Calf augmentation with implants: What is it and what technique is used to make them even and large?

It doesn’t seem like calves are a part of our anatomy that we usually pay attention to, nor that we worry about them especially, except when we get a “cramp” almost always while we’re sleeping… oh, and how it hurts!

However, the gastrocnemius muscle, popularly known as “the calves” because it is divided into two halves, is a cause of dissatisfaction for many people. And not only men, as we might mistakenly think, also women who suffer from calf hypotrophy or depressions and asymmetries associated with muscular diseases or trauma have excessively thin legs, without a curve in the calves, and they are unable to change the shape and volume to their full satisfaction because they cannot twist the hereditary predisposition, not even through the conscientious performance of physical exercises designed ad hoc for that part of the body.

Therefore, although it is usual for hypotrophy or the defect to affect both legs, it is not impossible for it to occur in only one, as a consequence for example of trauma, having had polio, or neurological diseases.

Is there anything that can be done to correct this problem in the calves?

Of course. Specifically, calf size can be increased or evened out through a cosmetic surgery procedure in which silicone gel prostheses are implanted in the calf. The surgery is normally performed on both legs, aiming to achieve harmonious symmetry.

In addition, in some cases (for example, women who have thick muscles and knees with relatively thin calves) the most appropriate treatment may require combining two techniques: the calf implant prosthesis and liposculpture on legs and knees.

What are the risks of getting implants in the calves?

One more thing. As is logical, all patients who come to our clinics looking for solutions to their problems have more than reasonable doubts that we try to resolve.

In the case at hand, calf augmentation, they usually ask us mainly three things:

We always answer them what years of accumulated experience tell us: no, the prosthesis is not rejected; no, there is no danger of a capsule due to the anatomical site where the implant is performed; and no, the procedure does not slim the ankle, although by making the calf thicker, the optical effect occurs that, indeed, the ankle looks thinner.

If you would like more information, contact our Clínicas Fernández Blanco team, call 915 54 09 24 (Madrid) or 952 850 468 (Marbella, Málaga).