If you’re considering a breast augmentation, you may have a few concerns on your mind. You may worry about scarring, recovery time, the final appearance and feel, and the risk of complications afterward. But what if we told you there is a new technique that directly addresses these concerns?
It’s called Preservé™. Establishment Labs officially launched Preservé in February 2025. Brazil was the first country to introduce this new surgical technique as part of a global rollout, and the United States, along with other countries, will soon follow.
Here is everything you need to know about Preservé.
What Is the Preservé Breast Augmentation?
Preservé is a new and less invasive breast augmentation technique. As the name suggests, the Preservé technique aims to increase breast volume while preserving the natural tissue, softness, and stability of your breasts.
This surgical technique was developed by Establishment Labs, a company behind Motiva, in collaboration with a group of expert plastic surgeons. They have already found that Preservé has a low complication rate and delivers natural results.
How the Preservé Technique Works
What makes Preservé unique is the way the procedure is performed with the help of specialized instruments. Here is what you may expect after your pre-op planning and Motiva implant selection.
1. Small Incision
The surgeon will make an incision of about 2.5 centimeters, or just under one inch, long in your breast crease. This small cut will help minimize external scarring.
2. Tunnel Creation
The surgeon will create a tunnel, or passage, through the incision using a single-use instrument called the Motiva® Channel Separator. It gently pushes the breast tissue with its blunt tip through circular twisting motions until it reaches the opposite edge of the breast pocket. This technique is how the surgeon can minimize tissue trauma and preserve your breast’s natural structure.
3. Pocket Formation
Another single-use instrument, the Motiva® Inflatable Balloon, comes into play in the next step. This small inflatable balloon is inserted through the created tunnel and inflated to form the breast pocket. Your breast tissue is then gently displaced, and your ligaments stretched out. This technique minimizes damage to your natural breast tissue, maintaining its ligamentous and neurovascular integrity.
4. Implant Insertion
Through the small incision, your chosen implant is inserted via a no-touch Motiva® Insertion Sleeve. This instrument allows the implant to slide into the formed pocket without the surgeon handling it directly. The no-touch technique helps minimize the risk of contamination and infection.
Afterward, your surgeon will position the implant and close the incision with fine sutures.
Advantages of Preservé for Patients
The Preservé technique has completely revolutionized breast augmentation — presenting many benefits for patients:
- Preserves natural tissue: The procedure focuses on preserving your natural breast tissue. It doesn’t require cutting through your muscles, ligaments, nerves, or blood vessels. As a result, your breasts will retain their natural structure with more volume and less trauma.
- Leaves discreet scars: In many cases, the procedure requires an incision of only 2.5 centimeters. This small cut is strategically done under your breast’s natural crease. Its size and position leave you with less noticeable scarring.
- Offers quicker recovery: Because Preservé is minimally invasive, the healing journey is gentler and quicker. There’s less pain compared to other augmentation procedures. Many patients may return to their activities days after.
- Delivers natural results: Thanks to its combination of tissue-sparing and advanced implants by Motiva, augmented breasts tend to have a more natural look and feel. The implant is placed in a way that supports its natural contour without looking obvious.
- Maintains nerve integrity: The procedure carefully preserves your breast’s nerves and structure. As a result, you have improved chances of maintaining your breasts’ natural responsiveness and nipple sensations.
- Protects breastfeeding structures: Preservé avoids cutting major breast structures like milk ducts and glandular tissue. Your internal breast system will remain largely intact, increasing the likelihood of being able to breastfeed in the future.
Traditional vs. Preservé Breast Augmentations
Preservé is a more modern, noninvasive method compared to traditional breast augmentations.
Traditional
Traditional breast augmentation creates the implant pocket by cutting through breast tissues, and sometimes even part of the chest muscle. Incisions will generally be longer, and thus, the scars may be more visible depending on their placement.
Because the breast tissue has undergone more trauma, recovery tends to be longer. It also heightens the risk of breasts feeling firmer and looking more unnatural.
Compared to Preservé, a traditional breast augmentation:
- Cuts breast tissue and sometimes muscle.
- Leaves longer, more visible scars.
- Elongates recovery time.
- Results in less natural outcomes.
- Heightens risks of complications.
One reason a surgeon might opt for traditional augmentation is that the longer incisions allow for larger implants than the Preservé method.
Preservé
Preservé breast augmentation is a tissue-preserving technique that minimizes trauma. Your surgeon will gently create a tunnel and a pocket for inserting the breast implant. Unlike with traditional augmentation, only a very small incision in the breast crease is needed for the procedure, which helps minimize scarring and keep it hidden.
When combined with Motiva Ergonomix implants, for example, the breasts feel soft and move naturally, leaving you with a more realistic result. However, due to the small incision, Preservé is best suited to subtle or moderate implants.
Compared to traditional methods, Preservé breast augmentation:
- Preserves breast tissue.
- Leaves minimal scarring.
- Quickens recovery time.
- Results in more natural outcomes.
- Lowers risks of complications.
Is Preservé Right for You?
Curious whether you’re a good candidate for a Preservé breast augmentation? This new technique may be right for you if you:
- Are going for a breast augmentation for the first time.
- Want a breast enlargement with minimal downtime.
- Have a healthy amount of natural breast tissue.
- Prefer a smaller incision and minimal scarring.
- May want to breastfeed in the future.
- Value preserving nipple sensitivity.
- Want lightweight Motiva implants.
- Choose moderate implant sizes.
That said, the best way to find out if you can undergo this procedure is by visiting a certified and experienced plastic surgeon.
Finding a Qualified Preservé Surgeon
While we wait for Motiva USA to officially launch Preservé in the United States in 2026, there are already a few select, fully-trained surgeons. Dr. Max Polo at Miami Plastic Surgery® MedSpa is one of them.
He is one of only two surgeons in South Florida — and three in Florida — who have the training and tools to perform the Preservé technique today. With his Sulàyöm Certification, he’s a trained and certified surgeon through Motiva’s innovative surgical techniques and technology.
Schedule Your Preservé Consultation Today
If you don’t want to wait until March 2026, schedule an appointment with Dr. Polo at Miami Plastic Surgery® today. Take advantage of having exclusive access to one of the very few certified surgeons in South Florida. With years of surgical experience, Dr. Polo ensures your procedure is safe, precise, and tailored to your goals.
