Atlanta Plastic Surgery - Summary of Invisible Scar Technique Advantages
Dr. Jones believes the following are the key advantages of his method of breast augmentation:
1. The scar is virtually invisible. Dr. Jones cannot detect the location of the incision 6-12 months post surgery in about 85% of the cases. In the remaining 15% of the cases, Dr. Jones has been able to find the scar, but it is difficult. He assigns the credit to what he has coined the Stanford stitching and the Paris trick. Stanford stitching is a special way to close the incision so that the width of the scar is minimized. He picked it up while he was a resident at Stanford University. A trick he learned in Paris allows him to remove the stitches easily and painlessly, leaving the healed wound unaffected.
2. The implant is hardly felt or seen, and the wrinkling is minimal. A boyfriend or a husband has difficulty knowing if his girlfriend or wife has implants. The implant is fully covered by the muscle and fascia, which means that feeling the implant edges when touching or gently massaging the breast is hard. While wrinkling, also called rippling, is mostly an issue with implants placed on top of the breast muscle, visible wrinkling is possible even with implants behind the breast muscle. Dr. Jones has had minimal issues with implant wrinkling and credits that to 100% muscle coverage of the implant versus the traditional 70% coverage when the implant is placed inside the back of the muscle with an opening on the bottom. What also prevents wrinkling is the way Dr. Jones manipulates the implant securely and tightly into the pocket he creates for it during the operation.
3. The breast muscle strength is not diminished. Since Dr. Jones does not damage the muscle by cutting it, its strength is retained. This is important since the muscle now acts as the internal, permanent bra for the implant. Maintaining full integrity of the breast muscle and having it surround the implant on all sides—including the bottom—allows the muscle to do its job supporting the new breast as naturally and effectively as it can.
4. Breasts do not droop or sag as fast, and hardly ever bottom out. 100% muscle support on all sides of the implant minimizes the risk of bottoming out. Also, the total muscle coverage creates an internal, built-in bra that holds the breast in a naturally elevated position, with the body’s own muscle strength. In fact, Dr. Jones has seen patients with IST implants not drooping for over 16 years even after several pregnancies and breast-feeding.
5. Breasts will maintain their smooth appearance and feel. Because Dr. Jones’s method is essentially bloodless from not cutting the muscle, there will be minimal internal scarring. Wherever a muscle is cut, a body forms a scar to repair it. Scar tissue is harder and less flexible than the muscle fiber and as it ages it tightens. When touching such an area, it feels as if there is a little nudge of something hard, not part of an optimal breast augmentation.
6. Risk of capsular contracture is minimized. Capsular contracture is the most common complication with breast implants. Dr. Jones’s approach minimizes the risk of it in several ways. By minimizing bleeding, Dr. Jones minimizes risks hematoma and scarring inside the breast. Scarring inside the breast tightens the area surrounding the implant, thus squeezing the implant and making it feel unnaturally firm. Hematoma can cause inflammatory reaction which in turn can lead to capsular contracture. By using only the safest procedures at highest levels of excellence, Dr. Jones prevents transient germ contaminations or infections, all considered major causes of capsular contracture.
7. The results are low maintenance. The patient can do regular mammograms and does not require any special X-ray regimen. Dr. Jones assures redo’s on his work are very rare (— in 30 years) and even any touch-ups are likely never needed. Neither is there a need to worry about leakage. Instead of using silicone implants, Dr. Jones chooses to use saline implants which do not leak silicon.
8. Further breast lifts are possible. With Dr. Jones approach, the patient reserves the option to do a breast lift later if she desires one. However, with Dr. Jones work, breast lift is rarely needed or desired. On the other hand, when the implant is placed above the muscle, it makes future lifts difficult and more prone to complications.
