Transumbilical Breast Augmentation, to be referred to as T.U.B.A. hereafter, was invented in October of 1991 by Houston, Texas surgeon Gerald W. Johnson, M.D..  Dr. Leonard Grossman was personally trained by Dr. Johnson over five years ago. This procedure has been safely performed many hundreds of times by Dr. Grossman and is becoming the technique of choice by many respected and well-known plastic surgeons.  When performed by a trained and competent surgeon, T.U.B.A. most certainly has its advantages over the standard incision placements in bringing you a less invasive approach to surgical breast enlargement surgery with a often reported faster recovery.  The main benefit is, of course, the lack of evidential scars on the breasts or in the axillae (armpits).  With this endoscopic approach only one incision is made within the umbilicus (navel, belly button) for the placement of one or both breast implants.

In the earlier stages after the introduction of this technique, breast prostheses (breast implants) were only placed in the sub-glandular position (referred to most times as "over" or "over the muscle").  As more experience was gained with this technique, surgeons further realized that sub-pectoral implant placement was also possible endoscopically.  Tools were designed and utilized in dissection of the pectoral muscle to make way for this popular placement.  Sub-pectoral implant placement allows many women who have little or no breast tissue to have adequate tissue coverage over the edges of the implants.  Many women report that this placement gives them a more natural, sloping result -- rather than an abrupt roundness of the upper poles of the breast.  This placement may also help hide the rippling which may occur at the medial edge of the breast implant.

Dr. Leonard Grossman is a very skilled and well-respected surgeon who has improved upon the techniques of transumbilical breast augmentation and continues to make advances in cosmetic breast surgery.