subject: Breast Enlargement Vs. Reconstruction [print this page] Breast enlargement and breast reconstruction are procedures that some people have a difficult time understanding or distinguishing. They have some similarities but they also have some differences.
How these operations are alike:
- Both of these medical procedures are performed by board certified surgeons who are trained in the specialty of plastic surgery. Each doctor has merely chosen a different concentration to focus on.
- These two operations utilize implants in order to create fullness in a woman's chest region. The implants may be filled with saline or silicone.
- These surgeries both can elevate a woman's self esteem. Her confidence may boost along with an enhanced self image and feelings of femininity.
- Enlargements and reconstructions can both make the female physique look better in clothes and a bathing suit.
- A hospital setting would be the location where each operation would be performed.
- General anesthesia or a local anesthetic with sedation would be used in both cases.
How these procedures are different:
- They are different in that the augmentation is considered to be an elective cosmetic surgery, while the reconstruction is considered to be a medical one.
- Insurance may pay for the reconstructive process but will not cover the costs of an augmentation.
- The rebuilding of a breast after it has been lost to cancer and mastectomy is a relatively lengthy process. Steps include going through radiation and chemotherapy to treat the disease, then stretching the region where the mastectomy has taken place. The implant will be placed after the skin has been stretched enough to contain it. During a cosmetic enlarging process, the entire operation only takes a couple of hours.
- Recovery time is much shorter for the elective operation.
- The FDA (Food and Drug Administration) is a government agency which monitors foods, medical devices and drugs in order to ensure their safety. The FDA has put age restrictions on silicone implants, stating that a woman may not get them in elective procedures until she has turned twenty-two years old. This rule was made to ensure that a woman to be mature enough physically and emotionally before opting for implants. In the case of a mastectomy, a woman may have silicone implants at any age.
