Breast Lift

Mammary ptosis (droop) is a condition that afflicts many women. While sagging of the breast may occur as part of the natural aging process, pregnancy, breast feeding, and weight changes often play a role. The ptotic breast may take on an elongated shape, the nipple may sag below the breast crease or even point downwards, and the areola may become stretched out. The purpose of mastopexy is to uplift and improve the shape of the female breast.

There are a number of surgical methods for performing mastopexy. The type of incisions best used may depend on both the shape as well as the degree of sagging one has prior to surgery.

A circumareolar or “doughnut mastopexy” involves making an inicision around the nipple-areolar complex. Either a concentric circle or an oval shape of skin and/or excess areolar tissue is removed around the nipple and a “purse-string” suture is placed under the skin for closure. When the purse string suture is tied in surgery, the skin envelope around the breast is tightened and the nipple is uplifted. In the early postoperative period there may be small wrinkles or pleats around the areola, but these usually go away over time, leaving a circular shaped scar that usually fades well.

A crescent mastopexy involves removal of a crescent-shaped piece of skin around the upper aspect of the areola.

A “Wise-Pattern” mastopexy involves use of an incision that resembles a “key-hole” in shape. In this technique excess skin is removed and the breast tissue is surgically lifted up higher on the chest wall along with the nipple. When closed, the incisions resemble that of an “anchor-shape,” there being a circular incision around the areola, a small vertical incision from the bottom of the areola to the crease, and a longer horizontal incision along the crease underneath the breast. This technique is most often employed for women that have a moderate to high degree of mammary ptosis.

Incision lines (scars) are permanent, but in most cases will fade and significantly improve in appearance over time. Certainly, however, no physician could ever promise a patient that they would have scarless healing. Your more youthful and uplifted breast profile, however, should bring you great satisfaction, and the results are generally long lasting.

In some cases, women may desire to have breast augmentation done in conjunction with breast lift, particularly if they have an overall smaller breast size than they desire or have lost a great deal of breast mass after pregnancy or by breast feeding. Augmentation may sometimes be done at the time of mastopexy, but in some cases it may be advisable to do perform breast augmentation at a later time as a staged procedure.