When considering breast augmentation, you and your Board-certified plastic surgeon have 4 main decisions to make:
- The size of the breast implant
- The choice of saline vs. silicone breast implants
- Whether to place the implants over vs. under the muscle.
- The location of the incision
Subglandular – this means placement of the implant above the pectoral muscles but below the mammary gland. Technically, all implants are subglandular because implants placed below muscle are also below the mammary gland. However, this term refers to placement just below the mammary glands and above the muscle. This placement is also referred to as retroglandular or submammary.
Submuscular – although many refer to subpectoral placement as “submuscular,” fully submuscular placement actually means placing the implant under not only the pectoralis major muscle (covering the upper portion of the implant) but also under related muscles at the lower half of the implant.
