All About Breast Lifts And Reductions

A lot of women are unhappy with their breasts and are confused about the kind of operations available. In this article I am going to explain what a breast lift and reduction is, what is involved in the procedure and what the potential risks are.

Breast Lift
A breast lift (or mastopexy) is a surgical procedure to raise and reshape breasts that have sagged as a result of pregnancy, breast-feeding or are just the result of a lack of gravity caused by old age. It can also reduce the size of the areola, which is the darker skin surrounding the nipple.

When it comes to shape and balance, there is no typical type of breast as depends on the woman. As a result some breast lifts may be combined with a breast implant where the size needs to be enhanced or reduced. Your surgeon will discuss this with you when you go for your consultation.

Breast Reduction
If you are having a breast reduction (reduction mammaplasty), the surgeon will lift the breast tissue and the nipple into a higher more youthful-looking position. He will then remove any excess skin and tissue to reduce the overall size of the breast. The more tissue that is removed, the easier it will be for the surgeon to improve the shape of the breast.

What Is Involved?
Both the breast lift and the breast reduction procedures are performed under general anaesthesia. There are a number of different techniques that can be used depending on the degree of sagging.

The techniques might include:

• Removing excess skin from around the areola as well as from the bottom of the breast

• Tightening of the skin around the breast

• Reshaping the skin to lift the position of the nipple so that the shape of the breast looks more youthful

• Increasing the size of the breast using breast implants for perkier, projected breasts

A good surgeon will reduce the appearance of scars by performing traditional and modified incision techniques. The most common of these is the ‘anchor’ incision. This involves making cuts around the nipple areola, vertically down the breast and horizontally all the way underneath the breast.

The ‘vertical mastopexy’ is often used for many types of breasts and this involves an incision around the nipple with a vertical line down the centre of the breast.

The ‘doughnut’ mastopexy where the surgeon just cuts around the areola is usually just used for women with small breasts that are only mildly droopy. This is so that only a little bit of the skin actually needs to be removed.

What Are The Risks?
Probably the most common risks are the quality of the healing process and your own acceptance of the scars. This could be a problem if you are prone to scarring problems such as keloids, which could result in the scars being lumpy and red for many months.

It is quite rare for bleeding and infection after a breast lift but if in the unlikely event it does happen then you need to seek medical advise immediately as it can cause the scars to widen.

Another possible risk is unevenly positioned nipples and the breast symmetry being out of sync. Some women also complain about the lack of sensation in their nipples after the operation.

If you plan on having babies in the near future and want to breast-feed, then you need to make sure that you mention this to your surgeon before deciding to go ahead with the operation as there is a strong possibility that you may not be able to breastfeed after excisional breast surgery. This is a real concern for any woman and you need to bear this in mind before making your decision.