On April 14, 2010, this space considered the choices associated with breast augmentation and on April 30, we looked at the advantages of saline implants. Today we will look at the advantages of silicone gel implants.

Keep in mind that silicone gel implants were restricted by the FDA for 14 years to reconstructive use only. That was in response to a media panic about possible harm should the silicone leak out of a ruptured implant shell.

Fourteen years of intensive research found no links whatsoever between silicone gel and any systemic disease, and it found that all the claims were baseless. In that time, though, many companies worked on making a shell that would not rupture and gel that would not move if the shell did rupture. The result was improved silicone implants being FDA-approved in November 2006.

Silicone gel is cohesive – it sticks to itself, unlike saline solution, which is a fluid. It is made from silicon (with no “e”), the second most common element on Earth after oxygen. We all have silicone in our bodies from common household items like hand lotion, dish detergent, laundry detergent, and hairspray. It does no harm. Silicon is found in sand, rock, and crystals. The gel in your implants will keep its shape in the very unlikely event that the shell ruptures.

Most people feel that silicone makes for a more realistic-looking breast augmentation. These implants have more of the look and feel of breast tissue. Not being a fluid, the gel does not slosh around during vigorous activity, and does not have a “water balloon” feel.

Silicone gel has far less chance of rippling, as can happen more easily with saline implants. In a slim woman, such ripples can show through on the skin. Rippling implants need to be replaced.

Silicone gel causes less tissue stretch. Saline implants gradually stretch the breast skin and other soft tissue in the breast, which can cause the implant pocket to expand, the implants to “bottom out”, and the breasts to droop.

If you have any chest irregularity like scoliosis, silicone implants drape more smoothly.

The choice between implant types for breast augmentation is really a personal one based on your preferences and lifestyle. Dr. Rai can help you make the decision by giving you more information, but he leaves the choice to you.

To learn more about breast augmentation Dallas and how it can best be done for you, please call or email our cosmetic surgery office today. We serve Dallas and Fort Worth in Texas and hope to meet with you soon.