Various
procedures can be used to achieve breast reduction, depending on the amount of
the reduction, the quality of the skin and other factors.
The options
range from a small reduction with liposuction, through to a large reduction
and uplift using an "inverted T" shaped scar. Various
procedures are also available with less scarring than the typical inverted
T. Each option has different advantages, so the
final choice can only be made after a detailed consultation.
If anyone
tells you about surgery with no risks, you should wonder what you are not
being told. You need to make an informed choice about whether the
potential benefits of surgery justify these inevitable risks. It is also
important that you are in the hands of someone with a breadth of skills and
training to foresee and prevent problems, or to deal with them if they do unfortunately arise.
Breast
reduction surgery does leave scars on the breasts. These will usually go
through a phase of being a bit red and firm initially, but will usually
improve gradually over several months. On some occasions, these scars
may become more thickened and red than usual. It is not always possible
to predict who this will happen to. It is important that if
this does occur, you should start early to try to deal with the problem using
the range of scar control measures which your plastic surgeon can offer.
Scarring will
also occur inside the breast. This should be taken into account when
undergoing screening mammograms. By obtaining a mammogram
twelve months after surgery, it may be easier to determine the significance of
any subsequent changes in your mammograms.
Some patients
do succeed in breast feeding after reduction surgery. This may, however, not be possible after some
reduction techniques. If you would
like to breast feed in the future, you should ideally consider deferring
surgery until you have finished having your family. You may also wish to
discuss how the reduction techniques may be tailored to optimise the chances of
successful breast feeding in the future.
Some changes
in sensation are usually noticed in the breasts and nipples in the short
term. This will usually improve over a period of weeks or months, but
permanent changes in feeling may occur.
Blood supply
to various parts of the breast will be affected by surgery, and occasionally
this may lead to some fat cells dying, and very rarely some skin or nipple
tissue dying. These risks are increased significantly by smoking and
some medical conditions.
This is by no
means an exhaustive list of all potential risks with this surgery. There
are a number of general risks associated with any surgery such as wound
infections, wound healing problems, bleeding, blood clots and anaesthetic
complications. Further information about the risks of surgery will be
covered in your consultation, and additional written information given to you
at that time.
More
information on Breast Reduction
The
Australasian Foundation for Plastic Surgery - Breast Reduction web page
