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5 Breast Issues That Can Be Improved with Surgery

Because a woman’s breasts, in our culture, are a signal of femininity and beauty, their size and shape can affect a person’s sense of self-esteem. Anomalies, like mismatched or asymmetrical breasts, can make a woman self-conscious, as can the absence of breasts after a mastectomy. Overly large breasts can cause discomfort and pain and can interfere with an active lifestyle whereas exceptionally small breasts may also make a woman self-conscious and feel less feminine.

All of these issues, and others, can be corrected or improved with cosmetic surgery, restoring a woman’s pride in her appearance and freeing her to wear the clothes she prefers. Here, we’ll review the kinds of breast problems that surgery can correct and the surgical options that can be used to correct them.

What Are Some Common Breast Issues That Surgery Can Correct?

Breast Asymmetry

Breast asymmetry is quite common and is typically not noticeable. It is normal for one breast to be slightly larger than the other one. This is not a problem and doesn’t warrant surgery. But when one breast has a significantly different appearance than the other, it can be noticeable in an uncomfortable way. These anomalies can include breasts that are of markedly different size, shape, position, or any combination of those mismatches. Surgery can correct all these breast asymmetry problems

Sagging Breasts

Some women develop sagging breasts at puberty, while for others the sagging comes with age, having children, or gaining and losing weight. Because our culture has an ideal image of breasts that are rounded, uplifted, and youthful, sagging breasts can make a woman feel old and unattractive. Cosmetic surgery can raise and reshape sagging breasts to give them a fuller and younger-looking profile.

Oversized Breasts

Breasts that are overly large can cause discomfort and limit physical activity. Back, neck, and shoulder pain are not uncommon. Chafing can result in skin irritation and rashes below the breasts. The weight of the breasts can lead to lasting indentations where the bra straps press on the shoulders. Cosmetic surgery can resolve these problems by reducing and reshaping oversized breasts into a more comfortable and attractive form. 

Underdeveloped Breasts

A woman may feel that she has small breasts because they are relatively small for her frame, though they fall within a normal size range. In other cases, underdeveloped breasts may be related to a congenital medical condition, such as Turner syndrome. Whatever the reason, a woman’s sense that her breasts are too small can lead her to feel unattractive and can hurt her self-esteem. Cosmetic surgery can increase the volume of underdeveloped breasts using implants or transplanted tissue from another part of the body.

Post-Mastectomy Reconstruction

Women who have had a mastectomy as part of their cancer treatment often choose to have breast reconstruction surgery to feel better about their bodies. While specialized bras or prostheses can aid in common defects and can create a more normal appearance when clothed, their use can be cumbersome. Breast reconstruction rebuilds the breast to restore symmetry and a natural-looking chest profile.

What Surgeries Can Repair Each of These Breast Conditions?

Breast Augmentation

Breast augmentation is surgery to increase breast size. Breast augmentation is most often performed by placing silicone or saline implants into the breasts or behind the chest muscles, but it can also be done by transplanting fat to the breasts from another part of the body. Breast augmentation is used to enhance the size and roundness of small or underdeveloped breasts. It can also correct breast asymmetry by increasing the size of the smaller breast or by using implants of different sizes or shapes in the two breasts.

Breast Fat Grafting

Breast fat grafting, or fat transfer, is an approach to breast augmentation that uses a woman’s own tissue, without manufactured implants. In the procedure, fat is removed from one part of the body using liposuction, to slim an area with excess fat. Some of the extracted fat is then purified and processed for injection into the breasts. Breast fat grafting offers two body contouring benefits. It reduces fat from a part of the body where it isn’t wanted, such as the abdomen or thighs, and adds volume to the breasts for long-lasting enhancement. Fat grafting can be performed to augment both breasts or correct breast asymmetry.

Breast Lift Surgery & Breast Lift with Implants

corrects sagging breasts to give them a rounder and more uplifted form. In a breast lift, excess skin is removed and tissue within the breast is repositioned to raise the breast’s contours. The nipple is often repositioned as part of the procedure, and a stretched areola can be reduced. A breast lift with implants combines the lifting and reshaping of a breast lift with the placement of implants to add more fullness. A breast lift can also be combined with fat grafting to add volume internal breast tissue flaps known as “dermoglandular flaps” with or without mesh slings to create a breast that resembles an implant augmentation, in a procedure known as breast lift auto-augmentation. In addition to correcting sagging breasts, a breast lift can be used to correct breast asymmetry.

Breast Reduction Surgery

Breast reduction is the surgical solution for oversized breasts. In a breast reduction procedure, excess fat and glandular tissue is removed from inside the breast along with excess skin to resize the breast and create an attractive and natural-looking shape. A stretched areola can also be reduced as part of the procedure.

Breast Reconstruction

Breast reconstruction is the broad term for a range of procedures and combinations of procedures to rebuild a breast after a mastectomy or traumatic injury. At Spiro Plastic Surgery, we tailor every breast reconstruction to the unique needs, anatomy, and goals of the patient. Among the approaches we use are latissimus flap reconstruction with implants, tissue expander implant reconstruction, oncoplastic breast reconstruction, and tram flap reconstruction. The last two use the body’s own tissue, not implants, for the reconstruction.

Other Breast Surgeries

Breast surgery may also be needed to correct problems or dissatisfaction with the results of earlier procedures. Breast revision surgery is performed to remove or replace implants to resolve problems with the implants or change their size, type, or shape. A capsulectomy is performed to remove thickened and hardened scar tissue that can form around an implant. Either of those procedures may be needed when a silicone implant ruptures and there is a risk of silicone entering the surrounding breast tissue.

Why Choosing the Best Surgeon Matter

The most important decision when considering any cosmetic surgery procedure, is to choose a plastic surgeon who has the medical expertise, surgical skill, and aesthetic sensitivity to create excellent results with the highest degree of safety. Some credentials are easy to check. Be sure to choose a plastic surgeon who is board-certified and who is trained and experienced in performing cosmetic breast surgery. Look, too, for reviews by other patients. Most importantly, look at the results of the doctor’s work in the form of before and after pictures.

Scott Spiro, MD, is a board-certified plastic surgeon with years of experience performing cosmetic and reconstructive breast surgery. He is regularly cited as a “top doctor” or “best surgeon” in national and New Jersey ratings. The before and after pictures of his breast surgery patients show his care and artistry in creating beautifully natural results.

Schedule Your Breast Surgery Consultation with Dr. Scott Spiro

Find out whether breast surgery is right for you and whether Dr. Spiro is the plastic surgeon you’ll trust with your treatment. Contact Spiro Plastic Surgery online or call (973) 736-5907 to schedule a consultation with Dr. Spiro. He will ask questions to understand your goals, examine you to get a clear sense of your anatomy, and give his recommendations for the safest and most effective approach.

 

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Graphite/Pencil Hybrid-Painting by Dr. Scott Spiro