Breast Augmentation

The surgery itself is performed under general anesthesia, allowing you to sleep soundly as Dr. Bitar sculpts and reshapes your chest. You will have no memory of the procedure once you wake up. After surgery, it is common to encounter soreness and tenderness in the chest as you heal. You can take oral pain medications prescribed by your doctor, as well as over-the-counter pain relievers.

Dr. Bitar will see you for your initial consultation, surgery, and a series of follow-up sessions. These follow-up appointments are a critical component of your treatment plan, as they enable the doctor to remove your sutures and drains, address any postoperative concerns, and ensure that your healing process remains on track.

While the breasts may look more balanced and full with every passing week, it can take up to six months for all residual swelling to completely fade.

Dr. Bitar favors placing incisions in the underarm area or the inframammary fold. In these areas, scarring is virtually impossible to see. He can discuss your incision placement options in more depth during your private consultation.

Patients typically need to postpone strenuous workouts and heavy lifting for approximately one to two months. However, Dr. Bitar encourages gentle walks from the beginning of your recovery, as this can boost circulation and elevate your overall mood.

Yes. Dr. Bitar commonly pairs breast augmentation with a breast lift or a mommy makeover to enhance your results and provide you with the most comprehensive improvements to your physique possible. During your private consultation, the doctor can go over the possibilities for a combination approach to your care.

At the Bitar Cosmetic Surgery Institute, we take pride in ensuring that we provide the best possible surgical experience. This process includes preoperative preparation, the actual surgery, and postoperative care.

• General Complications
  General complications can occur with any surgery. Cosmetic surgery is typically a safe procedure performed on healthy patients and, like all surgeries, comes with a low risk. To further lower the risk of complications, we operate at a first-class surgery center with board-certified anesthesiologists and nurses. To avoid post-operative complications, we advocate for early mobilization – patients are seen in our office one or two days after surgery – and active participation in their own post-operative care. When we create a partnership, the results invariably improve.

• Bleeding
  Bleeding after breast implants can be traumatic to a patient. It typically occurs in the hours following surgery and is usually limited to one side. Sometimes, a small amount of bleeding can be observed. Still, if the bleeding becomes significant, then the patient needs to have the blood removed in the operating room in a straightforward procedure—the rate of hematomas or bleeding after a breast augmentation is reported to be about 2%. Before surgery, our patients are tested by their own physicians and by lab tests to make sure they don’t have any common bleeding disorders. We use a tumescent solution, similar to that used in liposuction, before starting a breast augmentation procedure to decrease the amount of bleeding. That technique, combined with minimal dissection and handling of the muscle during the procedure, and creating the appropriate pocket size for the implant, all decrease the chances of post-operative bleeding. In our practice, the rate of hematomas is about 1%.

• Infection
  Breast implant infections occur in about 1-2% of cases. The most important step in avoiding infections is to undergo surgery at a first-rate surgical facility with board-certified anesthesiologists and nurses. Patients are given the appropriate intravenous antibiotic coverage throughout the actual surgery. During the surgery, the patient’s skin surface is cleaned thoroughly. Next, the doctor changes gloves multiple times during the operation, and he is the only one who handles the implant in the operating room to ensure total sterility and avoidance of infection. After the procedure, our patients are prescribed antibiotics to minimize infection. As a result of these extra precautions, our implant infection rate is significantly lower than the national average.

• Capsular Contracture
  Capsular contracture is the hardening of the scar tissue around the implant and occurs in 10%-15% of women with breast implants. It can also be a factor of the time elapsed since the implant placement. Every implant will have scar tissue around it; that is a totally natural occurrence. What is undesirable is for the scar tissue to harden and cause the patient pain or unnaturally-looking breasts. The theories behind the cause of capsular contractures vary. A subclinical infection may cause capsular contractures, significant bleeding during the operation, or simply by the passage of time. In the previous section, we discussed how to minimize the risk of infection and bleeding. As a result, our rate of capsular contracture has been less than 1%.

• Rippling
  Rippling is the formation of small waves or folds of the breast surface due to a breast implant. Sometimes, rippling is visible; other times, it is palpable, or both. In the case of breast augmentation, especially with saline implants, this potential result can lead to patient dissatisfaction in up to 10% of breast augmentation patients. To avoid rippling, it is essential to understand its causes. The pectoralis major, also known as the chest muscle, does not cover the entire chest; the lateral edge of the breast is not covered by this muscle, which is often used as coverage for breast implants. Rippling can be avoided or minimized by providing the breast implant with maximum coverage from breast tissue and muscle. For this specific reason, rippling is minimized by placing an implant under the pectoralis major muscle and by selecting an implant size that is covered almost completely by the muscle. As a result, the implant cannot be felt from the lateral edge of the breast. Due to these two guidelines, the rate of ripple effect among our patients is less than 2%.

• Deflation or Rupture
  Breast implants are devices. Their lifespan of “looking good” varies between different types, the patient’s conditions, and the technique used, but that lifetime is not indefinite. The younger the age of a woman seeking breast implants, the higher the probability that they may have to be adjusted or replaced at some point in the future. The good news is that newer breast implants are made of better material than the old ones and have a longer lifespan with fewer complications. It is difficult to quote rates of breast implant rupture or deflation because it is a function of time. The best way to minimize this risk is to pay close attention to each step in the patient’s preoperative evaluation, the actual surgical procedure, and the postoperative follow-up care. If an implant ruptures or deflates, it must be replaced. Saline implant ruptures are easier to diagnose, but silicone implant ruptures may require MRI imaging to confirm the diagnosis.

• Ability to Breastfeed
  Women are sometimes concerned that if they get breast augmentation, they will not be able to breastfeed afterward. The likelihood of losing the ability to breastfeed after a breast augmentation using the armpit incision is very small since the dissection occurs away from where the milk ducts are located. With the breast augmentation operation described above, the inability to breastfeed after a breast augmentation that we have performed has not occurred with any of our patients to our knowledge.

• Loss of Nipple Sensation
  Similar to concerns about the ability to breastfeed, loss of nipple sensation is a potential complication. However, the armpit incision does not involve dissection through the breast tissue, making the risk of injuring the nerves to the nipple less likely, with an occurrence rate of less than 1%. Temporary loss of sensation from a “stunned” nerve or a bruised nerve may occur in the time period after surgery, but sensation in the vast majority of cases returns within a few weeks.

• Smoking
  Smoking is an absolute contraindication for breast augmentation. The carbon monoxide and nicotine in cigarette smoke cause a severe reduction in blood supply to the skin and breast tissue during healing. This results in delayed wound healing, wound separation, skin death, and a higher risk of infection. Continued testing is performed in patients with a smoking history to ensure that they are safe when having this procedure.

When selecting the ideal practitioner for breast augmentation in Fairfax, VA, it is crucial to evaluate each provider’s training background, credentials, board certifications, awards, specialized techniques, patient testimonials, and results. Additionally, there is no substitute for meeting with your potential surgeon in person, as this allows you to assess your rapport and ensure that your goals are well understood. Dr. Bitar is an experienced, fellowship-educated body sculpting expert in Washington, DC, who invites you to book a private, informative consultation with him. During your initial session, he will answer all of your questions and provide insight into his innovative approach to surgery. Call today to get started!