Breast lift / mastopexy

WHO IS A GOOD CANDIDATE?

An ideal breast lift (aka mastopexy) patient is someone who is happy with their breast size but just has some extra skin that is causing the breasts to sit lower than they would ideally like. With breastfeeding, weight gain and just aging and gravity, the breasts can sag. A lack of upper pole fullness can also occur. A breast lift also includes decreasing the size of the areola, which is the pigmented portion around the nipple.

A commonly used descriptor is something called the "pencil test." The presumption is that a person is a good candidate for a breast lift if a pencil can be tucked under the breast and it stays there. While there are more scientific ways to determine this, such as using the scale of breast ptosis, there may be some truth to this myth. Some patients will elect to have fat transfer to their upper breasts at the same time as their breast lift because of the desire to have more full upper breast poles without having to have an implant placed. A breast lift alone does not give the look of having implants. For that, a breast lift with implants would need to be performed. A breast lift is sometimes done in conjunction with breast implant removal or with fat transfer to increase size and fullness of the upper pole of the breast.

THE PROCEDURE

Breast lift surgery is done under general anesthesia in an outpatient surgery center. The procedure takes around 1½ hours. During the procedure, excess skin is removed through an anchor pattern incision, which is the same as that used in a breast reduction. Other possible incisions are a "lollipop incision" consisting of the incision around the areola and vertical one only, or a "donut mastopexy" which is an incision around the areola only. Each technique has its own advantages and limitations; Dr. Kayan will go over these options and discuss which procedure will address the patient's concerns best during the consultation. The incisions are closed with dissolvable sutures and glue, and the patient is wrapped in an ACE wrap with padding. Drains are not usually needed for a breast lift procedure.

RECOVERY

Patients may remove all dressings and shower after 24-48 hours. After showering a front closure sports bra may be used and worn 24/7 for 4-6 weeks. No overhead reaching is permitted for 1 week, no high-end exercise or lifting more than 5 lbs for 4-6 weeks. The breast shape will change over 3 months, settle in and drop a bit more. Scars will largely fade after a year, and scar treatments such as topical gel or silicone strips can be used starting around 3-4 weeks after surgery.