Breast augmentation: Part I--A review of the silicone prosthesis.

The present importance of breast augmentation (BA) is shown by year-on-year increases: with 8439 augmentations performed by BAAPS members in 2007 the UK still lags America where 307,000 were performed. Having survived an almost hysterical media reaction to perceived silicone health risks in the 1990s, a growing body of evidence attests to the demonstrable benefits of BA. Improved implant design coupled with surgical advances mean that high quality results with few complications can now be expected in the majority and a précis of progress is perhaps timely. This article forms part of a series that has been written to provide a 'state-of-the-art' review of contemporaneous BA practice.