Richard V. Dowden, M.D., C.M., F.A.C.S.

Certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery

Cosmetic and Plastic Surgery, Inc.
6770 Mayfield Road, Suite 410
(Mayfield Heights) Cleveland, Ohio 44124
(440) 449-7470


Answers to Frequently Asked Questions about
breast enlargement through-the-navel ( TUBA ):

Is the umbilical method safe for implants?

Yes. In fact there is some reason to expect that inserting the implants through the navel is even safer for the implants than many of the older methods, because the implant is far away from any incision suturing and therefore from needles. (When this technique was first being developed, the early experimental work used the implant itself as a sort of forceful hydraulic expander, which did subject the implants to excessive stresses and did lead to a slightly higher rate of deflation, but that is no longer done.) The navel method as it is now performed has not resulted in any increase in the small deflation percentage.

Another false criticism of the TUBA method, offered by people who do not know much about the method, has been that the "warranty is voided" if the implant is put in through the navel. This error is based on ignorance about the procedure. Even some of the manufacturer's reps have misconceptions about the procedure! A surgeon certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery, who has been properly trained in the TUBA method, and who has attended meetings and read current publications on the technique, will not be doing anything to justify voiding of any warranty by doing the TUBA method. Most of the criticism comes from people who cannot perform it and who are profoundly uninformed about the technique.


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Note that while the information given by Dr. Dowden during a consultation is completely current and up-to-date, the information of this website is only as current as the date of last update, and therefore may become out-of-date.

6770 Mayfield Road, Suite 410
(Mayfield Heights) Cleveland, Ohio 44124
(440) 449-7470

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Last Update: 4:12 PM on 06/01/2008
URL of Dr. Dowden's home page: http://dr-dowden.com/index.html
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URL of breast enlargement via navel page: http://dr-dowden.com/main/tuba.html

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