Effie Katerinaki, MBChB, PhD, FRCS(Plast)

Hello and thank you for the question. It is certainly common to have a small amount of fluid and occasionally air as well collecting in the pocket of the implant. They can persist for a few weeks but eventually they should resorb. The best you could do at this stage is ensure you wear your supportive post-operative bra as instructed by your Plastic Surgeon and avoid excessive arm movements such as heavy lifting, upper body exercises etc. So essentially try to reduce excessive friction of the tissues over the implant. If you feel that the amount of fluid is increasing rather than decreasing or if you notice any new or increasing swelling  of the beast you should consult with your Plastic Surgeon. 

Dear Lerolero. It is a little too early to judge the final size of your breasts. Your photographs do not indicate capsular contracture. Capsular contracture would usually give the feeling of hard implant when you palpate your breast. It is possible that your left implant has not settled yet in its final position especially because it is under the muscle. In reality, you should wait for nearly 6 months before judging the final position and appearance of the implants. I would expect you will have follow-up appointments with your surgeon who should be able to advise you further.  

Hello m101113. At 5 days post-op it is too early to judge the final shape and volume of your breasts. A more definitive appearance should be expected at around 6 weeks post-op and really the final result will be apparent at 3 to 6 months post-op.

You should have a supportive surgical bra to wear at this early stage of healing.

You need to have follow-up arrangements with your Plastic Surgeon who will support you as you go through your recovery.

Hello marie907. 

A breast reduction procedure that leaves the nipple/areola complex attached to the tissues whilst the breast is reduced should not leave you unable to breast feed. There will certainly be a degree of scarring in the breast tissue, but there should be enough ducts left intact to enable you to breast feed. 

In fact there are many women who have never had any breast surgery at all and have difficulties to breast feed successfully.

You should discuss your concerns with your Plastic Surgeon during your pre-operative consultation.

What you need to be aware is that during pregnancy and breastfeeding the breasts change and then change again as your body returns to its pre-pregnancy state. This may affect (but not necessarily so) the appearance of your breasts; for this reason some ladies prefer to have breast cosmetic surgery when they have completed their family. 

If your breast asymmetry is significant enough to affect you on a daily basis, you should have a consultation with an experienced Plastic Surgeon who can help you make a decision.

Fat is an autologous tissue that provides the most natural appearance and overall feel to the breast when used for augmentation or contour improvement purposes. This effect is directly related to the technique used by the surgeon to harvest the fat and transfer it.

The main issue surrounding fat transfer to any part of the body is that the fat will absorb in the 6 to 12 weeks following surgery, but thereafter the amount of fat that has survived stabilises. In the hands of a Plastic Surgeon experienced with the procedure you can expect approximately 60% of the fat to remain. This is the reason that the breast size cannot really increase by more than one cup size with just one session of fat grafting. Repeat operations are possible depending on the availability of donor sites (where the fat will be harvested from) and the wishes of the patient.

Risks of fat grafting include infection of the fat, fat necrosis, which usually manifests as small lumps in the breast and formation of oil cysts in the breast. Fat necrosis and oil cysts can be visible in a mammogram or breast ultrasound, but an experienced breast radiologist should be able to distinguish calcified fat necrosis areas from malignancy of the breast. If in doubt a needle biopsy should be performed.

Other risks include potential problems with the donor sites, such as contour irregularities, but this should be very rare if the procedure is undertaken by an experienced Plastic Surgeon.

Another very rare risk is fat embolism.

There have been no studies in the literature to substantiate the risk of potential breast cancer development in patients who have previously had fat grafting to the breasts.