What Can One Expect From Recovery for Breast Implant Revision Surgery?

In most cases of straightforward implant exchange (same location, same incision,little to no capsule work) then the recovery should be really pretty easy. A little sore at the incision and very little implant pain. You should be surprised at how good you feel. It will be nowhere near like your first experience, and in fact, you may want to do it several times a year!!!....just kidding....

Thanks for your question.For just a simple breast implant exchange,
your recovery should take just a couple of days.That being said, if you need a more involved
procedure like capsulectomy or capsulorraphy, then your recovery will be
longer.It really just depends on the
extent of your surgery.

Post-operative healing

Patients
will feel sore and tired during the first 48 to 72 hours following surgery.
During these first few days, the patient should engage in light activities,
refraining from lifting or raising the arms above the head.

Swelling
and bruising will subside during the first week after surgery and will be
controlled by pain medication. The initial surgical tapes will be removed a few
weeks after surgery during a post operative visit. Patients typically may
return to a work a few days after surgery (only a light workload during the
first two weeks). Showers are permitted on post op day #3 if there are no
drains.

Scars
will progressively fade throughout the first year following surgery.

Occasionally women are dissatisfied with their breast size
and elect to have larger breast implants. In the absence of severe capsule formation, this is often a relatively
simple procedure.The procedure usually
involves re-opening the incision, extracting the implant, replacing the implant
with a larger one and closing the wound.The
procedure is associated with minimal pain and short recoveries. Since the
muscle is undisturbed, there’s minimal pain following this procedure.Patients usually don’t require narcotics for
longer than 24 hours and are able to return to work the following day as long
as no heavy lifting is involved. If
you’re considering implant exchange, consultation with a board certified
plastic surgeon is appropriate.This
surgeon should be able to formulate a treatment plan that addresses your
concerns.

It really depends on a few factors. Adequate pain control is likely the most important. Individual pain tolerance differs greatly. I find that women who have had children generally have less post-op pain, as they have a much higher pain tolerance. From a surgical point of view, there are several things the surgeon/anaesthesiologist can do to decrease your post-op pain. I generally perform breast blocks prior to making any incisions with a mix of short- and long-acting local anaesthetics. I have found this greatly reduces post-op pain. I also encourage patients to take the prescribed pain killers regularly every 4 hours especially for the first 24-48 hours. If you don't stay on top of the pain in the immediate post-operative period, it is extremely difficult to "catch-up". Most of my patients experience very little post-op pain after breast augmentation.Of course, the type of augmentation you have will also determine your post-operative discomfort. Larger implants, and subpectoral implant placement will also increase post-op discomfort. This doesn't mean you shouldn't get large implants, or place them under the muscle - you simply need to know what to expect. Many women also experience difficulty with sleeping in the first few weeks after augmentation due to the weight of the implants on their chest. This is more significant in back-sleepers.To answer your question about time off work, my experience has been that there is a huge range. I have patients that go back to work the next day (against my advice), and I have had patients take as much as 2 weeks off of work. It really depends on what you do for work, and how you feel. As for taking care of your kids, if your implant is placed under the muscle, it will be a few weeks before you feel comfortable enough to pick them up.As for scars, I tell patients it will take a year to see the absolute final result. Practically, however, by 3-6 months the scar will be very close to the final result. I suggest 3M paper taping, and have a specific scar massage protocol I use to help speed scar resolution.I hope this helps. Good luck!Sincerely,

Post-Operative Healing following Breast revision varies from patient to patient and recovery recommendations also vary among different plastic surgeons - Best advice is to ask your surgeon his recommendations.
Below is what is typical for my practice.
Revision surgery is much less painful than your original surgery.
This is an outpatient surgery and you will probably go home in a bra or with only light dressings over the incision lines.
In my practice - Sutures are dissolvable but the ending knot is removed within 1-2 weeks.
Initial discomfort is easily controlled with oral medication. Light activities may be started in 7-10 days and return to work for light duty 1-2 weeks following surgery

Depending on your chest wall circumference, increasing your implants 100 cc's will increase you anywhere from 1/2 or 1 cup size.  This is a very small improvement.  You do not describe any other reason for wanting to have your implants redone.  If you want a lift done at the same time, that will add to the recovery as well.  However, if all they are doing is going through the old incisions, adding 100 cc's to your current implants or replacing them with 100 cc larger ones will have minimal recovery time.

Best of Luck,

Gary Horndeski, M.D.

You are correct that you might have less pain with your surgery, since the muscles are stretched. You do not state if you have any issues with your current implants or just want to up size. Depending on your height and weight, 100cc larger implants will make you go up at least 1/2 cup size. See a board certified plastic surgeon for an in person consultation and evaluation. Good luck.

You are correct that implant revision surgery is typically much easier than the first augmentation recovery. Because the muscle and pocket are already lifted/created a simple implant removal and replacement takes about an hour even if you increase the size a bit. Most patients at my Austin, Texas plastic surgery practice feel quite good even just a day or two later. If the capsule requires some modification then that can hurt a bit but again minimal in my experience. Good luck! Dr Kerr

Thank you for your post.Yes, in a revision where we are only going larger, and staying in the same space with the implant, there is minimally recovery needed.  Usually the incision is re-openned, and the pocket were the implant sits adjusted slightly to accomodate the larger implant.  If, however, the pocket is too wide and needs to be sutured down (a capsulorraphy) then the recovery process is extended.Best Wishes,Pablo Prichard, MD