Most women choose round breast implants when undergoing cosmetic breast augmentation. Round implants have no particular radial orientation. So even if they shift or rotate over time, the breasts will not look any different. Therefore, round implants are the more popular type. Round implants are semi-spherical, which many women view as an advantage since they tend to create more upper-pole breast fullness.
Some women desire anatomic-shaped, or “tear-drop” shaped, implants. The advantage of tear-drop breast implants is that they look like the actual physiologic shape of a real human breast. Tear-drop-shaped implants have a gently down-sloping upper pole and a fuller lower pole like the shape of a teardrop. Women who want a very inconspicuous and natural-looking breast augmentation are sometimes drawn toward this implant. The main disadvantage here is that in some cases where implant rotation occurs over time, a second surgery may be needed to adjust the implant position.
Over the years, anatomical implants have lost their popularity for breast augmentation mostly due to rotation issues and the need to perform revision surgery. Furthermore, in most patients, they offer no advantage regarding breast contour when compared with round implants.