See Your Plastic Surgery Results Before Surgery!

By Dr. Richard A. Baxter, MD
ThePlasticSurgeryChannel.com

Picturing your results from breast augmentation, reconstruction, and especially revision breast implant surgery can be difficult, but 3D imaging such as we now have with the VECTRA system is proving to be a major help. Image capture and processing takes only a few minutes, and the software is loaded with a database of breast implant sizes and dimensions which can be used to simulate results. While not perfect, we have found a good correlation to predicted and actual results.

Shaping the Breast Accurately

VECTRA 3D is especially useful in some of the clinical trial work we are doing on revision breast surgery and the internal bra with SERI Scaffold. For example, one of the goals is to measure how well the material supports the projection and position of the breast over time. Using VECTRA 3D analysis, we can accurately track changes in breast shape (for instance upper pole fullness).
Another feature is the ability to analyze asymmetry. Interestingly, 3D analysis reveals that everyone has some degree of breast asymmetry; size, shape, nipple position, and rib cage all factor in. VECTRA calculates breast volume and can be helpful in selecting implants to compensate for some types of asymmetry.

Face it! What you See is What you Get

VECTRA 3D can also be used for facial analysis (faces are even more asymmetrical than breasts). Facial rejuvenation is a 3-dimensional concept, whether with injectable fillers such as Voluma or Juvederm, or fat transfers as part of a facelift.

For these reasons, VECTRA 3D is both a communication tool and a better way to track results. Patients can see what implants fit their frame, rather than relying on “before and after” photos which may not represent their own body type.