Breast Implants: Saline or Silicone?Conveniently located to serve St. Petersburg and Tampa
When considering breast augmentation, the choice between silicone and saline breast implants may initially seem very difficult. Both provide great results and both are safe for the body, but they are not identical in either of these concerns. Silicone breast implants have slightly better look and feel, but some people are more comfortable with saline breast implants than silicone due to historical controversy about the safety of older generations of silicone implants. And, of course, silicone breast implants are slightly more expensive than saline.
On this page we give some basic information to help you clarify your thoughts on the two types of breast implants, but you won’t really know which is best for you until after your consultation with Dr. Antonio J. Gayoso, where he will perform a comprehensive physical examination and make recommendations based on the characteristics of your body and your appearance goals. To schedule your consultation, please call or email Gayoso Plastic Surgery today.
Breast Implant Quality and Research
Never before have we had the quality and research that now exists with breast implants. Past controversies have resulted in a great emphasis on safety and knowledge about implants, their qualities and limitations.
The temporary moratorium on silicone breast implants that ended in 2006 allowed extensive research on the safety of this style of implant and found that they were not associated with breast cancer, autoimmune disorders, or other localized or systemic conditions. It also allowed significant improvement in the technology of silicone breast implants, helping them to look, feel, and perform better than ever.
Breast Implant Results and Complications
Tampa breast surgeon, Dr. Gayoso has extensive experience with both silicone and saline implants, and feels that the results are excellent with either. Both consist of a solid silicone rubber shell which is filled with either saline fluid (salt water), or cohesive silicone gel (more of a solid than a liquid).
These breast implants will both function well, and are subject to the same potential problems, including future shell breakage, capsular contracture, rippling and wrinkling, or malposition. None of these problems appear to cause illness, but they could require future surgery.
The biggest differences are that silicone may feel more natural, especially for very slender, or smaller breasted patients, and may have less chance of rippling, wrinkling, or visibility through the skin.
The scar from saline breast implants may be shorter than that from silicone breast implants, because the saline implant is inserted empty and filled within the breast. Additionally, a saline implant that leaks will rather dramatically deflate, but a silicone implant will not. This is because of its cohesive (more solid) nature. A broken silicone implant shell may cause no symptoms at all. The FDA recommends MRI to check silicone implants as time passes.
Patients choose their breast implant style after discussion with Dr. Gayoso and after review of the science behind implants. He is great at educating patients about the choices, and helping to arrive at what is best for the individual.
To determine which implant is right for you, please call us 727-895-1515, or email us to schedule your private breast enhancement consultation in Tampa, St Petersburg, Sarasota or Clearwater, Florida.