Big Boobs Bounce Back

By Jenifer Joseph
ABCNews.com

Tracy, a 34-year-old mother of three, contemplated having breast implants for 10 years before finally taking the saline plunge last month.

ìI chose to do this, î she says, ìbecause after having nothing all your life, you get a little depressed when you put clothes on and they donít fit. The pros must outweigh the cons. They did for me.î

Tracy is among the new generation of breast-enhancement sisters who have not been put off by the litigious thrashing implant makers have endured in recent years.

In fact, the number of women having breast implants has quadrupled since 1992, and the U.S. breast-enlargement rate is now higher than ever before, says the American Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons.

Slippery Silicone Slope

Dr. Ronald Iverson, the immediate past president of the society, attributes the explosion in breast enlargements to a shift in public confidence in the safety of implants.

ìThe impact of all the negative stories about silicone implants was horrendous, and it scared a lot of women away,î says Iverson, whose implant business is back to its 1990 levelóabout 125 a year. ìBut the data continues to show that theyíre safe and effective.î

Despite more than a dozen major epidemiological studies that failed to show a link between implants and any threatening illnesses, more than 170,000 women claimed that their silicone gel implants sabotaged their health.

The headlines of the early í90sóìBreast Implants: Ticking Time Bombs?îóare nowhere to be found these days, especially now that the silicone sort are banned except for use in women involved in clinical studies.

Only Saltwater Bombs

With saline implants, the most common complaints are severe postsurgical pain and infection, and hardening of the breast tissue. If the implants rupture, which happens to about 3 percent of them, the saline solution is absorbed by the body.

Dr. Michael Vincent, a plastic surgeon in Rockville, Md., says most of his patients are happy with their saline implants. He just finished one more breast enlargement surgery and, he says, now has one more satisfied customer.

ìNinety nine percent of them love their new breasts and have better self images,î says the 16-year plastic surgery veteran. ìSociety, TV, moviesóthereís a trend in what women see as a beautiful body image. I provide the service, and the demand is there.î

Still, there are some women, like MTV star Jenny McCarthy, who regret having implants because they feel theyíre no longer taken seriously. Men talk to the boobs, not to her, McCarthy wrote in her first book Jen-X.

Tracy doesnít have those regrets. She walks proudly with her full B cups.

ìThis is a personal decision,î Tracy says, ìand it is not for everyone. If I could turn back the clock and do it all over again, you bet I would.î