I get asked about round vs teardrop breast implants almost every week, and I’ll give you the same answer I give in the consult room: I hardly use teardrop implants anymore, and there’s a good reason for that. Let me walk you through why.
I’ve actually got two implants sitting on my desk as I write this. One’s a teardrop, one’s round. They look like they should do very different jobs. In practice, the story’s a lot messier than that.
What’s the difference between round and teardrop breast implants?
A teardrop (anatomical) implant tapers with a longer, gentle slope through the top and a shorter, fuller curve at the bottom, so it mimics the way a natural breast is built. A round implant is the same shape all the way round, so it doesn’t matter which way it’s sitting.
On paper, the teardrop shape sounds like the obvious winner if you want a natural look. And for the right patient, it can be. But it comes with two problems I’ve seen play out again and again in my clinic.
The first is orientation. Because a teardrop implant is only “right” one way up, it has to stay put. If it turns in the pocket, it can look distinctly odd. Older reports put the turning rate at around 8%, which doesn’t sound like much until it’s your patient in the chair and you’re explaining why a perfectly good implant now needs to come out.
The second is upper pole fullness, or the lack of it. A lot of women who choose a teardrop shape don’t actually have much volume in the upper breast to begin with, and a teardrop implant won’t fill that emptiness. It just tapers over the top of it. If there isn’t much there, you can end up with a look I’ll get to shortly.
Related reading: our full guide to choosing the right breast implant covers implant materials, sizing and placement in more depth.
Why do teardrop implants turn or rotate?
Teardrop implants turn because nothing is physically holding them in the “right way up” position unless the surface texture or coating does that job for them. Older teardrop implants needed heavy texturing or a polyurethane coating to grip the surrounding tissue and stay oriented. Take that grip away and the implant can spin in the pocket like a coin.
The problem is that the industry has moved toward lighter texturing over the past several years, partly over safety concerns with heavily textured surfaces. Lighter texturing feels better and has a lower complication profile in some respects, but it grips less. So you end up with more teardrop implants placed using a surface that isn’t really designed to keep them still. I don’t use that combination at all. If I’m going to use a teardrop shape, it needs the texture to match, and even then I’m selective about it.
There’s a smarter option some manufacturers have landed on. Rather than fighting the fact that a round implant might turn, they’ve accepted it and made it not matter. Certain German-manufactured round implants are built with a softer shell that naturally slopes at the edges, so even without a defined “top” and “bottom,” you still get a gentle, natural-looking crease. If it turns, nothing changes, because the shape doesn’t rely on orientation in the first place. It’s the same logic as a round coin that looks the same no matter which way it lands.
How do you know if an implant has turned or you have Snoopy deformity?
You’ll usually notice a change in the crease or a “hanging off the implant” look, but because it happens gradually, most patients don’t spot it until someone points it out. Snoopy deformity gets its name because the breast tissue droops off the bottom of the implant, leaving a shape that echoes the cartoon dog’s nose. It happens most with teardrop implants placed fully under the muscle, especially in patients who didn’t have much upper pole volume to start with.
Here’s the honest bit: I see it constantly in breast checks, particularly with implants placed overseas or more than ten years ago. Because the change creeps up slowly, patients genuinely don’t notice it happening. It’s incredibly common for someone to come in for a routine check, see their implants properly assessed for the first time in years, and say some version of “I didn’t realise how bad they’d gotten.” That’s not a dig at anyone. It’s just how slow, gradual change works. You don’t notice your own hairline receding either, until you see an old photo.
This is also why regular breast implant checks matter, whatever shape you have. It’s not about assuming something’s wrong. It’s about catching slow changes before they become the kind of thing you only notice in hindsight.
How can you prevent implant rotation or Snoopy deformity?
The two biggest levers are getting the shape-to-surface match right at the time of surgery, and correct implant sizing against your own anatomy. Neither one is something you can fix after the fact nearly as easily as getting it right from the start.
On sizing, one of the things I think a lot of practitioners get wrong is fitting the implant against the wrong landmarks. We fit the implant relative to the distance between your nipple and your inframammary fold, the crease underneath your breast. Get that measurement too generous and the implant can sit too low, popping out the bottom of its intended pocket and giving you what’s known as bottoming out. Get it too conservative and the breast tissue can hang off the implant over time, which is exactly the mechanism behind Snoopy deformity.
Beyond sizing, placement plays a role too. Positioning that gives the upper pole of the implant better coverage, sometimes discussed as a dual plane technique, can reduce the risk of that hollowed-out, hanging appearance in patients who don’t have much natural upper breast volume. It’s a conversation worth having with your surgeon rather than something to decide from a blog post, since the right approach depends on your own tissue and goals.
And regardless of what you choose at the time of surgery: get your implants checked periodically, especially past the ten-year mark. It’s the cheapest, least invasive thing you can do to catch a problem early.
What if your implant has already turned or dropped? Treatment options from least to most invasive
Monitoring and a professional breast check is always the first and least invasive step, and it’s often all that’s needed to work out what’s actually going on. A trained eye can tell the difference between a cosmetic change worth watching and something that needs further action. If you’re in Perth, we run bulk-billed breast implant checks for exactly this reason.
Imaging, such as an ultrasound, is the next step if there’s any question about whether the implant itself has shifted, ruptured, or simply turned within an otherwise intact pocket. This helps rule out anything more serious before deciding whether further action is needed.
Revision surgery is the most invasive option and is generally reserved for cases where the implant has genuinely turned, dropped, or is causing a visible deformity that isn’t going to resolve on its own. This can mean simply repositioning the existing implant, or replacing it with a different shape or surface type better suited to your anatomy. It’s a bigger step, so it’s usually only recommended once monitoring and imaging have confirmed it’s the right move.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is a round or teardrop breast implant more natural looking?
Neither is automatically more natural. A teardrop implant can look more anatomical on paper, but a round implant with a soft, sloped shell can achieve a similarly natural crease without the rotation risk that comes with a fixed shape.
How common is it for a teardrop implant to turn?
Some older data put the rotation rate at around 8% for lightly textured or smooth teardrop implants, though this varies with the specific implant and surgical technique used.
What is Snoopy deformity?
It’s when breast tissue droops off the lower edge of the implant over time, most often with teardrop implants placed fully under the muscle in patients without much natural upper breast volume.
How is implant size and position decided?
It’s largely based on the distance between your nipple and your inframammary fold, the crease under your breast, along with your existing tissue and chest wall dimensions.
How often should I get my breast implants checked?
Regularly, and especially once you pass the ten-year mark, even if nothing feels wrong. Slow changes like Snoopy deformity are easy to miss without a professional assessment.
Can implant rotation or Snoopy deformity be fixed without surgery?
Not directly. Monitoring and imaging can confirm what’s going on, but correcting an already-turned or dropped implant generally requires revision surgery.
For more information or to book a breast implant check, visit absolutecosmetic.com.au or take a look at our breast implant check page.
This information is general in nature and does not constitute medical advice or establish a doctor-patient relationship. Patient outcomes vary due to factors including genetics, tissue quality, age and overall health. All surgical procedures carry risks, including but not limited to capsular contracture, implant rupture, rotation, asymmetry, infection and the need for future revision surgery. Please consult a qualified healthcare professional to discuss whether breast augmentation is right for you.
