Procedure
Breast Augmentation
Few procedures can improve a patient’s confidence as effectively as breast augmentation. When approached with a patient-centered mindset, this procedure empowers women to feel comfortable in their own skin. Whether your breasts have changed after pregnancy and weight loss, or they simply never developed the way you wanted, breast augmentation offers a customizable, long-lasting solution backed by decades of refinement.
At The Gillian Institute in Indianapolis, board-certified plastic surgeon Dr. Kimberly Short brings an artist’s eye and a surgeon’s precision to every procedure, helping each patient achieve a result that looks and feels like a natural part of them.
What Is Breast Augmentation?
Breast augmentation, clinically known as augmentation mammoplasty, is a surgical procedure that uses implants to enhance the size, shape and volume of the breasts. It is one of the most well-studied procedures in the world of plastic surgery, offering a high degree of customization in terms of implant type, size, shape, placement and incision technique.
According to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, breast augmentation has ranked among the top cosmetic surgical procedures in the United States for more than two decades, with over 300,000 procedures performed annually.
Skilled surgeons like Dr. Kimberly Short personalize each breast augmentation procedure to each patient’s unique features, motivations and goals.
How Does Breast Augmentation Work?
Today, surgeons and patients can choose between multiple approaches to breast augmentation. The conventional approach involves creating a pocket within the breast tissue and placing an implant either above or below the chest muscle.
Dr. Short performs the procedure under general anesthesia on an outpatient basis, typically in one to two hours. She uses the Keller Funnel, a no-touch insertion technique that allows for smaller incisions while reducing the risk of contamination and lowering the likelihood of capsular contracture (hardened, contracted scar tissue forming in the treatment area).
Once your implants are in place, Dr. Short carefully assesses their appearance before making any final adjustments and closing the incisions.
What Does Breast Augmentation Achieve?
Patients often choose breast augmentation for a variety of deeply personal reasons. The most common include:
- Increasing breast size and projection in women with naturally smaller breasts
- Restoring volume and fullness lost after pregnancy, breastfeeding or significant weight loss
- Correcting breast asymmetry or unevenness
- Improving breast contour and overall body proportion
- Addressing underdevelopment due to conditions such as Poland’s Syndrome
Breast augmentation patients should be cautioned that the procedure does not correct significant sagging on its own. Patients who have lost skin elasticity may benefit the most from an approach that combines breast augmentation with a breast lift for a fuller, more lifted result.
Candidates
Good candidates for breast augmentation are women in overall good health who have realistic expectations about the outcomes this procedure can deliver. You may be a strong candidate if you:
- Are bothered by breasts that are smaller, flatter or more asymmetrical than you’d like
- Have experienced volume loss following pregnancy, breastfeeding or weight changes
- Have stable body weight and are not currently pregnant or breastfeeding
- Do not smoke, or are willing to stop smoking at least two weeks before surgery
- Are not dealing with active infections or health conditions that could impair healing
During your consultation, Dr. Short will review your medical history, perform a physical examination and align with your vision to confirm whether augmentation is the right approach for you. Sometimes, combining or replacing breast augmentation with another procedure is the best course of action.
How to Prepare for Breast Augmentation
Every patient and surgeon should embrace the mentality that proper breast augmentation preparation begins weeks, not days, before the procedure. After your initial consultation, Dr. Short will provide a complete set of pre-operative instructions tailored to your aesthetic concerns, goals and other circumstances.
While recommendations vary slightly across patients, you can generally expect to be advised against taking certain medications and supplements, especially anti-inflammatory medications, in the weeks leading up to your procedure. Patients who smoke are also asked to quit at least several weeks prior to breast augmentation surgery.
Arranging for someone you trust to drive you home and stay with you in the early recovery phase (one to two days is typically long enough) is key to managing the early recovery window smoothly. Setting up a space at home where you can recover will also dramatically improve your early recovery experience.
What to Expect During Your Breast Augmentation Procedure
On the day of your surgery, Dr. Short will mark the appropriate treatment areas to ensure precise implant placement before you’re brought to the operating room. One of the practice’s board-certified anesthesiologists, affiliated with St. Vincent Hospital, a top-rated Indianapolis facility, will administer general anesthesia. Patients rarely experience nausea and typically wake comfortably.
Once you’re under anesthesia, Dr. Short makes the incision in the agreed-upon area. The inframammary crease (the fold beneath the breast) is a common incision location for breast augmentation because it offers the best visual access and the lowest risk of capsular contracture compared to other incision sites. Using the Keller Funnel, the implant is placed with a no-touch technique into the prepared pocket. After evaluating size and position with you in an upright posture, Dr. Short closes the incisions with steri-strips. The entire procedure takes roughly one to two hours.
How Long Does It Take to See Results From Breast Augmentation?
Most patients are pleased with their results immediately following surgery, even with the initial swelling that partially obscures their final contours. As swelling resolves over the following weeks, implants settle into their final position and the result continues to look more natural. Full results are typically visible within three to six months.
How Long Do Breast Augmentation Results Last?
Breast implants are not designed to last a lifetime, but when well cared for, many patients can go 10 to 20 years or more without needing revision. Augmentation won’t prevent changes in breast tissue associated with aging, weight fluctuation or pregnancy. Dr. Short monitors your results over time and can recommend options such as breast implant refresh or revision if your goals change or if a revision makes the most sense.
Beyond implant type, Dr. Short will discuss profile (the degree of outward projection), size (measured in cubic centimeters rather than cup size, typically ranging from 200 to 850 cc) and shape (round versus anatomical teardrop). Implant placement, whether subpectoral, subglandular, subfascial or dual plane, is also customized to your tissue characteristics and the look you want to achieve.
How Much Does Breast Augmentation Cost?
Your total investment will depend on implant type, placement technique and whether any additional procedures are combined with your augmentation. A detailed price breakdown is provided at your consultation. Financing options are available to make the process more manageable.
Can Breast Augmentation Be Combined With Other Procedures?
Yes. Many patients choose to combine breast augmentation with a breast lift to address both volume and skin laxity with one plan. Some patients undergoing a mommy makeover pair augmentation with a tummy tuck or liposuction to achieve more comprehensive body-contouring results.
For patients who prefer to avoid implants altogether, fat transfer to the breast is a popular and effective alternative, using your own body fat to achieve a modest, natural-looking increase in size. Patients with concerns about nipple position or appearance may also benefit from a concurrent nipple enhancement.
Schedule Your Breast Augmentation Consultation in Indianapolis
Dr. Kimberly Short is among the 10% of plastic surgeons in the country to complete multiple aesthetic surgery fellowships. She has trained with leading experts across the United States, France, England and Scotland. Her meticulous technique, compassionate approach and commitment to natural-looking results have made her a trusted choice for breast augmentation in Indianapolis, Carmel and Fishers.
Schedule your virtual or in-person consultation at The Gillian Institute today. Call our Northside Indianapolis office at (317) 913-3260 to get started.