Breast Augmentation

Breast Augmentation in Nashville, TN

Breast augmentation is surgery to increase the size and improve the shape of your breasts with silicone or saline implants.

You might choose to have a breast augmentation for many reasons, but ultimately, it is a personal decision to help you feel better about your body.

To learn more about breast augmentation and how it might benefit you, contact Nashville Plastic Surgery today to schedule a consultation with Dr. Michael Cash, M.D. Dr. Cash has attained double certification from the American Board of Plastic Surgery and the American Board of Surgery. He has the training and expertise to perform complex reconstructive surgery and customized cosmetic procedures with remarkably natural-looking results.

Why Might I Consider Breast Augmentation in Nashville with Dr. Cash?

You might choose to have a breast augmentation to bring your breasts’ size and shape into better balance with your other features, make your breasts more symmetrical, or restore a younger look as you age or after you have children or lose weight.

By making you look and feel more feminine, breast augmentation can help you feel proud of your body and better about yourself. View our breast augmentation before-and-after photo gallery to see the improvements Dr. Cash has helped his patients realize. 

Why Should I Choose Dr. Cash for Breast Augmentation Surgery?

Your choice of breast augmentation surgeon is the paramount decision you’ll make in the process. Ample experience with this procedure is crucial. Always choose a surgeon who is board-certified through the American Board of Plastic Surgery, which is the only valid board certification for a plastic surgeon. Dr. Cash has earned certification from the ABPS.

Choose a surgeon who listens and whose results demonstrate a flexible and customized approach. A skilled surgeon will tailor the details of each cosmetic procedure to your unique needs and desires. As the best breast augmentation surgeon in Nashville, Dr. Cash will spend time with you to understand the results you hope to achieve. He’ll explain what you should realistically expect, plus the risks and costs. He equips his patients with the knowledge they need to confidently make decisions, always treating everyone with respect and attention.

Am I a Good Candidate for Breast Augmentation Surgery?

Dr. Cash can tell you if you are a good candidate for breast augmentation in your consultation. You may be a good candidate for the procedure if you:

The FDA recommends women be 18 or older for saline implants and 22 or older for silicone implants.

Note that breast augmentation does not correct significant breast sagging. A breast lift is the solution for sagging breasts, and you can combine the two procedures as needed.

Schedule A Consultation

Meet Dr. Michael Cash

At Nashville Plastic Surgery, our mission is to treat you with the utmost respect, help you make an educated decision, and provide you with the finest medical services in a safe and professional environment.

Dr. Cash, our board-certified plastic surgeon, specializes in breast augmentation, tummy tuck, liposuction, and more. Schedule a consultation today to learn more!

What Are the Options?

Dr. Cash will tailor your breast implant surgery in Nashville to your anatomy and desires. With breast augmentation, this customization involves selecting incision locations, implant type, size, shape, and placement. You also have the choice between implants and fat transfer. Together, these decisions, which you’ll make as part of your consultation with Dr. Cash, make breast augmentation one of the most personalized plastic surgery procedures.

Implant Types

Saline implants are filled with a sterile saltwater solution which is added in the operating room at the time of the operation.  Because of the ability to add or remove saline at the time of the operation, there is more flexibility with saline implants to correct for any asymmetries the patient may have. Some patients consider saline implants a safer option. That’s because there are no health concerns if the shell leaks or ruptures — your body will absorb the saline filling.

Silicone gel implants have a density and flexibility that closely matches breast tissue. For this reason, they can provide a more natural look and feel to augmented breasts. When a silicone implant leaks or ruptures, you should get the implants surgically replaced and any leaked filling removed within a few months.

Shapes and Sizes

Implants are available in round or teardrop shapes to add fullness to the upper or lower part of your breasts or both. Implant manufacturers also make these medical devices in different widths to fit narrow and wide chest frames and a range of thicknesses to give more or less projection to the breasts.

Implant Placement

Depending on your lifestyle and desired changes, Dr. Cash can place implants either within your breast tissue (subglandular placement) or under your chest muscles (subpectoral placement).

Incision Placement

Dr. Cash can make the incisions for breast augmentation surgery in the curved creases below the breasts (inframammary incision), in a half-circle around the lower edges of the areolas (periareolar incision), or, in some cases, in the armpits (transaxillary incision). Each option has benefits and risks. All three choices result in scars that are well-concealed and not noticeable, with or without clothes.

What Does Breast Augmentation Surgery Involve?

Breast implant surgery usually takes place while patients are under general anesthesia. Dr. Cash will make incisions following the plan discussed in your initial consultation. That might be along the crease below your breast, around the lower half of your areola, or in your armpit. Dr. Cash then creates a pocket within the breast tissue or behind the chest muscle and places the implant. Once he has positioned the implant, he closes the pocket with absorbable sutures to hold it in place. He’ll then close the incisions in your skin with fine stitches to minimize scarring. Breast implant surgery usually takes about two hours.

Breast augmentation using fat transfer involves only minimal incisions necessary for liposuction. Dr. Cash usually performs it using a local anesthetic and sedation. You’ll have your incisions covered with sterile bandages. You may need to wear a surgical bra to help hold the implants in place during the first stage of healing and minimize short-term swelling. When the anesthesia has worn off and you are fully alert, you can go home. You’ll need a friend or family member to drive you and stay with you for the first night.

What to Expect in Recovery

You’ll need some time for rest and recovery at home after your surgery, and should plan to take about a week off from work. You may experience some discomfort in the first few days, which you can manage with pain medication. You may also have some swelling and bruising in your breasts, which will gradually resolve as your tissue heals. 

Dr. Cash will provide you with detailed instructions on how to take care of yourself as you recover, when to see him for follow-up appointments, and how to reach him with any concerns. You can resume low-impact activities and exercise after about two weeks, gradually building up to your typical activity level by about six weeks after surgery.

Planning Your Breast Augmentation

Your breast augmentation procedure at Nashville Plastic Surgery starts with a consultation with Dr. Cash. He will examine you, ask questions to learn your medical history and understand your goals for the procedure, listen to your concerns, and answer your questions. 

When he has a full understanding of your wishes, he will recommend the combination of implant type, size, shape, and placement that will give you the results you want with the least risk. He will describe what the procedure entails, its risks and cost, and what you can expect in recovery as you heal from the surgery. 

Dr. Cash’s goal in every cosmetic procedure is to produce the most natural-looking results with the least discomfort and lowest level of risk for the patient.

Contact Nashville Plastic Surgery online or by calling (615) 454-2271 to schedule a consultation for breast augmentation with Dr. Cash. He will examine you, ask questions to understand your goals for the procedure, and give his recommendations for the best and safest approach. Patients in metro Nashville and throughout Middle Tennessee choose Dr. Cash as their cosmetic surgeon because of his ability to create stunning results and the caring attention he and his staff provide.

Breast Augmentation FAQs

Feel free to visit our website which will give you an idea of what to expect during your consultation. During your consultation, you will be sized for implants.  Make sure you wear a non-padded bra and have a snug top that will be able to show what you will look like with implants in place. 

During your consultation, Dr. Cash will discuss your goals and wishes for the outcome of a breast augmentation.  Detailed measurements are taken which along with your desired cup size are used to determine the volume and projection of the breast implant.  This is tailored to you specifically. 

You and your surgeon will go over your desired outcome in depth to be sure we are choosing the best size for you. It is important for the patient and surgeon to be on the same page.   We often have multiple consultations to discuss your hopes for the operation.  We make sure that there is no pressure to make a decision until you are comfortable and we often enjoy visiting with patients several times before the operation. 

Both breast augmentation and an augmentation plus mastopexy can help create more or better cleavage and help with higher placement on the chest.

When you visit with Dr. Cash, he will discuss the potential options for you which may include a mastopexy to lift the breast.  When combined with an implant, a mastopexy can give the breast a much more full appearance and improve cleavage.

This is typically determined by the measurements of the breast and over all size or volume desired. A breast lift combined with an implant can give a more full appearance to the upper pole of the breast, which may be something you desire.  

Detailed measurements will be taken during your consultation which will indicate if you would benefit from a breast lift as well as an augmentation.

Silicone implants tend to feel more like breast tissue which is why they are often used in breast augmentation.  Saline breast implants can be an option as well if there is adequate amount of breast tissue to disguise the implant.

Using a Keller Funnel prevents contact with the skin minimizes the risk of infection.  It is believed that a capsular contracture may be the result of a very low grade infection and preventing any contact with the breast implant may lower the rate of this complication.  

The use of a Keller funnel allows there to be no contact with the implant during the time it is being placed under the breast.  It decreases the risk of infection and capsular contracture.   The funnel is a cone shaped device used to place the silicone implant in the breast pocket without the surgeon physically touching the implant.

Yes.   Although there are surgeons who perform this operation under local anesthesia in their office, we believe the safest and best outcome requires having the patient under general anesthesia. 

It is recommended that someone stay with you for the first 24 hours while you recover from anesthesia. You will also need a driver while you are taking narcotic pain medication.

Recovery is usually 3-6 weeks. By week 3 most patients are feeling back to themselves and back to normal life. We recommend taking 4 weeks off of heavy lifting (over 5lbs), submerging in water and exercising. We recommend 6-8 weeks off high impact exercise or heavy weight lifting if a mastopexy is also part of your breast augmentation.  

Time off work varies from patient to patient. It depends on how strenuous or how active your job is. Most people will take 1-2 weeks off from work.

Full range of motion of the shoulders is important after surgery.   You should not hesitate to raise your hands above your head to get something out of the cabinet or to wash your hair.  Moving the shoulders helps recovery and decreases discomfort.   Additionally, it is important to massage and move the implants as well.  

Yes, you will come out of surgery with a postoperative bra.  You will wear this for the first week and then we will have you switch over to a sports bra.  A sports bra with some compression but not overly tight is helpful.  Additionally, you should avoid a bra with an underwire for approximately 4-6 weeks while the incision is healing.

Yes, in fact it is very important to continue to have ongoing mammograms at the appropriate age.   Breast implants under the muscle do not interfere with the ability for a mammogram to detect breast cancer.

Drains are not necessary for a patient having their first breast augmentation

Yes. The scars for a breast augmentation are small (about 1-2 inches) and located on the inframammary fold. They are not particularly noticeable as they sit within the bra line and heal very well.  Over time the scar continues to fade and patients do not complain about the appearance of the scar. 

The sutures used with dissolve and are placed under the skin.  There are no sutures to remove after a breast augmentation.  The incisions will be covered with Steri-strips which typically stay in place for 1-2 weeks.

Both silicone and saline implants can rupture. Saline implants do not require ongoing monitoring.  If a saline implant ruptures, the patient will notice an asymmetry likely by the next day.  The body simply absorbs the saline when the implant ruptures.   

Silicone implants do require ongoing monitoring to evaluate for a rupture.  The FDA recommends getting a breast MRI every 5 years to evaluate for a leak.  Dr. Cash sees every patient who has a silicone breast implant in the office yearly to closely monitor any changes in the breast that may indicate there is a rupture.  

Signs of a silicone breast implant rupture include new pain that doesn’t go away, change in the shape or appearance of the breast, or change in position of the breast implant. 

Complications are not common with breast augmentation. However, some of the risks include capsular contracture (scar tissue around the implant) or malposition of the breast implants.  Very rare complications include infection, wound healing complications, hematoma, and nipple numbness.

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2201 Murphy Avenue, Suite 301,
Nashville, TN 37203

At Nashville Plastic Surgery, we have a deep understanding of the important role that physical image plays in life, yet we never lose sight of emotional well being. Our approach to plastic and reconstructive surgery integrates these fundamental principles to promote overall health.

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