AboutAlan M. Engler, MD, FACS Expertise Dr. Engler has answered over 2300 plastic surgery questions for Allexperts. His expertise is in cosmetic plastic surgery including breast surgery (breast enlargement with implants, breast reduction, breast lifts), liposuction, eyelid surgery, tummy tucks, facelifts etc.
Dr. Engler has been listed as one New York`s Top Doctors, and as "One of the World's Most Famous Aesthetic Surgeons" (Aesthetic Surgery, TASCHEN Books, Angelika Taschen, Editor). He is the author of 4 books, including "BodySculpture" (a best-selling plastic surgery book on breast surgery, liposuction and tummy tucks), "EyeScapes" (Plastic Surgery of the Eyelids), "Restylane," and "The Slim Book of Liposuction."
Dr. Engler has two US Patents for surgical instruments that he's designed, and has appeared on numerous television shows, including The Tyra Banks Show, The Ricki Lake Show (four times), and the Dr. Keith Ablow Show. Videos of his appearances are available on YouTube (SEARCH FOR "DR. ENGLER"). His website is www.bodysculpture.com.
Experience Dr. Alan Engler is a board-certified plastic surgeon in New York and the author of BodySculpture - Plastic Surgery of the Body for Men and Women (ISBN 0966382749) one of the top-selling plastic surgery books on amazon.com, barnesandnoble.com, etc.
Organizations belong to ASAPS (American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery); ASPS (American Society of Plastic Surgeons); ACS (American College of Surgeons); Clinical Assistant Professor of Plastic Surgery at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York
Question I am in the 3rd recovery day from breast augmentation. I went into surgery
with one breast slightly larger than the other. My surgeon intentionally
compensated the size of the implants he placed to help "equal out" the size
discrepancy. Now in the 3rd recovery day it seems the the smaller breast is
"much" bigger after implantation. Is there a chance that the "larger" breast is
more swollen after surgery because of size implant, and that the breast will
equal out in size eventually??
Answer Hi Melissa,
There's more about breast implants at my site, www.bodysculpture.com.
It is not at all uncommon to have asymmetry with breast implants, and with breasts in general. It is even more common to have degrees of asymmetry early on - ie, in the first few weeks to months after breast implant surgery - that settle down and even out over time.
And, beyond that, the situation you describe is a classic one for early asymmetry. Putting a larger implant in a smaller breast to try to even out the size of the breasts is the right thing to do, but the larger implant has a tendency to sit higher and appear more swollen early on. It is, more typically, a larger implant in a tighter space (ie, the smaller breast) that is being forced up. It will take longer for that implant to settle since the ratio of implant size to pocket is much greater for that side than for the other one (a relatively smaller implant in a relatively larger pocket). Assuming that the pockets have been fashioned correctly or adequately, and that your healing is typical, it should settle and even out very nicely, though that process may take a few weeks to a few months. That timeline, incidentally, is common for many of the asymmetries seen in the early recovery period.
