Return to the Chicagoland Plastic Surgery web site

The desire for bigger breasts fuels a boom in augmentation surgery

From A to DD

Ask a woman about her breasts and you may often hear the word "too," as in too small, too flat, or too droopy.

Of course, if you've got the money, the desire and the courage, you don't have to put up with that. You can buy a perfect pair of breast implants. They even come with a 10-year warranty.

That's what Tampa travel agent Eleanor Hess did.

"I got tired of the way I looked in shirts," Hess, 37, said. "Shirts wouldn't fit. I was extremely flat-chested. I was happy before I had children. I just wasn't happy afterward. I had two kids that I breast-fed and they kind of took everything up top that I had. I was a 34, full B, and I went down to less than an A cup."

And now?

"I would have to say it completes me as a woman," Hess said. "It makes me feel more feminine. I like when I look in the mirror. I can wear anything and still feel comfortable about myself.

"Looks from other people don't concern me. I'm married with kids. To be honest with you, I feel a lot more sexy, so sex in my relationship with my husband has changed."

Last year, breast augmentation surgery was the most common cosmetic procedure performed by plastic surgeons, according to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons. That represents a 593 percent increase since 1992, the year the Food and Drug Administration banned silicone breast implants for cosmetic surgery amid concerns about ruptures and leaks and associated health problems. The majority of women who sought the surgery since 1992 received saline-filled implants.

The FDA has scheduled hearings on Tuesday and Wednesday to consider one manufacturer's application to lift the restriction on the sale of silicone gel implants. Women's groups plan to hold a rally today in front of the Department of Health and Human Services building in Washington to protest lifting the ban. They are concerned about the lack of long-term research on the connection between silicone gel implants and the incidence of cancer and fibromyalgia.

Science actually did prove that there was really no link between the connective tissue diseases they were worried about in the early '90s. There were more than 65 studies done by plastic surgeons that really proved there was no link and no higher incidence of breast cancer among women who had the implants.

After the previous bad publicity faded, the demand for implants increased.

Breast augmentation patients tend to be young women who just want to be in better proportion and women who want to regain the tissue they had before pregnancy and breast-feeding.

Maureen Duffy, 30, a Chicago forensic chemist, falls into the former category.

"I have a fine self-image and I did before the surgery," Duffy said. "I'm short and thin, very petite. When it came to dressing up, I felt and looked younger.

"It was a hassle to go shopping. They make only some [garments] in size XS. Sometimes I was wearing kids' clothing. When it came to formals for weddings, it was expensive to have alterations done.

"I decided to do something about it. I wasn't looking to be a DD. I didn't want to be looked at like a showgirl. I went from an A cup to a BC."

Duffy said she was open about having the augmentation surgery, telling people beforehand that she would look different.

Of course people did notice and asked her questions out of curiosity. Men, she said, told her, " It's good that you didn't go really big because of your frame."

The man she was dating at the time of her surgery was adamantly against it, ("he freaked out"), she said, telling her that he liked her the way she was. Duffy suspects he was worried about competition.

Nicole Rouviere, 32, of Independence, Mo., said she had small breasts and never considered doing anything to change them until after pregnancy and breast-feeding. They were "saggy," she said as opposed to their former state of "small and cute."

Rouviere changed her size from a 34A to a 34DD. "I do catch men looking at my chest and, of course, that never happened before," she said.

"Just recently two men both commented on the price of them. I thought that was kind of interesting. They recognized them as implants. They were both in partying circumstances so it wasn't totally inappropriate. That's something you've got to deal with."

In a seemingly breast-worshipping society, women are bombarded with images of well-endowed women from Queen Latifah (now a spokeswoman for a line of undergarments called Curvation) and Pamela Anderson to Halle Berry and Demi Moore, to name a few.

Feeling sexier

"When you're very small-chested, you kind of feel like you're waiting for puberty to hit and you sometimes don't feel as sexy since you're not busty," Rouviere said.

"Now that I've been on both sides of the fence, I do feel a little sexier with them." As for her decision to have breast augmentation, Rouviere said: "There are so many factors that play into it and I'm sure there's definitely a cultural aspect. It wasn't the main factor. In our culture breasts are very popular. In another culture I might have gone for neck-lengthening or something else."

Dr. Rigoberto J. Mendoza, a plastic surgeon with offices in Chicago and Naperville, said that "plenty of patients bring in pictures of models and actresses and say they want to look like that.

"I think our culture has a lot to do with [women's] self-image because there are other countries where breast implants are not as popular, where more emphasis is placed on buttocks contouring."

Rebecca Fuller, of Chapin, S.C., who started an informational Web site, ImplantForum.com, said that through the Web site, she has had contact with scores of women. She doesn't believe the culture exerts a "huge pressure" on women, although she allows that it might make some smaller-breasted women feel inadequate.

"Women who get breast augmentation are actually `breast women," she said. "The majority have it done because they also like that look. They like the looks of a C or D cup over what they have, which is usually an A cup."

Fuller, 34, had breast augmentation surgery seven years ago. "I have plenty of butt, so my top didn't match my bottom," she said. "There was no Wonder or miracle bra that could help me."

Sharing experiences

She did extensive research before making her decision but thought she could have "known more." So she started the Web site, which includes everything from information on board-certified surgeons to before-and-after pictures and the opportunity for women to share experiences and concerns with other women.

Fuller proudly shows off her cleavage at the top of her Web site. Her altered body did not represent a big adjustment, she said. " I seem to be the only one who complains about this, but sleeping on my stomach has been the only difficult thing. It doesn't hurt but it's just a little uncomfortable."

Mendoza's two main categories of patients are women in their 20s who simply want enhancement, and women 35 to 40 who want implants and a lift after childbearing. But he said he is beginning to see a few older patients. Usually they are women planning to start dating post divorce or women re-entering the job market.

If there is one remark that women with breast implants cannot abide it probably is why can't they be happy the way you they are?

"You know what?" Eleanor Hess said. `I was happy before I had kids and I lost that part and I'm just taking it back."

Suicide link lacks proof

A study published earlier this month in the Annals of Plastic Surgery showed that Finnish women who have had cosmetic breast implants were three times more likely to commit suicide than the general population.

The study of 2,166 Finnish women, some of whom had implant surgery as long ago as 1971, was in line with findings from earlier studies of Swedish and American women.

Some researchers speculate that the high suicide rate may be a function of the psychological makeup of those who seek implants or difficulties with the implants that may occur years after surgery.

The studies do not prove breast implants lead to suicide. But investigators on the Finnish study said the high suicide risk supports further investigation.

--Connie Lauerman

Popular surgeries

Top five plastic surgery procedures in 2002:

Women

1. Breast augmentation

2. Liposuction

3. Nose reshaping

4. Eyelid-lift

5. Face-lift

Men

1. Nose reshaping

2. Liposuction

3. Eyelid-lift

4. Hair transplant

5. Ear restructuring

Source: American Society of Plastic Surgeons

Return to the Chicagoland Plastic Surgery web site

Chicago Botox
Breast Enhancement: Chicago Breast Augmentation & Breast Enlargement
Breast Implants Chicago – Breast Lift
Acne Treatments Chicago
Liposuction Chicago