How to reduce risk of capsular contracture before first breast augmentation?

Capsular contracture is a well known complication of breast augmentation surgery. While the cause of capsular contracture is not completely known, there are several things that can be done in an attempt to decrease the risk. Placement of the implant under the pectoralis muscle, meticulous surgical technique and the use of an implant funnel and the "no touch technique" are all believed to reduce the risk.

Hello,
Thank you for your question, prevention is the key so make sure you do your implant massage exercises. If you feel that there is some beginnings of a capsular contracture return to your board-certified plastic surgeon for evaluation. There are things that he and she can do such as ultrasound or medications to prevent more buildup of scar tissue and castor contraction.
Thank you
Dr.James J. Chao

Hello Jubilant2138,


I appreciate your questions! Hardened breast implants (capsular contracture) are one of the more common problems with breast implants, with clinically significant rates reported at 15-45%. The earlier
you seek treatment for this issue, the better. Capsular contracture
is actually caused by the body reacting to foreign substance of the
implant. It forms scar tissue around the implant, squeezing it. Once
this occurs, the implant no longer has leeway to move
around naturally, and instead it is fixed into place by the scar
tissue. This is not only painful for the patient, but it also causes the
breasts to look very unnatural or disfigured. It should be noted that
saline implants have a lower rate of capsular contracture
than silicone gel-filled implants, and that the risk of capsular contracture
is significantly reduced with Dual-Plane breast augmentation and the
“No-touch-technique” implant placement. With subglandular (over the
muscle) implant placement there’s a higher
risk of capsular contracture (almost 1 in 4 women). Other factors that may increase the risk of developing capsular contracture
include: post-surgical complications like hematoma (broken blood
vessels under the skin), seroma (collection of fluid under the
skin) and bacterial infection. Hope this is helpful! Dr. De La Cruz.