What is a Breast Lift?
This is an in-office, outpatient, breast surgery to lift sagging, deflated breasts aimed at creating a more youthful look. The procedure includes:
- Lifting the droopy skin and sagging breasts, then filling them with implants to achieve an aesthetically pleasing appearance.
- Correcting the pointing down of the nipples to a more correct forward position.
- Correcting uneven, asymmetrical, droopy breasts after pregnancy and after breast feeding in an effort to achieve a more visually pleasing lifted breast and nipples.
When are breasts considered “sagging”?
A breast is considered saggy if one or both of the following scenarios are present:
- Nipple that is pointing downward instead of forward. In more extreme cases, the nipple may appear to be hanging from the bottom of the breast.
- Nipple that is located below the inframammary fold. Inframammary fold is a crease that is located between the breast tissue and the front of the ribcage. The “pencil test” is a rough method of estimating the position of the nipple.
If one places a pencil in the direction that is parallel to the floor into their inframammary crease, and the nipple appears to be below the level of the pencil, then the breast is considered saggy, and mastopexy will most likely be required to correct this.
Is there a non-surgical way to correct sagging breasts?
We offer two non-surgical breast lift options. Botox can actually be used to temporarily improve mildly sagging breasts. Ultherapy, which is a focused external ultrasound treatment, can tighten the skin surrounding the breasts, which in turn can help moderately lift the breasts. However, in most situations where the breasts are sagging and deflated, a breast lift surgery is the only way to permanently and effectively lift the breasts and restore that youthful appearance.
What does a breast lift accomplish?
- Lifting the breast to a more youthful position
- Placing the areola in a more desirable position
- Adding volume and lift with the use of an implant
- Giving a patient new personal confidence and self esteem
How is a breast lift completed?
Your surgeon will surgically lift the breast and surrounding tissue, including the areola, to restore the youthful appearance of your breasts.
What will happen during a breast lift surgical procedure?
Immediately prior to surgery several markings are placed on the skin of the breasts. These markings act as the surgeon’s guide during the procedure. After the effects of the general anesthesia set in, a local anesthetic is injected into the surgical site in an effort to fully anesthetize the surgical site and keep bleeding to a minimum. Thin incisions are made to gain access to the structures to be addressed. Then, as previously discussed, changes are made to raise the nipple-areola-complex to a higher and anatomically pleasing position. Breast implants are often inserted to provide the breast with additional fullness as needed and desired. The incisions are meticulously sutured with thin dissolving sutures. Steri-Strips and bandages are temporarily placed over the incisions.