Breast augmentation has long been the most popular cosmetic surgical procedure. A major part of the reason for this is the fact that there are continual advances in terms of implant materials to produce a more natural look and feel to the augmented breasts, as well as increased safety with less chance of leakage or rupture. However, a look back at the history of breast augmentation and breast implants can allow us to appreciate just how far the procedure and materials have come since their rather crude beginnings in the late 19th century.

19th Century

While there were almost certainly earlier attempts to surgically enhance the breasts, the first recorded surgical examples were from 1889. A surgeon, Dr. Robert Gersuny was using paraffin wax as breast implants. Sadly, they were not successful, and the end result was that the breasts became hard and lumpy. Patients were also susceptible to infections and paraffinomas (tumors as a result of the paraffin), which could lead to cancer.

In 1895, Dr. Vincenz Czerney reconstructed a breast that was lost to full mastectomy. He did this by transplanting a large, benign, fatty lump (lipoma) from the patient's side to her chest. This is considered to be the first successful case of breast reconstruction. Unfortunately, as often happens with any type of fat transfer, the lipoma was eventually reabsorbed back into the body.

20th Century

The early part of the 20th century saw the advent of any number of rather dubious materials being used as implants for breast augmentations. These ranged from ivory, glass or steel balls, to ground rubber, animal cartilage, or foam sponges. As you may well expect, these all proved to be about as successful as the paraffin wax from the 19th century.

Between the 1940s and the mid-1960s, approximately 50,000 women received liquid silicone injections directly into their breasts, despite the FDA's strict disapproval of such a procedure. This practice started among prostitutes in the Pacific Theater during World War II, in an effort to appeal more to American GIs. Many of these women ended up with hardened breasts, which often led to the need for a mastectomy.

Modern Breast Implants

The early 1960s saw the beginning of the first implant technologies that were the direct precursors to the ones that are still in use today. Under the auspices of the Dow Corning company, Drs. Thomas Cronin and Frank Gerow developed the first, fully encased, silicone breast implant, and the first successful augmentation procedure with this implant was performed a year later. Two years later, the first saline breast implant was developed by the French manufacturers, Laboratoires Arion.

The FDA temporarily banned the use of silicone implants in 1992 due to concerns about leaks or ruptures, which cannot be detected without the use of an MRI. Pending further safety studies and advances in manufacturing technology, this ruling was reversed in 2006, and silicone breast implants were once again allowed on the market.

The most recent advance in breast implant technology has been in the form of cohesive gel implants, which cannot leak or rupture. This is certainly a far cry from the rather unsavory beginnings of breast augmentations and implant materials.