Beauty Link wrote this implant guide in October 2026, and each section names its sources. A doctor has not reviewed it, so read it as general background rather than medical advice. Your surgeon is the one to ask about implants for your body.
Sources: Beauty Link team records, NHS, Smartraveller
What breast augmentation involves
Breast augmentation is often called a boob job. The NHS calls it major surgery. Implants are placed in your breasts to make them larger, change their shape, or make them more even. The NHS says the operation usually takes 60 to 90 minutes under a general anaesthetic. You may go home the same day, or stay in hospital overnight.
The American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) lists three common places for the cut, or incision:
- around the edge of the areola
- in the crease under the breast
- in the armpit
The implant then goes either under the chest muscle, or behind the breast tissue and over the muscle.
Sources: NHS, American Society of Plastic Surgeons
Implants or fat transfer
ASPS says breast augmentation uses either implants or fat moved from another part of your body. For implants, the NHS describes two types. Silicone implants are less likely to wrinkle and feel more natural, but silicone can spread into the breast and cause lumps. Saline implants are filled with salty water. They are more likely to fold, rupture or go down over time, and the saline is safely absorbed if that happens.
Implants also differ in shape, size and surface. ASPS suggests asking your surgeon which shape, size, surface texturing, incision site and placement they recommend for you. healthdirect notes that after a review by Australia's Therapeutic Goods Administration, some breast implants were removed from the Australian market.
Fat transfer is the other option. ASPS says it uses liposuction to take fat from another part of your body and inject it into your breasts. It describes this as an option for women who want a fairly small increase in size. You can read more about liposuction in Vietnam.
Breast augmentation does not fix breasts that sag a lot. ASPS says a breast lift may be needed as well, sometimes in the same operation. Our guide to a breast lift in Vietnam explains that procedure.
Sources: NHS, American Society of Plastic Surgeons, healthdirect Australia
Risks to talk through with your surgeon
The NHS says no surgery is free of risk, and complications can happen at home or abroad.
With implants, healthdirect Australia lists bleeding, infection, changes to feeling in the breast skin or nipple, fluid around the breast, and a leak or rupture. The NHS adds:
- thick, obvious scars
- the breast feeling hard as scar tissue tightens around the implant, called capsular contracture
- creases, folds or rippling of the implant
- the implant turning, which changes the shape
- making slightly less milk when breastfeeding
healthdirect lists rare but serious risks too, including blood clots, an allergic reaction to the anaesthetic, and breast implant associated cancer. It notes that implants linked with cancer in the past are no longer available. The NHS names a rare immune system cancer, BIA-ALCL, found in a very small number of people with implants. Implants also do not last for life. healthdirect says they usually need replacing after 10 to 15 years.
With fat transfer, ASPS lists cysts, infection, small calcium spots called microcalcification, the death of some fat cells, and some of the moved fat leaving the breast. It says you may need touch up injections to keep the shape.
Ask your surgeon which risks apply to the option you are considering, and how likely each one is for you.
Sources: healthdirect Australia, NHS, American Society of Plastic Surgeons
Recovery, and when to fly home
ASPS says you will wear a support bra or band after surgery, as your surgeon instructs. Sharp pain usually eases after one to five days, but soreness and swelling can last a few weeks. The NHS says to take a week or 2 off work, not to drive for at least a week, and to avoid heavy lifting or hard exercise for at least a month. It says most normal activities can return after about 6 weeks. healthdirect Australia adds that your recovery depends on how healthy you were before surgery and on your surgeon's advice.
For breast surgery, the NHS flying wait is 5 to 7 days. Flights and major operations both raise the chance of a clot, and a clot can put your life at risk. The Australian Society of Plastic Surgeons says long flights add to that clot risk after surgery. Your own surgeon will advise on your timing.
A beach week straight after implants is not what the NHS has in mind: it calls a holiday right after surgery unrealistic. Rest comes first, and it says to skip alcohol, sunbathing, sightseeing and swimming.
Sources: American Society of Plastic Surgeons, NHS, healthdirect Australia, Australian Society of Plastic Surgeons
How to check the hospital and surgeon
Smartraveller's checks apply here too. Is the hospital accredited by local authorities? Is the surgeon qualified? Do both hold indemnity and malpractice insurance?
The NHS suggests asking your surgeon:
- about their qualifications and experience
- how many breast enlargements they have done
- how many had complications
- which implant type and maker they use, and why
- what follow-up you get if things go wrong
The NHS says you should have two consultations with the surgeon who will treat you, and should not pay to see a surgeon you have not met. Watch for an implant consult run by sales staff: the Australian Society of Plastic Surgeons says overseas consults are often led by people with no medical training, and payment is often asked for first. For a fuller checklist, see our page on choosing a Vietnam plastic surgery hospital.
Sources: Smartraveller, NHS, Australian Society of Plastic Surgeons
Your implant details, and life after you fly home
Sort these out so your care can carry on at home.
- Get your implant details in writing. Ask for the brand, model, size and surface before surgery, and keep a copy.
- Take the registry form with you. The Australian Society of Plastic Surgeons says you can carry the Australian Breast Device Registry form overseas, have the hospital fill it in, then send it to the registry when you get home.
- Tell the person doing your mammogram. healthdirect warns that implants can make breast cancer harder to detect during screening. The NHS says you still need screening after implants, and the person doing it should know you have them. X-rays cannot pass through implants, so they may take your mammogram a different way to see as much breast tissue as they can.
- Keep up your checks. ASPS says implants need regular checks. It notes the US FDA suggests an MRI or ultrasound 5 to 6 years after silicone implants, then every 2 to 3 years.
- Know who to call. healthdirect says to contact your surgeon straight away if you have a high temperature, heavy bleeding, or spreading redness or pain. For travel insurance, Smartraveller says the cover should include complications as well as medical evacuation.
Sources: Australian Society of Plastic Surgeons, Australian Breast Device Registry, NHS, American Society of Plastic Surgeons, healthdirect Australia, Smartraveller
What we do for implant patients
We are a concierge, not a clinic, and our help is free to you because the hospital pays us. We only suggest hospitals, never clinics, in Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh City. Andrew Lam, our Co-founder, runs Beauty Link.
When you are ready, we set up a WhatsApp chat between you, the hospital's staff and an advisor. We ask the hospital for a written plan and quote, a list of what it covers, and before and after photos of similar breast cases. Our driver meets you at the airport when you land. Your advisor checks in while you recover, and again after you fly home.
Sources: Beauty Link team records
Questions
It depends on the hospital and surgeon you choose. Smartraveller says many overseas hospitals are a similar standard to Australia's, but standards can differ between hospitals in the same country. So look at the license, the surgeon's training and the implant aftercare plan before anything else. Our page is plastic surgery in Vietnam safe goes into more detail.
Because of clot risk, the NHS says to wait 5 to 7 days before you fly after breast surgery. Your surgeon sets the date that fits your own recovery.
The guides we used do not answer this by age. ASPS lists things it looks for in a candidate, such as being physically healthy and not pregnant or breastfeeding. healthdirect Australia says to discuss breast augmentation with your doctor first, so take any question about your age to your doctor and your surgeon.
We do not list prices for implants. The hospital you talk to sends a written quote for your case. healthdirect says costs include the surgeon, the anaesthetist, the hospital, the implants, and medicines, dressings and support garments, so ask what yours covers. For the wider picture, see plastic surgery Vietnam cost.
healthdirect says your ability to breastfeed may change after surgery. The NHS says you may make slightly less milk. If you plan to breastfeed, raise it at your consultation.
Sources: Smartraveller, NHS, American Society of Plastic Surgeons, healthdirect Australia, Beauty Link team records