Breast reduction
More photographs of this treatment can be found here » fotos/borstverkleining.
Breast reduction or mamma reduction
The term mamma reduction is the medical term for a breast reduction
For whom is a breast reduction?
Women with neck or shoulder complaints, or with complaints during sports: the weight of breasts can be rather inhibiting. There are also women, whose breast circumference is out of proportion with the rest of their body and are therefore experiencing difficulty in finding nice clothes.
For this operation you must be at least 18 years old, preferably older. The breasts must have finished growing. There is no maximum age, but the chance that complications occur does increase with age. I do take into account the vitality of the patient.
The surgery
Right before the intervention I mark on each breast with a black marking pen outlining what I am going to do. Thereby defining the new location of the nipples and the amount of skin I will remove.
There are different techniques which I use: one is the so-called “anchor-shaped incision” and one with only a vertical coupe line in the lower part of the breast and of course around the nipple. This last method is really only suitable for breasts which aren’t too large and for the breast lift.
During the procedure the nipple is moved upwards on a thick pedicle, then underneath the breast, the tissue from the breast gland is loosened from the breast muscle, and the excess tissue, is removed as necessary. After this the remaining tissue is put into a cone shape, or rather the new (smaller) breast.
Risks
The main risk is a bruise. We try to prevent this by cauterizing as many capillaries as possible, but even so bruises can not always be prevented.
After the surgery
Tape is applied to the breasts, tubes come out from both sides as drains, which are used to suction excessive blood and tissue fluid. The hospital stay , including the day of surgery, is 3 to 4 days, but it could be shorter. I, myself, from a medical aspect find two nights the minimum requirement.
After about a week the tape comes off and the continuous stitches from around the nipples are removed. Then two weeks later the remaining stitches follow. Patients are often inclined to apply all kinds of scar creams on the wounds. My advice: that’s fine, but only when the wounds are healed after four weeks. Up until that time: have a nice shower and keep the area clean you can also put some dry gauze on the scars.
After four weeks the breast is healed, but sports and other strenuous exercises can better be avoided until about six weeks after surgery.
Scars
It is not realistic to say that they will become little lines. You really have to count on extensive scars. The vertical scar heals best. Therefore it is preferred to use the technique with the crease under the breast.
The influence on breast feeding
It does influence breastfeeding but it is rather difficult to predict how much. It is better to take into account that it might no longer be possible to give only breast feeding.
How long will the effect of the surgery last?
Breasts do not grow anymore, but the increase in weight can cause heavier breasts. The firm breasts from shortly after surgery become less firm and start to sag. That is normal. The cup-size of the bra can change, without there being a change in volume.
