{"generated":"2026-10-20","source":"MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia (U.S. National Library of Medicine)","sourceUrl":"https://medlineplus.gov/","about":"MedlinePlus patient information related to breast enlargement: breast augmentation surgery, implant fills and placement, anaesthesia and incision routes, risks including capsular contracture, breast implant-associated lymphoma and reported systemic symptoms, pre-operative preparation, recovery, wound care and the wider plastic and cosmetic surgery topic page.","categories":[{"id":"augmentation","name":"Breast augmentation surgery","description":"The MedlinePlus encyclopedia article on the operation itself: what it is, how implants are placed, the anaesthetic and incision options, why it is performed, and the full risk list."},{"id":"recovery","name":"Recovery, discharge and wound care","description":"Patient instructions for the days and weeks after cosmetic breast surgery, plus general guidance for looking after a surgical incision that has been left open."},{"id":"related-procedures","name":"Related breast procedures","description":"Encyclopedia articles on other cosmetic breast operations that MedlinePlus indexes alongside augmentation."},{"id":"visual-resources","name":"Videos and image series","description":"Illustrated step-by-step series and the anatomy video that MedlinePlus attaches to its breast procedure articles."},{"id":"health-topic","name":"Plastic and cosmetic surgery topic page","description":"The MedlinePlus health topic hub that gathers the breast articles, image series, videos, statistics, clinical-trial searches and patient handouts."}],"documents":[{"id":"breast-augmentation-surgery","title":"Breast augmentation surgery","category":"augmentation","kind":"Medical Encyclopedia article","url":"https://medlineplus.gov/ency/article/002984.htm","updated":"2025-02-17","summary":"The MedlinePlus overview of breast augmentation: enlarging or reshaping the breasts by placing an implant behind the breast tissue or under the chest muscle fascia. The article covers the two implant fills (sterile saline and silicone), the outpatient or hospital setting, general versus local anaesthetic, the four usual incision routes, how implant and technique choices affect pain, appearance, implant integrity and future mammograms, the reasons for surgery, the risks (including capsular contracture, implant rupture, breast implant-associated lymphoma and reported systemic symptoms), what to arrange before the operation, what happens afterwards, and the expected outcome.","keyPoints":["Augmentation is done by placing an implant behind the breast tissue or beneath the chest muscle, and implants are sacs filled with either sterile salt water or silicone.","The operation is performed at an outpatient surgery clinic or in a hospital, most often under general anaesthetic, with local anaesthetic as an alternative.","Four incision routes are described: the natural fold under the breast (the most common), the armpit using an endoscope, the edge of the areola, and, for saline implants only, a route near the navel through which the empty implant is tunnelled and then filled.","An areola-edge incision may bring more difficulty with breastfeeding and more loss of nipple sensation, and may carry a higher risk of capsular contracture.","Implant type, implant size and the chosen operation influence post-operative pain, the appearance achieved, the chance of later breakage or leakage, and the extra views future mammograms will need.","Reasons for the procedure include increasing breast size, changing breast shape and correcting a congenital deformity; patients are told to expect improvement rather than perfection.","Risks shared with any operation are listed as reactions to medicines, breathing problems, bleeding, blood clots and infection.","Breast-specific risks include difficulty breastfeeding, numbness around the nipple or surrounding skin, small or thickened raised scars, uneven nipple position, differences in size or shape between the two breasts, implant breakage or leakage, visible rippling, infection requiring implant removal, the need for more breast surgery and puncture of the lung.","A capsule of scar tissue normally forms around a new implant; when it thickens it can change the breast's shape, harden the breast tissue or cause pain.","A rare immune-system cancer, breast implant-associated lymphoma, has been reported with some implants, presenting as a mass or swelling around the implant with breast pain and treated by removing the implant and the tissue around it.","Some people report systemic symptoms after implants — grouped under breast implant illness, which the page says is not yet established as a recognised illness — including fatigue, memory and concentration problems, joint and muscle pain, anxiety, hair loss, depression, rash, autoimmune disease, inflammation and weight change; some improve after removal and some do not.","Before surgery patients should ask about a screening mammogram, disclose any pregnancy possibility and every medicine or supplement they take, review diabetes, heart disease and other conditions, stop smoking (which slows healing and raises clot risk), prepare the home and arrange transport and help for one to two days.","During the week before surgery, blood thinners such as aspirin, ibuprofen, naproxen and vitamin E are commonly paused on the surgeon's advice, and fasting and morning-medicine instructions come from the surgical team.","Afterwards the breasts are wrapped in bulky gauze or a surgical bra, drainage tubes are removed within about three days, and massaging from around day five may be suggested to reduce capsular hardening after checking with the provider.","Outcomes are usually very good, scars are permanent and most visible during the first year before fading, a supportive bra may be worn for a few months, and later tests may be advised to confirm the implants are intact."]},{"id":"cosmetic-breast-surgery-discharge","title":"Cosmetic breast surgery - discharge","category":"recovery","kind":"Patient instructions","url":"https://medlineplus.gov/ency/patientinstructions/000273.htm","updated":"2025-02-17","summary":"Home-care instructions after cosmetic breast surgery — augmentation, lift or reduction. It covers what happens in hospital, what to expect once home, activity and driving limits, dressing and wound care, pain medicines and general self-care, and the symptoms that should prompt a call to the surgical team.","keyPoints":["Surgery is done under general or local anaesthetic and takes an hour or more; patients wake with a gauze dressing or surgical bra and may have drainage tubes in place.","Most people go home the same day, though some stay one to two nights in hospital.","Pain, bruising and swelling are normal and settle over days to weeks, and reduced sensation in the breast skin or nipple may return gradually.","Short walks are encouraged early to support circulation; returning to work or other activities commonly takes 7 to 14 days or longer.","Heavy lifting, strenuous exercise and overstretching the arms are avoided for 3 to 6 weeks, and driving should wait at least two weeks and until drowsiness-inducing pain medicines have stopped.","Drainage tubes are removed at a visit within a few days and stitches within two weeks; surgical glue dissolves on its own and does not need removing.","Dressings stay in place as instructed, incisions are kept clean, dry and covered, and are checked daily for redness, pain or drainage.","Once dressings are no longer needed, a soft wireless supportive bra is worn day and night for 2 to 4 weeks; bathing is limited to showering after drains come out, with baths, hot tubs and swimming deferred until stitches and drains are out and the surgeon agrees.","Scars may take several months to more than a year to fade, and sunblock of SPF 30 or higher is advised whenever the scars are exposed.","Smoking is not permitted because it slows healing and raises the risk of complications and infection; alcohol is avoided while taking narcotic pain medicines, and aspirin, ibuprofen and other medicines or supplements need the surgeon's approval.","The surgeon should be contacted for increasing pain, redness, swelling, yellow or green drainage, bleeding or bruising at the incision, medicine side effects, a temperature of 100°F (38°C) or higher, numbness, loss of motion, or sudden swelling of the breast."]},{"id":"surgical-wound-care-open","title":"Surgical wound care - open","category":"recovery","kind":"Patient instructions","url":"https://medlineplus.gov/ency/patientinstructions/000040.htm","updated":"2026-01-01","summary":"General MedlinePlus instructions for looking after a surgical incision that has broken open and is being left to heal rather than re-closed with stitches. It explains healing from the inside out, hand hygiene before dressing changes, removing and replacing dressings, cleaning and irrigating the wound, disposal of used supplies, and the signs that mean a call to the provider. The breast augmentation article links this page for wound care after breast surgery.","keyPoints":["A wound left open heals from the inside out, and the dressing absorbs drainage so the surface skin does not close before the tissue underneath has filled in.","Hands should be washed before every dressing change — an alcohol cleanser, or soap and water for 15 to 30 seconds including under the nails, with jewellery removed.","The skin around the wound is cleaned with saline or mild soapy water; alcohol, peroxide, iodine and antibacterial cleansers are avoided because they can damage wound tissue and slow healing.","Where irrigation is advised, a syringe of saline or soapy water is held about 2.5 to 15 cm from the wound to wash away discharge, then the area is patted dry.","No lotion, cream or herbal remedy goes on or near the wound without the provider's agreement; dressings are used once only and soiled material is bagged before disposal.","Contact the provider for more redness, pain, swelling or bleeding, a wound that looks larger, deeper, dried out or dark, thicker or foul-smelling discharge, or a temperature of 100.5°F (38°C) or higher."]},{"id":"breast-lift","title":"Breast lift","category":"related-procedures","kind":"Medical Encyclopedia article","url":"https://medlineplus.gov/ency/article/007402.htm","summary":"MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia article on breast lift (mastopexy), listed by MedlinePlus among the cosmetic breast procedures alongside augmentation and reduction, and referenced from the cosmetic breast surgery discharge instructions."},{"id":"breast-reduction","title":"Breast reduction","category":"related-procedures","kind":"Medical Encyclopedia article","url":"https://medlineplus.gov/ency/article/007405.htm","summary":"MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia article on breast reduction (reduction mammoplasty), indexed on the Plastic and Cosmetic Surgery topic page and referenced from the cosmetic breast surgery discharge instructions as a related procedure."},{"id":"breast-augmentation-series","title":"Breast augmentation - series","category":"visual-resources","kind":"Medical Encyclopedia image series","url":"https://medlineplus.gov/ency/presentations/100205_1.htm","summary":"Illustrated image series walking through breast augmentation, one of three breast procedure series (with lift and reduction) published in the MedlinePlus encyclopedia and linked from the breast augmentation article page."},{"id":"breast-lift-series","title":"Breast lift (mastopexy) - series","category":"visual-resources","kind":"Medical Encyclopedia image series","url":"https://medlineplus.gov/ency/presentations/100188_1.htm","summary":"Illustrated image series covering breast lift (mastopexy), including the incision patterns used, published in the MedlinePlus encyclopedia."},{"id":"breast-reduction-series","title":"Breast reduction (mammoplasty) - series","category":"visual-resources","kind":"Medical Encyclopedia image series","url":"https://medlineplus.gov/ency/presentations/100189_1.htm","summary":"Illustrated image series covering breast reduction (mammoplasty) and its indications, published in the MedlinePlus encyclopedia."},{"id":"breast-lift-video","title":"Breast lift (anatomy video)","category":"visual-resources","kind":"Anatomy video","url":"https://medlineplus.gov/ency/anatomyvideos/000017.htm","summary":"MedlinePlus anatomy video explaining the breast lift procedure, embedded and recommended from the breast augmentation article page."},{"id":"plastic-cosmetic-surgery-topic","title":"Plastic and Cosmetic Surgery","category":"health-topic","kind":"Health topic page","url":"https://medlineplus.gov/plasticandcosmeticsurgery.html","updated":"2024-12-17","summary":"The MedlinePlus health topic hub for plastic and cosmetic surgery. It summarises the body areas people most often have reshaped — including increasing, reducing or reshaping sagging breasts — and links out to the encyclopedia articles and image series, the breast lift video, ASPS plastic surgery statistics, ClinicalTrials.gov searches for breast implants and plastic surgery, and patient handouts including the breast augmentation article in this library.","keyPoints":["Breast surgery appears among the most commonly requested cosmetic changes: enlarging, reducing or reshaping sagging breasts.","The page indexes the breast augmentation, lift and reduction encyclopedia articles, their image series and the breast lift anatomy video.","It links to FDA breast implant information, American Society of Plastic Surgeons statistics and ClinicalTrials.gov searches for breast implants and plastic surgery procedures.","English and Spanish versions exist for the topic page and most of the linked resources."]}],"facts":[{"topic":"What breast augmentation is","statement":"MedlinePlus describes breast augmentation as a procedure to enlarge the breasts or change their shape, carried out by placing an implant behind the breast tissue or under the muscle fascia or chest muscle.","source":"breast-augmentation-surgery"},{"topic":"Implant fills","statement":"An implant is a sac filled with either sterile salt water (saline) or a material called silicone.","source":"breast-augmentation-surgery"},{"topic":"Setting and anaesthetic","statement":"The operation is done at an outpatient surgery clinic or in a hospital, with most women receiving general anaesthesia while local anaesthesia — staying awake with the breast area numbed — is an alternative.","source":"breast-augmentation-surgery"},{"topic":"Incision routes","statement":"Four approaches are described: a cut in the natural fold under the breast (the most common technique), a cut under the arm often using an endoscope (leaving no scar on the breast but possibly one under the arm), a cut around the areola edge, and, for saline implants, a cut near the navel through which the implant is moved up and filled.","source":"breast-augmentation-surgery"},{"topic":"Areola-edge trade-offs","statement":"The periareolar route may bring more problems with breastfeeding and loss of sensation around the nipple, and may carry a higher risk of capsular contracture.","source":"breast-augmentation-surgery"},{"topic":"What changes the result","statement":"The type of implant, its size and the type of surgery affect post-operative pain, the appearance of the breast, the risk of the implant breaking or leaking later, and the additional views future mammograms will require.","source":"breast-augmentation-surgery"},{"topic":"Why it is performed","statement":"The procedure is carried out to increase breast size, to change breast shape, or to correct a congenital deformity, with patients advised to discuss realistic expectations — improvement rather than perfection.","source":"breast-augmentation-surgery"},{"topic":"General surgical risks","statement":"Risks applying to anaesthesia and surgery in general include reactions to medicines, breathing problems, bleeding, blood clots and infection.","source":"breast-augmentation-surgery"},{"topic":"Breast surgery risks","statement":"Listed breast risks include difficulty breastfeeding, loss of feeling in the nipple area or surrounding skin, small or thickened raised scars, uneven nipple position, differences in size or shape between the breasts, breaking or leakage of the implant, visible rippling, removal of the implant because of infection, the need for further breast surgery and puncture of the lung.","source":"breast-augmentation-surgery"},{"topic":"Capsular contracture","statement":"A capsule of scar tissue normally forms around a new implant to hold it in place; if this capsule thickens and grows it can change the breast's shape, harden breast tissue or cause pain.","source":"breast-augmentation-surgery"},{"topic":"Breast implant-associated lymphoma","statement":"A rare lymphoma of the immune system has been reported with some implant types, presenting as a mass or swelling around the implant together with breast pain, and treated by removing the implant and the tissue around it; research into other cancer links is ongoing.","source":"breast-augmentation-surgery"},{"topic":"Breast implant illness","statement":"Some people report systemic symptoms after receiving implants — fatigue, memory and concentration problems, joint and muscle pain, anxiety, hair loss, depression, rash, autoimmune disease, inflammation and weight gain or loss — described as breast implant illness, which the page says does not yet have enough evidence to be a recognised illness; some report improvement after implant removal and others do not.","source":"breast-augmentation-surgery"},{"topic":"Overall safety statement","statement":"Despite these rare risks, MedlinePlus states that breast implants are considered safe.","source":"breast-augmentation-surgery"},{"topic":"Screening before surgery","statement":"Patients are advised to ask whether a screening mammogram is needed given their age and breast cancer risk, arranged early enough that any further imaging or biopsy cannot delay the planned operation.","source":"breast-augmentation-surgery"},{"topic":"What to tell the surgeon","statement":"The surgeon or nurse should be told about any pregnancy or possibility of pregnancy and about every medicine, drug, supplement or herb being taken, including items bought without a prescription.","source":"breast-augmentation-surgery"},{"topic":"Medical conditions and smoking","statement":"Diabetes, heart disease and other conditions may require review by the provider who treats them, and smoking should be cut down or stopped because it slows healing and raises the risk of blood clots — surgery may be postponed while smoking continues.","source":"breast-augmentation-surgery"},{"topic":"Blood thinners before surgery","statement":"During the week before surgery, medicines that stop blood clotting — including over-the-counter aspirin, ibuprofen, naproxen and vitamin E as well as many prescription medicines — are commonly stopped temporarily on the surgeon's advice, with instructions on which medicines to still take on the day of surgery.","source":"breast-augmentation-surgery"},{"topic":"Day-of-surgery instructions","statement":"On the day of surgery patients follow the rules given about when to stop eating and drinking, take only the prescribed medicines with a small sip of water, and arrive at the hospital at the requested time.","source":"breast-augmentation-surgery"},{"topic":"Immediately after surgery","statement":"Most patients go home once the anaesthetic has worn off and they can walk, drink water and use the bathroom safely; the breasts are wrapped in a bulky gauze dressing or a surgical bra, and drainage tubes, if placed, are removed within 3 days.","source":"breast-augmentation-surgery"},{"topic":"Massage after surgery","statement":"Massaging the breasts from about 5 days after surgery may be recommended to reduce hardening of the capsule around the implant, but should only begin after checking with the provider.","source":"breast-augmentation-surgery"},{"topic":"Outcome and follow-up","statement":"Outcomes from breast surgery are usually very good, pain and skin symptoms from the surgery generally settle, a special supportive bra may be worn for a few months, scars are permanent but typically fade after being most visible in the first year, and future tests may be recommended to confirm the implants have not ruptured.","source":"breast-augmentation-surgery"},{"topic":"Activity after discharge","statement":"Home instructions after cosmetic breast surgery allow short walks early, put return to work or other activity at 7 to 14 days or longer, and prohibit heavy lifting, strenuous exercise and overstretching the arms for 3 to 6 weeks, with driving delayed at least 2 weeks.","source":"cosmetic-breast-surgery-discharge"},{"topic":"Signs to call the surgeon","statement":"The surgical team should be contacted for increasing pain, redness, swelling, yellow or green drainage, bleeding or bruising at the incision, medicine side effects, a fever of 100°F (38°C) or higher, numbness or loss of motion, or sudden swelling of the breast.","source":"cosmetic-breast-surgery-discharge"},{"topic":"Scar care after discharge","statement":"Incision scars may take several months to more than a year to fade, and protecting them with sunblock of SPF 30 or higher is advised whenever they are exposed to the sun.","source":"cosmetic-breast-surgery-discharge"},{"topic":"Healing an open incision","statement":"Where an incision has broken open and is not re-closed, healing proceeds from the inside out and a dressing absorbs drainage so the surface does not close over before the wound underneath has filled in.","source":"surgical-wound-care-open"},{"topic":"Cleansers to avoid","statement":"Saline or mild soapy water is used to clean around the wound, while skin cleansers, alcohol, peroxide, iodine and antibacterial soaps are avoided because they can damage wound tissue and slow healing.","source":"surgical-wound-care-open"},{"topic":"Wound infection warnings","statement":"A provider should be contacted if redness, pain, swelling or bleeding increases, the wound looks larger, deeper, dried out or dark, discharge becomes thicker or smells of pus, or temperature reaches 100.5°F (38°C).","source":"surgical-wound-care-open"},{"topic":"Scope of the topic page","statement":"The MedlinePlus Plastic and Cosmetic Surgery topic page lists increasing, reducing and reshaping sagging breasts among the most common cosmetic requests and indexes the breast augmentation, lift and reduction articles, image series and video.","source":"plastic-cosmetic-surgery-topic"}]}