Breast Implants, Answered by the Surgeon

What a breast implant actually is

An implant is a soft shell filled with either salt water (saline) or silicone gel. It sits inside a pocket your surgeon creates — behind the breast tissue or behind the chest muscle. The shell, the fill, and the pocket position all affect how the result looks and feels. There is no single best combination. The right choice depends on your frame, your tissue, and the look you want.

Breast augmentation adds size and shape to the breasts with that implant. Surgery takes about an hour. You go home the same day. The incision is most often placed in the fold under the breast, where it hides in the natural crease. Cuts are closed in layers with dissolving stitches.

Implants do not last a lifetime. Every patient should plan on additional surgery someday — whether for a routine exchange, a change in preference, or a complication that needs attention. That honesty matters more than any sales pitch.

How your surgeon and you choose together

Size is not a catalog decision. It is sized to your frame and decided with you at your consultation. Your surgeon measures your chest wall, evaluates your existing breast tissue, and discusses the proportions you are after. You try sizers. You look in a mirror. You talk it through until the choice feels right.

Placement matters as much as size. Behind the muscle tends to give more upper-pole coverage and can make mammograms easier to read. Behind the breast tissue can mean a shorter recovery and a more natural drape in patients who have enough tissue to begin with. Your surgeon walks you through the trade-offs for your specific anatomy.

Breast augmentation is this practice's flagship procedure — performed by the surgeons of the Tulsa Surgical Arts program, with two operating rooms in Oklahoma City and surgery available in OKC or Tulsa. Patients from communities like Edmond, about seven miles away, and across the region consult virtually or in person.

Recovery, honestly

The first few days feel like a hard chest workout — tightness and soreness across the front. You walk the same day. You sleep on your back. Most people with desk jobs return to work around one week. No lifting over a limit your surgeon sets during that stretch.

By two weeks the soreness fades and light lower-body exercise is usually fine. At six weeks most patients return to full exercise, including chest workouts. Implants continue to soften and settle over the following months. The final shape is not the shape you see on day one — patience matters.

In any emergency — chest pain, shortness of breath, fainting, sudden confusion, or a leg that swells on one side — call 911 first. For concerns that are not emergencies, the practice line is available day or night at 405-751-0042.

The honest risk list

Every surgery has risks. A firm scar shell can form around the implant — called capsular contracture — changing the shape and sometimes causing pain. Surgery can correct it. An implant can leak or break over time; broken implants are replaced or removed. Nipple sensation can change: it may increase, decrease, or in some cases not return. Breastfeeding may be affected for some women.

A very rare cancer of the scar tissue around certain implants has been reported. Some patients report body-wide symptoms they link to their implants. Removing implants is always an option. Bleeding, infection, scarring, numbness near the incision, blood clots, anesthesia complications, uneven results, and the possible need for revision surgery are all on the list. We go over every one of these with you in person before you decide.

Consult a qualified surgeon to understand how these risks apply to your body and your goals. No article replaces that conversation.

What to do next

A consultation is the starting line. You meet your surgeon, review your anatomy, handle implant sizers, and leave with a plan that is specific to you — or you leave with better questions. There is no obligation. Consultations are available in person in Oklahoma City or virtually from wherever you are.

Call 405-751-0042 or request a consultation through the website. Bring your questions. We would rather spend an hour answering them than have you wonder later.

Individual results vary. This article is general education, not medical advice.