Q) Are there any bad things or side-effects of having implants that are too big? 

There are many problems. I will share them one by one.

1. Over-dissection

Measuring the width (cm) of the breast and fitting the correct width of the implant would be the first stage of selecting the volume of the implant.
 


If the volume of the implant is too big, then the width is wider as well. If a wide implant is put into a narrower pocket, then the surgeon would have to dissect the side of the ribs or dissect into the mid part of the chest.

If the side of the ribs is dissected, then there is high possibility of damaging the nerves of the blood vessel. This damage would trouble the patient continuously for a long time.

But if the inner part such as the mid point of the chest is dissected (due to the bigger size of the implant) then the two implants might touch each other (Synmastia). This side-effect, if caused, would last forever.
 

2. Implant Collapse 

If the implant is put into a pocket that is narrow, the implant might collapse and lose its shape.
No matter how large an implant is, which is made of half liquid, cohesive gel, it can be forced into the pocket that is small.

Such collapsed implant would leave some space at the folded part, and the folded part would hold onto anything that is positioned. This would cause seroma, inflammation, and hematoma.

If the implant is folded, there would be much friction caused when using the arms. This friction would damage the implant exterior causing leaks.
 

3. Original breast atrophy

Let’s say that there are two women with same sized breasts. The widths are the same and the extent to how much the skin extends is the same as well.

One patient uses 290cc implant that is appropriate for her. The other uses 340cc implant that is larger than the appropriate size.

Two years have passed after the surgery. Who do you think would have bigger breasts?
This might seem like an easy question to answer but rarely does one answer the correct one. The reasons why the answer to this question is different from common sense is that the body is not like a mannequin and the body changes through time.

Silicone is located between strong ribs and smooth skin. The ribs under the implant are strong, and the skin above the implants is smooth, therefore, the skin is pressurized.
The pressure on the skin continues 365 days a year.

Let’s say that you have a bandage on your arms for 2 years. When you open up the bandage, the arm would be thinner than the other without the bandage.

This applies to the breast with the silicone implant as well. The pressurized skin would not have blood circulating therefore becoming thinner and wrinklier.
We call this atrophy.

The 340cc implant has more pressure than the 290cc one. The patient with 340cc implant may have her breasts look bigger right after the surgery, but after 2 years, there would be atrophy that causes the breasts look like those with 290cc.

The patient with 290cc would have skin that well preserved therefore, the breasts look feel more natural than the one with 340cc.

4. Unnatural appearance and feel 

If the implant is too big, then it would pressurize the skin a lot and pull the skin as well.
Let’s say that you bought a leather jacket that fits you tightly from a shopping mall. You might not be able to close the zips easily. The implant would be much like closing the zips of the jacket.

Others might think that this is too small as well. Your jacket might look all new, but if you touch it, you will feel that the jacket feels tight and rough.

This happens to the breast. The breast would look unnatural, and it would feel rough making others recognize that there is something inside the breast.
 

5. Ugly scar  

If the pocket is too small for the implant, then there has to be much stress when putting in the implant. The tools used for this input might cause damage on the skin.
When the implant goes through the entrance, there would be much stimulation and friction on the skin.

Wherever the surgery is, this type of activity would cause less circulation of blood on the scar, causing the scar to worsen.

6. Visible margin or rippling

If the implant is too big, the margin of the breast would be formed elsewhere then the place that it is to be formed. This happens to all parts of the breast. If the margin starts from a different location then it is supposed to, the breast would look unnatural.
Also, if the implant is folded and this can be seen at places where the skin is very thin, we call this “rippling”.
 
There is not one patient who does not want a large implant, but there is a limit to this. If you ignore this limit and carry on with using larger implant than the one you are supposed to use, then there would be discomfort and side-effects. Majority of these problems cannot be fixed at later stages.


Today, we looked at what happens when you use large implant that is not appropriate for you.

Thank you for reading the post. Have a great day.