How do I find the best breast augmentation doctor?

Before meeting a surgery or scheduling a consultation check the surgeon's website to learn about their training and philosophy. Both training and philosophy can significantly different from one plastic surgeon to another. 

I urge all propective patients to take time, do a lot of research and view many many before and after photographs before selcting a plastic surgeon to perform your breast augmentation. Taking some time to speak to several former patients who have had the same surgery you are considering can also be helpful.

Check on your surgeon's hospital privileges

A hospital has access to information and records that the general public does not. Hospitals also have tremendous exposure to liability for cosmetic surgery procedures performed within them. They therefore will only grant surgical privileges to physicians that can demonstrate appropriate training and experience.

Although many aesthetic cosmetic surgery procedures are not performed in hospital operating rooms, the fact that a hospital has granted a surgeon privileges for a given procedure ensures that the surgeon has met an accepted standard of competence. It also means that your surgeon will be able to take care of you at a hospital should any complications from cosmetic surgery arise.

If you are planning to have cosmetic surgery performed, you should do your due diligence to determine if your surgeon has the appropriate credentials. This issue can be settled by the following simple question: Does my surgeon have hospital privileges to perform my cosmetic surgery?

Take your time reviewing your surgeon's training and experience. Always go to the website of your state medical board to check on any public record your surgeon may have. During the consultation process you should ask many questions including how often they perform the particular procedure of interest to you. patients also have the right to ask about previous complications and lawsuits.

Aesthetic Vision
If you are satisfied that your surgeon has the appropriate training, experience and credentials, then the next step is to determine if you and your cosmetic surgeon are ‘on the same page’ aesthetically. As you are about to undertake a permanent alteration to your outward appearance, you should be comfortable with your cosmetic surgeon personally, feel like you communicate easily, and feel like you have the same vision for the aesthetic improvement ahead.

Adequate communication is invaluable, and you should be able to communicate clearly and easily not only with your doctor, but also with your doctor’s staff. Over the course of preparing for and recovering from aesthetic surgery, your doctor’s staff will have an important and active role. You must be absolutely certain that your cosmetic surgeon’s aesthetic sensibility matches your aesthetic goals.

Michael Law MD

 Board-Certified Plastic Surgeon

Raleigh, North Carolina

Choosing the right plastic surgeon for your breast augmentation procedure will take some work on your part.  There are many types of surgeons performing breast augmentation these days.  A useful place to start is to check if your plastic surgeon is certified by The American Board of Plastic Surgery (abps.org), a member of The American Society of Plastic Surgeons (plasticsurgery.org), and The American Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (surgery.org).   Addtionally, you can check what Board your surgeon is certified by at ABMS.org and you can check to see if one has a valid license at your state medical board's website.  Additionally, I would search the internet and evaluate different surgeon's websites and their credentials.  Look at their before and after photos.  Have a consultation to see if you feel comfortable with that surgeon.  Talk to previous patients.  Etc.

The Center For Aesthetic Plastic Surgery

Breast augmentation is the most common cosmetic surgical procedure in the United States. I believe that your surgeon's credentials and experience are the key to a successful surgery. However, your surgeon's response to surgery that goes awry is even more important. There are plenty of physicians who are not plastic surgeons performing breast augmentation surgery so buyer beware!

Board certification by the American Board of Plastic Surgery for your surgeon is a must. Additionally, members of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons are fully trained surgeons with extensive knowledge of and experience with breast surgery. Why would you trust your body to just anyone?

The credentials of a surgeon are important as the surgeon should be a board certified plastic surgeon. Other credentials such as being a Member of the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery and being a Fellow of American or International College of Surgeons can demonstrate that the surgeon is well thought of in the medical community.

Beyond that, it is important to find a surgeon whose philosophy is consistent with your own goals. Some surgeons prefer natural looking results, while others prefer a different appearance.

The surgeon should listen to your goals, and then you should be able to find the chemistry with him/her so you are comfortable listening to their guidance.

Cost should not be the primary driver as you should find a surgeon who does a significant amount of quality cases and has the staff and facility to provide safe and consistent results.

As in all other searches for the best surgeon, make sure yours is an American Board of Plastic Surgery certified surgeon. Beyond that, look at many photos of that surgeon's patients. Realize that different doctors have different opinions about what looks best and you want to be sure the "look" you get is what you want. This depends on what your own breasts offer as a starting point as well as the style and profile of the implant chosen for you.

Try to be as specific as possible about what you want from the surgery especially in terms of upper pole fullness and make sure the surgeon seems to be hearing you well.

Also be a good listener. If the doctor explains to you why for some anatomical reason that it might not be possible to do just what you want, ask for the explanation and don't just go to the next doctor who tells you you can have whatever you want.