One of the most important decisions you will make about your breast augmentation involves where the breast implants are placed in relation to your chest (pectoral) muscle. The best placement option for you will depend on a few different factors, including the thickness of your breast skin, your overall body type, how physically active you are, and your personal cosmetic goals.
*Actual Patient
Above the Muscle (Subglandular Placement)
Placing your breast implants above the muscle – called subglandular placement – involves a shorter recovery time, and helps limit interference with your chest muscles, which may be an important consideration if you are an athlete. Although the implants are positioned above the pectoral muscle, they are still located beneath the mammary gland, allowing for some amount of coverage.
Subglandular placement can provide you with higher, more sharply defined cleavage, especially when using larger breast implants. However, subglandular placement also comes with certain drawbacks, including:
- Higher chance of rippling, wrinkling, and other aesthetic problems in some patients
- A rounder, less natural final look (some patients like this; some do not)
- Mammogram screenings may be more complex
Subglandular placement is generally not recommended if you have thinner breast skin, since the edges of your breast implants may become visible through the skin.
Below the Muscle (Submuscular Placement)
Placing your breast implants below the muscle – called submuscular placement – involves a longer recovery time, and may impose some limitations on the breast implant sizes that can be used. However, it also comes with several significant benefits, such as:
- Excellent coverage of implants, even in women with thin breast tissue
- A more natural appearance and feel
- Less likely to interfere with mammograms
- Less risk of capsular contracture
- Reduces the risk of sagging
We use the VECTRA® 3D imaging system to help you visualize your breast augmentation results. VECTRA® captures a 3D image of your treatment area by taking multiple, simultaneous photos from different angles. Once loaded into our system, we can manipulate the image to demonstrate how different breast augmentation options will affect your final results.
If you live in Marietta, Woodstock, or surrounding areas of Atlanta, Georgia and are interested in breast augmentation, please contact Marietta Plastic Surgery today to schedule a personal consultation with one of our experienced Atlanta breast surgeons. Call (678) 835-3447 for our Marietta office, or (678), 494-2380 for our Woodstock office.
Contact Us Today
If you are interested in learning more about your breast augmentation options, call us today at 678-835-3447 (Marietta office) or 678-562-6086 (Woodstock office) to schedule a personal consultation with one of our experienced Atlanta breast surgeons.
