Breast revision surgery in Seoul: four clinics compared

A breast revision is surgery to correct a problem remaining from an earlier operation: a hardened capsule, a ruptured or displaced implant, or a shape that did not settle. The studies cited below found more capsular contracture after revision than after a first augmentation. This page sets out what four Seoul clinics that offer revision to patients from abroad publish about it, under the same headings for each, and what none of them publishes. For the first operation, see breast augmentation in Seoul: four clinics compared.

JW, MINE and VIEW appeared in English search results for breast revision in Korea and have English pages about it. All four are in Gangnam-gu, and the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service (HIRA) lists all four as clinics (의원) rather than hospitals. Everything below comes from the clinics’ own pages, read on 30 September 2026, from HIRA’s record of the doctors each clinic reports, and from the regulators and studies listed at the foot of the page. The certification statements were not checked against the specialist society’s directory.

What a revision is fixing

The US Food and Drug Administration puts the starting point plainly: breast implants are not considered lifetime devices. The reasons for going back are well described. Capsular contracture, the tightening of the scar tissue that forms around every implant, is graded from I to IV, and the FDA says grades III and IV are severe and may require reoperation. Most silicone ruptures cause no symptoms, which is why they are called silent ruptures. The FDA calls MRI the most effective way to find one and ultrasound an acceptable alternative for screening.

When the two were compared in studies, revision scored less well on those measures. A manufacturer-funded study following Natrelle silicone implants for ten years recorded a capsular contracture rate of 18.9 per cent after primary augmentation and 28.7 per cent after revision augmentation, alongside reoperation rates of 36.1 and 46.0 per cent. One Korean centre’s retrospective series, using Motiva implants, reported contracture in 1.07 per cent of 1,027 primary operations and 9.57 per cent of 115 revisions carried out for contracture. The FDA’s own summary adds that contracture could occur again after surgery to correct it.

Most of the misunderstanding on clinic pages comes down to two words. A consensus statement on capsulectomy terms was issued in 2024 by the Breast Surgery Collaborative Community. In a total intact capsulectomy, the entire capsule is taken out in one piece. In an en bloc capsulectomy, the capsule is taken out along with a margin of uninvolved tissue, and according to the statement the sole and absolute indication for it is a confirmed or suspected breast implant-associated cancer. The four clinics listed below do not all apply these terms in the same way on their pages, so when a quotation mentions “en bloc”, ask which of the two procedures is meant.

The best known of those cancers is BIA-ALCL, a lymphoma linked mainly to textured implants. The FDA says the risk is higher for textured than for smooth implants, and that it does not recommend routine removal in patients without symptoms. Korea’s Ministry of Food and Drug Safety takes the same position in its safety notice for patients, citing an incidence of about 0.003 to 0.03 per cent from studies published in 2017 and 2019, and recommends a yearly check with a surgeon or breast specialist once an implant has been in for a year. Silicone gel breast implants are also on the ministry’s list of tracked medical devices, which is a reason to leave Korea with the implant’s product and serial details on paper.

Some people ask for removal because of symptoms they attribute to the implants. The FDA describes those symptoms and their causes as poorly understood. A prospective study enrolled 150 women in three groups, 50 of them with systemic symptoms they attributed to their implants; in that group, total intact, total and partial capsulectomy produced similar symptom improvement, with no statistical difference between them. The study had no sham-surgery control.

How the four compare

Each clinic is set out under the same six headings: who operates, what the clinic says about the capsule, imaging, anaesthesia and stay, price, and what it offers patients from abroad. Umnagumo comes first, and the other three follow in alphabetical order.

Umnagumo Plastic Surgery

Who operates. Umnagumo (엄나구모성형외과의원) occupies the sixth floor of SB Tower, 318 Dosan-daero, and sits four minutes from exit 6 of Nonhyeon Station on Line 7. The clinic’s Korean home page calls it a single-specialty breast clinic, while its timeline puts the opening in 2003. On its doctors page, Dr Soonchan Eom appears as a “Board-certified Plastic Surgeon (Republic of Korea)”, certified in 2001 according to the clinic, alongside Dr Junghyun Nam, whom the Korean page calls a plastic surgery specialist (성형외과 전문의). According to the English revision page, Dr Eom carries out every consultation and operation himself. The Korean revision page lists both directors as the surgeons who operate and states that an anaesthesiology specialist manages anaesthesia.

The capsule. The revision page lists capsular contracture from Baker grade I to IV, rupture, asymmetry, malposition, bottoming-out, synmastia, rippling and animation deformity, and the Korean home page says the clinic treats revisions of operations done elsewhere. It describes total, partial and total intact capsulectomy. Its main text reserves en bloc capsulectomy for suspected or established implant-associated malignancy, which matches the consensus definition, but its English FAQs also use “en bloc” for removing a ruptured implant with its capsule; the two statements conflict. It recommends waiting at least six months after the first operation, typically ten to twelve. Removal without replacement is covered on a separate implant removal page, which lists explant alone, with capsule work, with a lift or with fat grafting. It uses Motiva, Mentor and Sebbin implants.

Imaging. Ultrasound for implants, with MRI when needed. The safety page says MRI is used when ultrasound findings are inconclusive, when silent rupture is suspected, or at the manufacturer’s screening interval. The Korean revision page says the clinic performs both ultrasound and MRI.

Anaesthesia and stay. The revision page gives 60 to 120 minutes for the operation but does not state the type of anaesthesia for revision. The safety page says a board-certified anaesthesiologist is in the operating room from induction through recovery, that same-day discharge is standard for primary augmentation, that drains stay in longer after a revision, and that the clinic has a transfer agreement with Soonchunhyang University Seoul Hospital for cases needing intensive care. Its English pages give different figures for the time to spend in Seoul, from four to ten days depending on the page; the implant removal page says five to seven.

Price. Of the four, only Umnagumo publishes prices on the pages we read. Its Korean price page puts implant removal at 4.0 to 4.5 million won, with the top of the range for rupture or severe contracture, and says revision is priced after consultation because it depends on the capsule work and whether the implants are replaced. Prices exclude 10 per cent VAT, and card payment adds 100,000 won. It states no revision warranty of its own; its safety page says rupture and, for some products, contracture are covered by the Motiva, Mentor and Sebbin manufacturer warranties.

Patients from abroad. The site has English and Japanese sections. The English home page gives a WhatsApp number that it says Dr Eom reads personally, asks revision patients to send photographs, earlier operative records and implant details before travelling, and says follow-up at one, three, six and twelve months happens by English video call. The safety page says patients leave with an English summary of the operative report.

Public records. HIRA lists two doctors, both plastic surgery specialists. It lists no anaesthesiology specialist, although the clinic says one gives the anaesthetic.

JW Plastic Surgery

Who operates. JW (JW정원성형외과의원) occupies the third to seventh floors of 553 Samseong-ro, 150 metres from exit 6 of Samseong Jungang Station on Line 9. Its pages do not give an opening year. Its breast surgeon, Dr Chul Hwan Seul, is described as a board-certified plastic surgeon specialising in breast surgery, and the clinic says all its surgeons are board-certified plastic surgery specialists and medical school professors.

The capsule. The revision page lists contracture, damaged or deformed implants, asymmetry, inflammation, malposition, rippling and rupture. It describes incising the capsule for minor contracture and removing it for serious contracture, closing the old pocket and placing the implant in a new layer, and revising through the armpit where the first operation used that route. It does not use the terms total, partial or en bloc, does not mention BIA-ALCL, and does not describe removal without replacement. It uses Motiva, Mentor and Sebbin implants.

Imaging. Ultrasound. MRI is not mentioned on the pages we read.

Anaesthesia and stay. General anaesthesia, no hospital stay, taped wounds with no stitches to remove, and medical follow-up over a year. The clinic says it has an anaesthesiologist on staff and cameras in each operating room.

Price. Not published. No revision warranty is stated.

Patients from abroad. Translation in English, Chinese, Russian and French, and the clinic says all its doctors speak English. It assigns one consultant from the first consultation to the last check-up. The English desk is open Monday to Friday, 10:00 to 17:30 Korean time. Breast surgery does not appear in the main procedures menu of the English site, although the revision page is live, so confirm that the operation is still offered before planning around it.

Public records. HIRA lists six doctors: five plastic surgery specialists and one anaesthesiology specialist.

MINE Plastic Surgery

Who operates. MINE (마인성형외과의원) is on the fourth floor of 813 Nonhyeon-ro, by exit 4 of Apgujeong Station on Line 3. Its pages do not give an opening year. The English staff page lists one plastic surgeon, Dr Lee Sung Wook, as a board-certified plastic surgery specialist trained at Seoul Asan Hospital, alongside an anaesthesiology specialist and a skin doctor. A clinic article says Dr Lee reviews the ultrasound personally before surgery.

The capsule. The revision page lists contracture, pain, hardness, distorted shape, rupture, and implants that sit too far apart, too close together or too high. A clinic article on capsules describes complete and partial capsulectomy, capsulotomy and what it calls en bloc removal: taking out the implant and capsule together as a single intact unit, for ruptured silicone implants or when the capsule needs pathology. Without a margin of surrounding tissue, that is what the consensus calls a total intact capsulectomy. The article says the clinic considers capsule removal at contracture grade III and above. Where the first operation went through the armpit, the page says the capsule is removed through the same incision. BIA-ALCL and removal without replacement are not mentioned. The clinic says it uses implants approved by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, and has Mentor and Motiva pages.

Imaging. Ultrasound before surgery and at follow-up. MRI is not mentioned.

Anaesthesia and stay. Three hours, general anaesthesia, discharge on the day, then the first days in a partner recovery facility with 24-hour nursing. The clinic recommends 10 to 14 days in Seoul for revision with capsule removal, the longest of the four.

Price. Not published. The clinic says any figure should come from a personal consultation rather than a price list. No revision warranty is stated.

Patients from abroad. Translation in English, Chinese, Indonesian, Thai, Vietnamese and Japanese; an online consultation with the surgeon before the trip; airport transfers and hotel booking; WhatsApp and email contacts. The page also lists “Tax Return”; the VAT refund on cosmetic surgery for foreign patients ended on 31 December 2025, so ask what the clinic means.

Public records. One doctor is named by HIRA: a specialist in plastic surgery. An anaesthesiology specialist and a skin doctor also appear on the English staff page.

VIEW Plastic Surgery

Who operates. VIEW (뷰성형외과의원) is at 107 Bongeunsa-ro, within 50 metres of exit 3 of Sinnonhyeon Station on Line 9. Its history page dates the opening to 2005. Its staff page lists four board-certified plastic surgeons with breast among their areas, led by Dr Choi Soon Woo, but does not say which of them performs revisions. It also lists a general surgeon with breast cancer training and radiology specialists on site, and six anaesthesiologists.

The capsule. Contracture, asymmetry, rupture, rippling and unhappiness with shape appear on the revision page. On the implant removal page, the reasons given for removal are contracture, rupture, inflammation, seroma, double capsule and personal preference, and it states that whether capsule excision is partial or total is determined by the patient’s condition. En bloc capsulectomy and BIA-ALCL are not mentioned on the pages we read. Motiva and Mentor are used for revision, and Sebbin is named among its brands.

Imaging. On site, breast disease and radiology specialists carry out mammography, breast ultrasound and Mammotome procedures, according to the clinic. No mention is made of MRI.

Anaesthesia and stay. One to two hours for revision under general anaesthesia or sedation, with same-day discharge available; two to three hours under general anaesthesia for removal. The pages give no figure for time in Seoul. Annual breast check-ups are offered at extra cost.

Price. Not published on the English pages. No revision warranty of the clinic’s own is stated; its Motiva page describes the manufacturer’s programme as covering reoperation for rupture or grade III or IV contracture within five years, up to 3 million won per implant.

Patients from abroad. Free online consultation and interpretation in ten languages, airport transfers, rooms inside the clinic building, and contact through WhatsApp, LINE, KakaoTalk or Viber. Its history page says it registered as an institution for attracting foreign patients in 2011, and the medicalkorea registry has a record for its business number.

Public records. HIRA lists 23 doctors, with 14 plastic surgery specialists, six anaesthesiology specialists and one general surgery specialist. HIRA lists no radiology specialist.

Side by side

What none of the pages answers

The four clinics’ pages describe the operation in detail and say little about price or guarantees. None publishes a revision price, and none states a warranty of its own for a revision. Before paying a deposit, get these in writing:

• Which capsule operation you are having, using the consensus terms above, and whether the capsule will be sent for pathology.
• Who performs each part of the operation, by name, and who gives the anaesthetic. Our piece on ghost surgery explains why the name matters in Korea.
• The imaging the decision rests on. If silent rupture is suspected, ask whether an MRI will be done or whether ultrasound alone is being relied on.
• The implant’s product and serial numbers, for the tracked-device record and for any surgeon who sees you at home.
• What a second revision would cost if the contracture returns, given the rates above.
• How long to stay in Seoul, as distinct from when you leave the clinic. MINE recommends 10 to 14 days and Umnagumo’s pages give four to ten; JW and VIEW describe going home on the day but give no figure for Seoul. How long to stay in Korea for surgery sets out the general reasoning.

How to choose a clinic in Korea deals with verifying that a surgeon holds specialist certification, while the cost guide sets out the reasons prices for surgery in Korea are published so rarely. The checklist converts the questions listed above into a single page that you can carry into the consultation.