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The type of breast implant used is one of the mostimportant decisions facing patients undergoing breast augmentation surgery.Recently, cohesive gel implants have been introduced as an alternative tosilicone and saline implants. These implants which are also known as gummy bearimplants have a higher density silicone gel with a greater number of crosslinks. The implants are shaped and texturized to maintain their position.These implants have several advantages and areespecially helpful in women with small breasts. Under these circumstances theyare less likely to have ripples or develop capsular contractures. They areassociated with a natural shape and high patient satisfaction rates. When theseimplants rupture, the silicone doesn’t migrate into the surrounding tissuebecause of the gels thickness.Although gummy bear implants have several advantagesthey also have disadvantages, these include firmness and the maintenance of thesame shape regardless of the patient’s positioning. In addition, these implantscan rotate which causes malposition of the implant and distortion of thebreast.It’s important to realize that each patient has specificanatomic findings and unique aesthetic goals that effect the choice of implant.For this reason it’s important to discuss this decision with a board-certifiedplastic surgeon.
The current trend in breast augmentation is for a more natural result. There are several new additions to the breast implant family that makes it much easier for your plastic surgeon to help you achieve a natural full appearance from your breast augmentation. One, the use of silicone implants has made a dramatic change in terms of the natural feel and shape women have after their breast augmentation. There are the traditional silicone implants and now the “gummy bear” silicone implants. The gummy bear implants are a more cohesive silicone gel. This means that the gel stays together an is not a liquid as previous generations of silicone breast implants. The benefit of a “gummy bear” implant is that the gel stays together if the implant has a leak. Also the gummy bear implant can reduce the risk of rippling from your breast implant. The silicone implants in general are much softer in look and feel than the saline implants which leads to a more natural appearance. This is because the saline implants are very firm and thus create a round unnatural shape. The other benefit of silicone implants over saline is the decrease appearance of rippling from your implants. Patients that are very thin are at risk for rippling, the use of silicone implants can help decrease this visible rippling as the new silicone implants have a cohesive gel that is much less likely to ripple. The majority of my patients use silicone gel breast implants, as they tend to be softer, more natural and less likely to have visible rippling. Please discuss your breast augmentation surgery with your board certified plastic surgeon and let them help guide you during the process. He or she will be able to show you the range of silicone and gummy bear breast implants during your consultation.
Gummy Bear breast implants are a 5th generation highly-cohesive silicone gel implant. What this means is that the silicone in the implants are no longer liquid, but a highly cross linked silicone which is like a gel. Therefore, when one of these implants are cut in half, they do not leak and they maintain their form and shape. If a rupture occurs, the silicone does not leak into the surrounding tissues or migrate to lymph nodes like older implants. Also, there is less chance of rippling with these types of implants because they keep their shape better. They are a little more firm and that can be a drawback for some and an advantage for others. There are round and shaped anatomic (tear drop shaped) gummy bear implants. Saline implants do not look or feel as natural as silicone implants in the majority of cases. Seek a consultation with a board-certified plastic surgeon, by the American Board of Plastic Surgery, in order to discuss which implant is best for you.
"Gummy Bear" breast implants are silicone gel implants. The silicone gel in the "gummy bear" implants is more cohesive than traditional silicone gel implants, meaning there are a greater number of cross-linkages among the silicone molecules. The greater cohesiveness of the "gummy bear" or cohesive implants allows them to maintain their shape better, thus giving breast implant manufacturers the option of more aggressively shaping the implants, so that, for instance, the lower pole of the implant can have more projection than the upper pole, thus avoiding the appearance of a "shelf" that can sometimes be seen in patients who have undergone breast augmentation. The increased cohesiveness also means that silicone gel is less likely to leak from the breast implant should a tear occur in the shell surrounding the gel inside the implant. However, because these "anatomic" breast implants are shaped and not round, they must be placed precisely in a tight breast pocket that prevents them from rotating off the midline, as this may make the breast look cockeyed or misshapen. It is for this reason that most of the anatomic cohesive gel breast implants that we place in our patients have a textured shell that attaches to the scar tissue, or capsule, that forms around the breast implant, thus fixing the implant in place, and preventing its rotation
At this point in time, I use smooth, round silicone implants in the submuscular position in all cosmetic breast patients. I feel that this scenario is safest for patients, and offers the best cosmetic outcome, in my experience.
For all intended purposes, there are two types of implants: Silicone and Saline. These two categories can be divided up further.Saline: these implants are made of a silicone shell but the fill is physiologic salt water. There are two types of saline implant currently available: Traditional vs Ideal Implant. The Ideal implant is a saline implant like the traditional saline implants but has multiple lumens and baffles to help slow down the movement of the saline fluid that is inside the shell. This helps improve the feel and rippling that is inherent with saline implants.Silicone: there are now several different cohesiveness levels of silicone. All silicone can be considered "gummy bear" as the silicone gel sticks together and are bonded strongly incase there is a shell break, the gel will remove as one. However, with the newer cohesive gels, the bonding has been increased there for making the gel implants more firm to help decrease the rippling even further as well has maintain the "upper pole" of the breast. Currently there are 3 levels of silicone gel cohesive implants: Responsive, Soft Touch, Cohesive.Hope that helps.
