Exchange

BREAST IMPLANT EXCHANGE

Choosing an experienced and qualified Board Certified Surgeon is the best way to avoid complications or problems down the road for your first breast implant surgery. However, problems can occur with breast implants that require patients to consider exchanging their implants. In many cases the patient has had the breast implants for many years and due to changes in their body size, age or pregnancy the breast implants need to be replaced. The internet shopping patients choosing less-skilled plastic surgeons have greatly increased the need for re-do surgery.  The surgical pocket is being made too large laterally and the breast implant falls to the side or under the arm laying down. The most common reasons for replacement of breast implants are listed below:

Implant Displacement - bottoming out of the implant below the original fold.
Capsule Contracture - unnatural firmness of the breast due to formation of hard scar tissue around the implant.
Implant Deflation - implant breaks causing deflation.
Visible Implant - visible implant wrinkling often seen with thin skin women when implant are placed over the muscle.
Breast Sag - changes in the amount of breast tissue and location of nipples often needing breast-lift with augmentation.

                

Dr. Ward carefully examines your situation to identify whether your implants can be exchanged with a positive improvement. It is very important that you keep the your medical records which give the size of your original implants and or request them from your previous surgeon before making a consultation. By knowing what size you are before surgery you can determine if you want to go smaller or larger with your breast implants. If no medical records are available then he will offer the surgery at his surgical facility, which retains a variety of sizes of implants, and your implants will be weighed at the facility and an appropriate size will be chosen.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

How long of a recovery time for the implant exchange surgery?

Most patients find the recovery time much shorter then the original implant surgery. This is because the muscles have already been stretched giving you less muscle pain. Recovery time is 2-3 days and you are seen post-operatively at 6 days in the office.