Why haven't my saline implants have not gotten softer after a year? How can they soften or do I need to replace them? (Photo)

Saline implants are classically harder than silicone. I prefer silicone implants for that reason amongst others. A saline to silicone exchange is a very straightforward surgery that can be completed in less than an hour and will improve the feel of your breasts.best

 If your breasts are firm at one year this is the product of capsular contracture. There are different strategies for treatment that will be explained to you by your plastic surgeon.

Congratulations on a great looking result. I'm sorry to hear about the firmness. As others have answered, the likely reasons are due to the nature of saline implants themselves, potential capsular contracture, or simply a tight soft tissue envelope.  You and your doctor can determine if there is capsular contracture by a good physical exam and history. If they have always felt this way and haven't changed much over time then it is unlikely that is the cause. Most likely the firmness is just the implants themselves. Saline implants can be filled to within a certain range of volumes. The low end of the range will yield softer implants but is more likely to show ripples through the skin. The higher end of the fill range will yield more firm implants but less likely to show any wrinkles or ripples. As mentioned before, you can discuss with your surgeon the option of removing some saline if you are filled toward the maximum or changing to silicone implants if that is an option for you. At one year, you are not likely to see much of an improvement in firmness. Hope this helps. 

If it ha sbeena  year and your breasts are still very firm, then three things may be going on.  First, the saline implants may be overfilled to such a degree that they are going to stay firm no matter what happens.  Some surgeons do that to maintain a rounder look with the implant, but it comes with a feel sacrifice.  The second is the build up of the scar pocket around the implant kinown as capsular contracture.  You do not have to have pain associated with it to be contracture, just an overall firmness.  Third, your muscles may simply just be tighter and still need to relax, although this is rare at the one year mark.  I would address this with your surgeon and possibly get a second opinion if need be.  I hope this helps.

Thanks for your pictures and question.  One of the disadvantages of having saline implants instead of silicone is how firm they feel.  The firmness can vary based on how much breast tissue was present before surgery, how large the implants are, and whether they are behind or on top of the muscle.  Unfortunately, they may not soften much more at this point.  Continue to make sure and follow up with your surgeon to ensure that you have not developed capsular contracture.

Typically, one of the biggest complaints related to saline implants is that the implants feel firm. This could be normal or related to a capsular contracture. From your photos, your implants look to be lower than ideal as is not consistent with a contracture. Thus, it is likely the saline implants alone. You can change these to a softer silicone gel option that is much more natural in look and feel. You should see a board certified plastic surgeon in your area to get a formal opinion through an in-person consultation.Best of luck,
Vincent Marin, MDSan Diego Plastic SurgeonMarinAesthetics.com

Saline implants when properly placed and filled should be soft and have few problems. If your implants were over filled they may never feel soft as the implant is expanded under a bit of pressure from the higher volume. Capsular contracture is also possible, though the implants should have started out softer until the contracture set in. If the implants were over filled replacement with a slicone gel, or properly filled saline may solve the issue.

You may have a capsular contracture. Best to get a second opinion in person for a proper evaluation.

If over the next few months they still feel too firm for you, you may want to consider changing to silicone gel implants or see if there is room to remove some saline from the current ones.