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The Implant-Free Breast Makeover?

 

There are options available to women other than implants such as breast lift and natural breast augmentation in which the patient has their own fat injected into their breast.

woman measuring chestAfter breast feeding, many women find that the breast volume they once had is gone. On "The Doctors" one woman asks if it's possible to restore the volume without implants.

Dr. Drew Ordon recommends breast lift to restore the appearance of volume in women who don't care to have more children. Many women have a good amount of breast tissue and they're really not looking to go bigger; they just need a lift. Rather than put in implants to add volume, the breast lift uses your own breast tissue and moves it up into the upper area of the breast. The nipple and areola are moved up as well and reduced if needed to give a full, perky appearance.

Another option is natural breast augmentation, as was recently mentioned on abcnews.go.com and today.msnbc.com. This procedure is a two in one surgery in which fat is removed from a portion of the body where you may not want it, the stomach or thighs for example. That fat is then injected into the breast, providing more volume. Some doctors use a procedure that can concentrate the pluripotent stem cells - those that can grow any kind of bodily tissue - in the fat so that when the stem cells are injected into the breast, they can actually grow new breast tissue. Though the FDA has recently lifted the ban on this procedure, it is still unknown what the long term effects of the fat injections may be and there is concern about calcifications and trouble with mammograms in the patient's future.

For additional information on natural breast augmentation:

  • Actual Before and After Photos of Natural Breast Augmentation
  • Natural Breast Augmentation: Stem Cells and Fat Transfer In Lieu of Implants
  • Natural Breast Augmentation: A New Option
  • Can You Really Transfer Fat From My Butt to My Boobs?