Breast Lift Surgery

Breast Lift Surgery

Breast lift surgery is among the most commonly performed aesthetic procedures. This surgical procedure allows raising sagging breasts upon the chest of the woman by modifying the size, contour, and elevation of the breasts.

What causes sagging breasts?

After the years and pregnancies, the breast tissue rarely recovers its initial turgor. Through plastic surgery techniques that have been perfected over the years such as mastopexy, breast loss has an effective and lasting solution. Weight and gravitational action, the atrophy that the mammary gland undergoes over the years and skin tightening after processes such as pregnancy, lactation, weight changes and ageing, are the main causes of sagging breasts.

Is breast lift the solution for sagging breasts?

Since the breasts are attached to the pectoral muscle by connective fibres and there are no muscles to support them, there are no exercises to help lift them. The only solution is surgery. The technique of breast lift is called mastopexy and consists of removing excess skin to reduce the relationship between the skin envelope and the glandular content. As a consequence of the intervention, the nipple rises and the areola returns to its original size.

The surgical procedure

Depending on the amount of skin tissue that needs to be removed, different techniques are used, and only in cases where the mammary gland has greatly decreased its volume, silicone implants are inserted so that the breasts recovers its initial size. This happens, especially, in women with small breasts and both the implant insertion and the skin resection are made through a cut around the areola.

When the breasts are larger and more skin has to be removed, in addition to areolar resection, a perpendicular cut is made between the nipple and the breast groove and, in severe cases, the skin is cut from the base of the breast. Because mastopexy has been practised for many years, surgeons have over time refined the design of the cuts to increasingly disguise scars. The intervention usually lasts three hours and requires one or two days of hospitalization.

How can I prevent sagging breasts?

To prevent breast loss, it is important, when playing sports, to wear an elastic bra. If the breasts are not firm, the movement can atrophy the connective fibres that hold them to the pectoral muscle, especially when it comes to large breasts.