Hello Pioneering35788: I am sorry you are experiencing unexpected results after your breast augmentation procedure. Ultimately, this can be fixed but will require surgery. I noticed in the photos the left breast appears larger than the right. It may simply appear larger than the right due to the malposition. I would recommend a detailed exam by your surgeon to rule out any fluid collection. If a fluid collection cannot be ruled out on exam, I would recommend an ultrasound. It is unlikely for you to have a collection, but it’s important to know if one is present. Regarding the left breast implant position, you have good pec major muscle development; this is a good thing. There are really two types of “partial submuscular pockets”. One is called a dual plane, where the pec major is released just above the level of the lower breast crease. This is by far the most common type of partial submuscular pocket used. One problem with a dual plane pocket is, sometimes, the width of the released muscle can be too narrow, and the implant is not able to fully deliver into the lower breast. This is likely the issue with your left breast. If it hasn’t settled after five or six months, it isn’t going to without surgery. The other issues with dual plane pockets are animation deformity (the muscle contracts and causes the entire breast to move) as well as a boxy breast shape in individuals with significant pec muscle development. I haven’t examined you, and I cannot make any claims with certainty. However, if you enjoy lifting heavy weights for muscle bulk, I would recommend transitioning to a subglandular pocket. This would place the implant completely on top of the muscle. The other option is to use another partial submuscular pocket called a split pec pocket. In this type of pocket. The pec major is split from where it attached at the bottom part of the sternum, straight to the crease at the front of the arm pit. You will not get animation deformity with this pocket. Only the top third and inside quadrant of the implant are covered by muscle (so it greatly reduces rippling, just like a dual plane). One other benefit to this pocket is the implant has downward pressure on it, from the top part of the pec muscle, helping it to fill in the lower breast. You typically achieve maximum implant projection with this pocket (although it is barely noticeable from a subglandular pocket, it can be significantly more compared with a dual plane).Typically, a dual plane pocket can decrease projection of a breast in people with larger pec muscles. I believe you would do much better with a split pec pocket, or subglandular. Converting from a dual plane to either is very straight forward and can easily be done. At the very least, the released portion of the left pec muscle needs to be released slightly more, and the implant needs to be well below that released edge of the pec muscle before you leave the operating room. If you are pleased with the appearance of the right breast, it is totally reasonable to keep the same pocket, and just have your surgeon release the left side a bit more. I would ask your surgeon to have an extra implant, identical to the one currently in the left breast, in case the implant is torn or punctured during the surgery. As far as other specific questions, you need to know exactly what the surgeon’s plan is, you need to understand why this is the recommended plan, it needs to make sense to you, and you need to feel comfortable with the plan. I wish you the best. You should have no trouble achieving the results you desire.
