I currently have 730cc saline implants overfilled that are 11 years old. Getting them replaced Sept 4 with a full TT!

Question

My ps told me to stick with saline implants bc silicone implants have a much narrower diameter. Example 800cc silicone has same diameter of 600 cc saline. Anyone have experience with this?

Tom J. Pousti, MD · Answer

Thank you for the question. Unfortunately, online consultants will not be able to provide you with specific enough advice to be truly helpful.    As you can imagine, every woman has a different amount of starting native breast tissue, chest wall shape, body type... Generally speaking, the best online advice I can give to ladies who are considering revisionary breast augmentation surgery (regarding breast implant size/profile selection) is:
1. Concentrate on choosing your plastic surgeon carefully.  Concentrate on appropriate training, certification, and the ability of the plastic surgeon to achieve the results you are looking for. Ask to see lots of examples of his/her work.
2. Have a full discussion and communication regarding your desired goals  with your plastic surgeon. This communication will be critical in determining  breast implant size/type/profile will most likely help achieve your goals. 
In my practice, the use of photographs of “goal” pictures (and breasts that are too big or too small) is very helpful. I have found that the use of words such as  “natural” or "C or D cup" etc means different things to different people and therefore prove unhelpful.
 Also, as you know, cup size varies depending on him who makes the bra; therefore, discussing desired cup  size may also be inaccurate.   3.  Once you feel you have communicated your goals clearly,   allow your plastic surgeon to use his/her years of experience/judgment to choose the breast implant size/profile that will best meet your goals.  Again, in my practice, this decision is usually made during surgery (after the use of temporary sizers assessed with you in the upright position).
I hope this, and the attached link (dedicated to revisionary breast surgery concerns), helps.

Andrew Wolfe, MD · Answer

I'm not sure if you misunderstood your surgeon, but the statement about silicone being narrower is simply not true.  Looking at the base diameters and volumes of different round silicone implants made by Allergan, for example, there are 800 cc silicone implants with the following diameters:style 10:  17.2 cmstyle 15:  16.2 cm (752cc is largest in this style)style 20:  15.3 cmstyle 45:   14.2 cmAs you can see, there is a wide range of base diameters, so if you really wanted silicone there would likely be a match for your breast dimensions.  You should revisit this discussion with your Plastic Surgeon to clarify things -- you certainly want to understand all of your options before surgery.

Steven Wallach, MD · Answer

Implants shapes from saline to silicone are pretty similar. He may have recommended saline because he can overfill them.

Edward J. Domanskis, MD (in memoriam) · Answer

There are several ways to get the fake look-either with overfilled saline implants, custom XL silicone implants or XL tissue custom expanders.It depends really on what cc size to want to get.
You can think of a saline implant as a balloon. The manufacturer recommends an overfill of about 20cc but they have been shown to be able to be filled much more than that. They do start loosing their shape and can significantly distort the appearance of your breasts. 
 I do overfill espcially since the FDA has restricted saline and silicone implants to a maximum saline shell size of 800cc and maximum silicone size of 800cc. I do not know why that number was picked arbitrarily. The custom XL silicone implants that I am able to obtain for my patients can be made in any diameter that patient chooses!
So, I do do breast reconstructions greater than that with XL tissue expanders which do pride a greater diameter and projection and upper pole fullness and allow the size to be adjusted either up or down. Also, the shell of the saline implants are very thin and can dreflate more easily. You may want to visit my site below which explains everything, esp for XL sizes which is my specialty, either initially or revisional surgery.

David N. Sayah, MD, FACS - Account Suspended · Answer

The
width of your implant has nothing to do with whether it’s filled with saline or
silicone. Instead, the profile of the implant is what matters when it comes to
base diameter. A high profile implant will have a narrower diameter compared to
a moderate profile implant, regardless of whether they’re silicone or saline. I
recommend double checking with your surgeon to make sure you understand his or
her reasoning behind this suggestion. The vast majority of women these days
prefer silicone implants to saline, so don’t hesitate to seek out a second
opinion if your heart is set on silicone.

I currently have 730cc saline implants overfilled that are 11 years old. Getting them replaced Sept 4 with a full TT!

Answers (5)

Answer: What is difference in XL saline and silicone XL custom?

Answer: What is difference in XL saline and silicone XL custom?

Answer: Profile affects implant diameter, not whether they’re saline or silicone.

Answer: Profile affects implant diameter, not whether they’re saline or silicone.

Recommended reading

Everything you need to know about Breast Implant Revision

Our mission is to create a world where every investment in modern beauty is Worth It.

I currently have 730cc saline implants overfilled that are 11 years old. Getting them replaced Sept 4 with a full TT!

Answers (5)

Answer: What is difference in XL saline and silicone XL custom?

Answer: What is difference in XL saline and silicone XL custom?

Answer: Profile affects implant diameter, not whether they’re saline or silicone.

Answer: Profile affects implant diameter, not whether they’re saline or silicone.

Browse related questions

Recommended reading

Everything you need to know about Breast Implant Revision

Our mission is to create a world where every investment in modern beauty is Worth It.