailed response to a request from Congress, that medical grade silicone is non-toxic and doesn't cause disease conditions. Fat grafting, though it has had a controversial history (it was formally banned by the American Society of Plastic... more

Breast implants much better than fat transfer.

Hi. Breast implants are completely safe. It is not that fat transfer is unsafe. It's just that it is very hard to get enough breast augmentation with fat, and how much lasts is unpredictable.

Breast Implants have Absolutely no Association with Autoimmune Disease

Hi there- Breast implants, at this point, are the most thoroughly researched medical device in existence. There has been an overwhelming amount of scientific evidence developed around the world by scientists and doctors alike proving that they do not cause or complicate autoimmune disease, breast cancer, or any other illness. With regard to the fat grafting issue, this technique (while very successful for buttock augmentation) is not (in my opinion) safe to be using on the breasts yet. The... more

Fat Transfer can fill only small amount for the breasts

Great question. This is one of the hottest topics in Cosmetic/Plastic Surgery. In fact there is a course being given in Miami in late Jan or early Feb. My opinion is it comes down to size. The Fat transfer can ONLY fill a small amount, less than 200 cc's. Plus the fat injections MUST be deep into the pectoral muscle and its fascia. Vs an saline or silicone implant fills up more of the volume. In fact my average size implant is between 350 cc's to 400 cc's. This gives a real increase in size... more

Breast Implants vs Fat Injection

Breast implants are safe. The FDA only allowed silicone implants to return to the marketplace after reviewing several studies which proved their safety. Fat injection of breasts, on the other hand, is a very controversial area. It has long been felt that fat injected into breasts could possibly lead to areas of calcification which might be difficult to interpret on mammograms. This is a procedure currently being studied, but for now the consensus opinion is probably that implants are the... more

Fat versus implants

Dear Magic Although the jury is still out on fat transfer I am not a big fan except for touch ups after reconstruction. I don't know how much fat will survive and I can't augment in the same way. I am extremely concerned over mammography in a fat grafted breast due to calcifications. If you are concerned about autoimmune disease I would recommend using saline implants. I will tell you that implants have been studied more than any other medical device and are extremely safe. more

Fat Grafting to the breasts - Not there yet

There is no conclusive evidence that links breast implants to developing autoimmune diseases. The diseases DO happen to women with implants, but an equal number of women without implants also develop them. Fat grafting to the breast is not accepted as a safe alternative at this point in time. The fat may cause scarring or calcification inside the breast tissue, which could interfere with mammography and cancer screening later.

Breast implants are safe

The current generation of breast implants are probably the most carefully scrutinized medical devices in history. They are safe. The Institute of Medicine reviewed the topic of auto-immune disease and silicone exposure quite exhaustively in the late 1990's, and definitively stated that there is no connection between auto-immune disease and silicone exposure. Remember, silicone is present in both saline implants (the implant shell), and silicone implants (the shell and filler material). The... more