NYC plastic surgeon soon to offer ‘vacation breasts’

Too flat, too ample, just the right handful… Our society, both men and women alike, is obsessed with breasts. Women in particular worry about looking perfect in their clothes and having the right curves, but going under the knife to achieve a larger breast size, like any surgical procedure, has its risks and, of course, there is the price tag.

Dr. Norman Rowe, a New York City plastic surgeon, who not long ago invented the "InstaBreasts," a non-invasive breast augmentation procedure that lasts only 24 hours, is now in the works to offer women a chance to test drive a bigger bosom for a longer period of time. With "vacation breasts," women will get to enjoy the greater voluptuousness for up to three weeks, the perfect amount of time for a vacation or a special occasion.

Before "InstaBreasts," Rowe had already been injecting saline solution into patients considering chin and cheek implants and thought: Why not breasts, too?

"InstaBreasts" only takes 20 minutes and can easily be scheduled during a lunch break from work. Rowe told ABC News that he can usually increase a woman's breast size by a cup or a cup and a half by injecting a saline solution directly into the subcutaneous breast tissue. There is another ingredient in the solution that Rowe would not name but did say it is an additive commonly used in other medical procedures. You can see pictures of before and after results here. (Warning: Photos are NSFW.)

The longer lasting "vacation breasts" will also be able to be achieved through the same process. While it is touted as the perfect bikini top filler for the next vacation, this new procedure as well as the 24 hour version were inspired by Rowe's wish to help his breast implant patients decide if the more permanent surgical implants were right for them, he told philly.com.

"Typically we use 3-D photo imaging to create an implant that the patient wears in her bra to give her an idea of what she will look like after the surgery. But it is not quite the same experience. Patients have said to me time and time again that they wished they could see what it would feel like on the inside and live with it for awhile," he explained.

Taking bigger breasts out for a test drive allows a patient who is considering surgical augmentation to experiment with the size, shape and feel of it, which will help her determine if this path is the right one.

"In my practice, 75 percent of the women do end up getting the surgery, but 25 percent don't. This speaks volumes. After trying it on, they realize that this is not what they want," he said to philly.com. "It is a great tool to have in the tool box."

In describing the process, he explained that only one needle stick is needed to inject the saline into the breast tissue for both the "InstaBreasts" and the upcoming "vacation breasts." He said it was like filling an empty balloon with water.

"It is more about finding the right location for the injection and not the volume of the solution," he said. "It is the same with the breast implants. They need to be placed in the right pocket."

Only about 200 to 250 cubic centimeters of solution is used per breast, and a woman's body naturally washes the solution out of her system.

The big question might be: Will "vacation breasts" just suddenly go dramatically flat when the time is up? Rowe reassures that a woman will not have the Cinderella effect at all. Her breasts will just gradually deflate.

Rowe does warn, though, that this procedure is not optimal for patients who need a breast lift because too much saline would be needed.

Patients who do go on to get implants after the "InstaBreasts" have the cost of the procedure deducted from the surgery fee, which might be an added incentive for some.

Rowe is in discussion with the Federal Drug Administration to have the "vacation breasts" available to the public by 2016. Today, the procedure for "InstaBreasts" costs about $2,500, but Rowe hopes that the demand for "vacation breasts" will keep the new procedure's cost down.

To learn more about Dr. Rowe's work, visit his website.