Breast Surgery Blog in Korea
Evidence-based guides on augmentation, revision surgery, implant selection, recovery, capsular contracture, and incision options, from UNE Plastic Surgery in Gangnam, Seoul.
Incision Options
Transaxillary Breast Augmentation: What Changed in 118 Patients With and Without an Endoscope
Grade 1 animation deformity occurred in 20 of 59 patients without direct vision and 8 of 59 with a video-assisted endoscopic technique (p = 0.016). Capsular contracture showed no significant difference. What a randomized trial of 118 patients found, and what it did not.
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Post-op Bra Guide After Breast Augmentation
Which bra and when after augmentation: a compression bra 24/7 for 4 weeks, a sports bra to about 5 months, a normal bra after, and underwire only after 6 months. Why the garment matters, the schedule, and warning signs.
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Aquafilling Breast Filler: What the Evidence Shows
No symptoms does not mean no inflammation. What aquafilling is, what tissue analysis found, why it is hard to remove, the larger reports, and the verified options, with cited studies.
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Breast Reduction: Who Needs It, What to Expect
Breast reduction is decided from daily life, not appearance. When it is indicated, how the amount and method are chosen, and recovery, satisfaction, and complications, with cited studies.
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Breast Lift (Mastopexy): What It Does and Doesn't
A breast lift repositions the nipple and gland of a sagging breast; it does not add volume, and a lift alone tends to make the cup slightly smaller. Ptosis grading, when an implant alone works, waterfall and Snoopy deformity, and recovery, with cited studies.
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Mondor's Syndrome After Breast Augmentation
A firm tender cord under the breast or down the inner arm a few weeks after augmentation is Mondor's syndrome. After surgery it is almost always benign and self-limiting; the course, causes, frequency, and the one situation that needs evaluation, with cited studies.
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Breast Implants: A 130-Year Safety History
The 130 years of breast implants are a history of learning safety, and the 1992 FDA moratorium was the turning point. Paraffin to gummy bear, the moratorium, the science that cleared silicone, and BIA-ALCL and BII today, with cited studies.
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Cup Size vs cc: What Actually Sets Breast Size
A cup is a circumference difference, not an absolute size, so the same cc lands one to two cups apart. What sets cup size, the cc-to-cup range, the five things that split the same cc, and why cc is set last, with cited studies.
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Breast Implant Types: Shape, Surface, Fill, Profile
An implant is described on four axes - shape, surface, fill, profile. What each means, the evidence on smooth vs textured and capsular contracture, the brands used in Korea (Motiva, Mentor, Sebbin discontinued), and sizing from diameter, with cited studies.
Read GuideRevision Surgery
Bottoming Out After Breast Augmentation
Bottoming out is the implant alone dropping so the nipple sits relatively high and the lower breast bulges. The four causes, how it differs from ptosis and a double bubble, prevention by conservative pocket and IMF, and correction by capsulorrhaphy, mesh, and size, with cited studies.
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Double Bubble Deformity: Cause and Correction
A double bubble is the old fold remaining as a line above a dropped implant. It does not resolve on its own. The fold anatomy (fascia, not a ligament), three causes, why correction splits two ways, and prevention by preop measurement, with cited studies.
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Symmastia: Causes, Correction, Prevention
Symmastia is when implants meet over the sternum and the cleavage disappears. It does not resolve on its own. The four causes (84.9% submuscular), rebuilding the wall, correction methods, recurrence and size, and prevention at the first surgery, with cited studies.
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Tuberous Breast: Correction and Options
A tuberous breast is a structural problem, not a volume one, so an implant alone often falls short. The Grolleau and Kolker classifications, the four things combined in correction, reported results, recovery, and conditions that make results harder, with cited studies.
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Breast Asymmetry: Causes and Correction
Almost no breasts are identical; the question is the cause. The five causes, the diagnostic criteria (volume 50cc, nipple 1cm, fold 1cm), correction options, and the honest limit that perfect symmetry is difficult, with cited studies.
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Breast Implant Rippling: Causes and Prevention
Rippling shows when thin tissue, low cohesivity, subglandular placement, or a large cc combine. The four causes, rates by implant/position/body type, four-step prevention, and correction options including fat grafting, with cited studies.
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Breast Augmentation with Pectus Excavatum
Mild-to-moderate pectus excavatum can be improved by augmentation, but the key is pocket design matched to the chest wall, not a big implant. Five accompanying findings, the big-implant myth, base width and medial pocket control, and safe-approach principles, with a cited study.
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Breast Augmentation and Breastfeeding
Breastfeeding after augmentation is usually possible, with a slightly lower success rate. Three studies (63-93% success), the incision-position myth, whether silicone reaches milk (formula is 80x higher), plane, and pre-op disclosure, with cited studies.
Read GuideIncision Options
Axillary vs Inframammary Incision
Both incisions are 3.0-3.5 cm; what differs is where the scar sits and the distance to the pocket. Scar visibility, the papers compared, why the endoscopic technique decides the result, revision access, and the scar timeline, with cited studies.
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Breast Implants vs Fat Grafting
Implants keep the placed cc; fat grafting keeps only the 50-80% that takes. Compared on volume (mean 297 mL), complications (1.6% major), and the screening variable, plus who suits which and the hybrid option, with a cited review.
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Breast Implant Illness (BII): What the Evidence Says
BII is a real complaint but not yet a diagnosis. The reported symptoms (MAUDE 751), whether removal helps (17-84%), the autoimmune evidence, capsulectomy and en bloc, and why explantation alone is not cosmetic, with cited studies.
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Breast Augmentation Recovery: The Four Tracks
Recovery moves as four tracks at different speeds: pain in days, swelling in a month, shape in 3-6 months, plus a stage timeline, exercise by type, swelling vs contracture, and warning signs, with cited studies.
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Breast Revision Surgery: Causes and Timing
When to have revision and why: the seven causes, timing by cause, remove-and-replace or not, recurrence by technique (same pocket 33-54% vs plane change 0-12%), and why revision is harder, with cited studies.
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Breast Augmentation Complications and Warning Signs
Complications by how often and when: first-week emergencies, capsular contracture, rupture, malposition, chronic pain, animation deformity, BII, BIA-ALCL, cancer risk, and fat grafting, with cited studies.
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Breast Surgery Preoperative Tests: A Checklist
What tests you get before breast surgery and why, general vs twilight anesthesia, the six things to disclose, why smoking stops for 8 weeks, fasting, and when a date is rescheduled, with cited sources.
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Breast Implant Size: Choosing by Body Type
Implant size is set by chest and breast base width, not cc. The High Five measurements, footprint-conus-envelope, sizing by body type, and the ballerina breast trend, with cited studies.
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Breast Implant Placement: Dual Plane vs Subfascial
Where the implant sits decides shape, feel, and recovery. The four layers, dual plane vs subfascial, the Tebbetts Type I-III classification, the 20 mm rule, and capsular contracture by plane, with cited studies.
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Do Breast Implants Need Replacing Every 10 Years?
No rule requires replacing breast implants every 10 years. Where the myth came from, what the FDA actually recommends (imaging at 5-6 years, then every 2-3), 10-year Core Study outcomes, and silent rupture.
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How to Verify a Board-Certified Plastic Surgeon in Korea — A Patient Checklist
What the Korean specialist system means, four ways to verify a surgeon, facility safety checks including anesthesia and operating-room CCTV rules, red flags, and five questions to ask in consultation.
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Breast Augmentation Recovery in Korea — Week-by-Week Guide
A clinical breakdown of breast augmentation recovery, from day 1 through 1 year. Covers pain, swelling, drain output, activity restrictions, and follow-up imaging.
Read GuideImplant Comparison
Motiva vs Mentor Breast Implants — Side-by-Side Comparison
Shell technology, gel cohesiveness, capsular contracture rates, warranty terms, and indication patterns. Includes FDA Core Study data for Mentor and published Motiva SmoothSilk data.
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Capsular Contracture After Breast Augmentation — Baker Grading, Causes, Treatment
Baker grading I-IV explained, common risk factors (biofilm, subglandular plane, hematoma, smoking), surface technology comparison, and surgical vs conservative management.
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Breast Revision Surgery in Korea — Comprehensive Guide
Indications, timing, and surgical planning for breast revision. Covers capsular contracture, rupture, displacement, symmastia, rippling, double bubble, and bottoming out.
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Breast Augmentation Incision Options — Inframammary, Transaxillary, Periareolar, Transumbilical
Comparing the four common incision approaches by scar visibility, pocket-control accuracy, complication trade-offs, and suitability for different body types.
Read GuideComplications
Breast Implant Rupture — Symptoms, Diagnosis, and Treatment
Intracapsular vs extracapsular rupture, Silent Rupture, ultrasound vs MRI sensitivity, FDA imaging guidelines, and revision options (explant, exchange, capsulectomy).
Read GuideRevision Surgery
Breast Revision with Capsulectomy and ADM — Surgical Techniques
En-bloc vs partial capsulectomy, neo-pocket creation, ADM (acellular dermal matrix) reinforcement, and implant selection for revision after capsular contracture or symmastia.
Read GuideFrequently Asked Questions
Who writes the medical content on this site?
Articles are written and reviewed by Dr. Kim Uigeon, a board-certified plastic surgeon at UNE Plastic Surgery in Gangnam, Seoul, who practises in breast surgery only. Where an article reports findings from published research, the study is named so that readers can check the source. Clinical opinion is separated from study findings in the text.
Can these articles replace a consultation?
No. The articles explain general principles, published evidence and the trade-offs between options. They cannot assess chest width, tissue thickness, skin elasticity or medical history, which are what determine whether a given technique or implant is appropriate. Any plan, timeline or expected result has to be confirmed by examination at a consultation.