Saline or Silicone?
Breast augmentation surgery offers a variety of options for people considering larger and more symmetrical breasts. From size, to placement, there are many choices to make with one of the most important being what type of implant to go with. There are two different types of implants available, saline and silicone.
Saline implants consist of a silicone shell that is filled with saline (saltwater). For the breast augmentation procedure, the empty shell is inserted into the breast and filled with saline after they have been placed. Because they go in unfilled the incision is smaller than silicone implants and there is also minimal scarring after you have healed.
Saline implants are easy to adjust simply by adding or taking out some of the fluid in the implants. For peace of mind, in the rare case of an implant rupture the saline fluid gets absorbed back into the body without any negative health repercussions. Saline implants are less expensive than silicone implants but they tend to feel firmer and appear less natural than silicone implants. In patients with very little body fat the implants sometimes ripple along the sides of the breast.
Silicone implants offer solutions to some of these issues. They provide a more natural look and feel and can fix the rippling problem. These implants are pre-filled and have three layers of shell surrounding the filler. Because they are already pre-filled, unlike the saline implants, a larger incision is needed to insert them. For adjustments, the whole implant must be removed and then re-inserted.
While the safety of silicone implants has been questioned in the past, they have been largely shown to be unrelated to certain general health issues. Localized complications can occur but studies have proved that silicone implants are safe and effective for breast augmentation.
