Should I massage my breasts after breast implant surgery?

Hi there- You should absolutely massage your implants- but the technique is very important. Ask your surgeon about their preferred technique and what works well in their patients to achieve the best outcomes. 

All breast augmentations that I perform are subpectoral (under the muscle).  After surgery, patients look excessively full at the top of their breasts because the muscle tightens after surgery, and the implants take time to "settle" into place as the skin relaxes and stretches and the... more

Some surgeons believe that massage will decrease capsular contracture and keep the pocket large. I do not think it is a good idea, since it can displace an implant, it does not decrease capsular contracture. IT GIVES YOU SOMETHING TO DO.

Most surgeons would say that massaging the implant helps heep the capsules soft to prevent "capsular contracture". I ask my patients to start massage as soon as the pain allows. I tell them to picture trying to move the implant within its pocket and to push them toward one another and... more

Every doctor suggests different things to their patients. I usually recommend breast massage after surgery especially in primary breast augmentation patients. If they have had corrective surgery, I may have them wait.

The idea behind it is to keep the pocket of the implant slightly larger then the implant to help minimize capsular contracture. Most of our patients are encouraged to start massaging the breast 1-2 weeks after surgery and to massage toward the superior aspect to keep that part of the pocket larger.

Opinion regarding implant massage varies. I begin having my patients move the implants around in the pocket on the day after surgery. I make the pocket larger than the implant, and use this massage technique to have the implant push on the sides of the pocket (particularly in the upper pocket) in order to... more

Breast augmentation involves creating a pocket, either over or below the chest muscle. After your surgery, your body will try to absorb the impalnt, since it is a foreign material. Since it cannot, with time, your body will form a thin "shell" around the implant, essentially ignoring it. This... more

In my Los Angeles office, I routinely advise my patients to massage their breasts after augmentation mammaplasty.  This is true in cases of silicone or saline augmentation. Massaging stimulates the remodeling of collagen fibers in the acute wound healing phase after surgery.  This allows the breasts... more

I have found that self-breast massage is beneficial after breast augmentation because: 1) Massaging your implants will help to counteract scar formation, keeping breast capsules softer. 2) Massaging your implants will help to facilitate descent of the implant after surgery; particularly when placed below the... more