As the years pass and gravity takes its toll, loose, sagging skin can make you feel less than your best. Over time, breasts lose their perkiness and shape in a way that’s all too familiar. Some people’s breasts are ptotic, or “droopy” even early in life. But there is a solution that transforms this common issue and restores a perky, youthful appearance – breast lift surgery.
Dr. Darren M. Smith performs this procedure to remove extra skin and tissue, lifting and remodeling the breasts to have a beautiful silhouette. Regain your confidence knowing an exciting new look awaits on the other side of this transformative surgery.
When is a Breast Lift Recommended?
Sagging breasts can develop due to multiple factors including weight loss, loss of breast volume, pregnancy and breastfeeding, and the natural effects of aging. Increases in weight cause the breast skin to stretch and lose elasticity over time. Likewise, gravity affects the ligaments within the breasts, causing them to stretch downward. The elasticity of breast tissue also diminishes with age, resulting in a looser appearance.
Breast ptosis, the medical term for drooping breasts, can be classified into different degrees. The extent of ptosis is determined by measuring the position of the nipple relative to the inframammary fold, which marks the boundary where the breast meets the chest.
- Mild ptosis involves the nipple at or slightly below this fold.
- Moderate ptosis places the nipple farther down, below the inframammary fold, but above the lowest part of the breast.
- Severe ptosis occurs when the nipple is located below the fold at the lowest portion of the breast.
Breast Lift and Breast Augmentation
While breast augmentation adds size, a breast lift surgically reshapes and lifts sagging breasts to have a perkier profile. The procedure removes extra skin and tightens underlying tissues to support the breasts in a position higher on the chest. It can also correct asymmetries or other aesthetic concerns such as downward-pointing nipples.
A breast augmentation and lift can be performed simultaneously to both restore shape and enhance volume for balanced, natural-looking results. The right approach depends on an individual’s breast anatomy and goals. Deciding on the best treatment plan requires a consultation with an experienced plastic surgeon.
Why the Initial Consultation is Important
A thorough initial consultation with a board-certified plastic surgeon is vital when considering breast lift surgery. During this meeting, Dr. Smith will perform a comprehensive health evaluation and discuss the patient’s medical history, including any pre-existing conditions or risk factors.
Aesthetic goals like desired breast shape and size will also be addressed. To determine the appropriate surgical approach, he will carefully examine the breast size, skin laxity, and current shape to identify the degree of ptosis.
We will use advanced 3D imaging techniques to show you images of yourself with different breasts sizes and shapes. This can help us understand your ideal breast aesthetic.
Dr. Smith will explain the planned procedure including details such as incision types and expected recovery timeline. All potential questions and concerns can be addressed during this important conversation.
Ideal Candidates for a Breast Lift
There are many factors that determine if you are a good candidate for a breast lift procedure. Dr. Smith will carefully assess your medical and surgical history, anatomy, and aesthetic goals to help you decide on a safe and effective approach..
- General Health: The best candidates are generally in good physical and mental health. Any major medical issues need to be well-managed to ensure you are in optimal shape to undergo surgery and recovery.
- Age: Your numerical age is not that significant in determining candidacy for a breast lift. We will assess the condition of your tissues to determine elasticity and other features. As we all age and mature at different rates, this exam is much more important than your actual age..
- Weight and Body Type: You should be at or near your goal weight prior to undergoing a breast lift. This procedure is about removing skin excess and balancing this with the volume of your breasts. If the volume of your breasts changes significantly after the procedure, this could adversely affect the results. Your body type and proportions can influence which breast lift procedure will yield the best results for your individual case.
- Breast Characteristics: Breast size, shape, and skin laxity come into play when designing the ideal breast lift plan. How much sagging is present? How much volume is in the upper pole of the breast as compared to the lower pole? How low is the nipple on the breast mound? These are some of the critical factors we evaluate when designing your surgical plan.
- Lifestyle Factors: Not smoking, limited alcohol intake, and avoiding certain medications can help to optimize outcomes. The ability to take a break and heal in a relaxed environment is also very important.
- Family Planning Status: As pregnancy and breastfeeding can significantly affect breast size and shape, we recommend not having breast lift surgery if childbearing is in your near-term plans. Breast lift surgery is best performed when you are done having children, or if this is something you are planning for years in the future..
- Medical History: Personal health issues like diabetes or connective tissue disorders may impact your ability to have surgery and recover in a safe fashion. A personal or family history of breast cancer necessitates a careful evaluation too.
- Psychological Profile: Good emotional and psychological health with realistic goals and expectations helps manage the physical and psychological adjustment period post-operation.
Breast Lift Techniques and Procedures
Several different surgical approaches exist to address varying breast shapes. These techniques include:
| Surgical Techniques | Description |
| Crescent Lift | The crescent breast lift is the least invasive option and involves a small semicircular incision above the areola. It offers a small lift in the context of mild sagging (ptosis), often as an adjunct to augmentation mammoplasty. Scarring is limited and generally well hidden between the border of the areola and regular skin. |
| Periareolar Lift | Also called a “circumareolar” technique or “doughnut lift”, it features a circular incision encircling the darkened skin of the areola. This technique is also often combined with breast implant placement, and addresses mild ptosis. |
| Vertical Lift | For moderate sagging, the “lollipop incision” (also known as a “circumvertical” mastopexy) wraps around the areola and connects to a downward vertical line that goes to the breast crease. It effectively reshapes the breast and corrects moderate sagging. This technique can also be combined with breast augmentation to add breast size and enhance upper pole volume. |
| Anchor Lift | It is also referred to as an “Inverted-T” or “Wise Pattern” mastopexy. Reserved for more significant sagging, an anchor incision design extends the vertical incision laterally within the inframammary fold.This maximizes skin removal and tightens the breast in all directions to offer a very powerful lift with a perky contour. Implants may be used to increase breast size or add upper pole volume in these cases. |
Combination Procedures
For patients seeking both enhanced size and a perkier contour, combining breast augmentation with mastopexy is often pursued:
1. Simultaneous Lift with Breast Augmentation
A synchronized augmentation and lift operation creates fuller, rounder, and perkier breasts with lifted nipples in a youthful position. While complex, these cases generally yield tremendously satisfying results. Some surgeons prefer to perform these operations in two different trips to the operating room as there are many variables to control when changing breast size and shape at the same time.
2. Staged Lift and Breast Augmentation
In certain cases, your surgeon may advise you to separate your breast lift and augmentation into two separate procedures. When the operation is performed in two different procedures (“staged”), we generally like to do the lift first and perform the augmentation nine to twelve months later when the scars have really settled..
3. Fat Transfer
Fat grafting is a natural alternative to implant-based breast augmentation which involves harvesting fat from elsewhere and adding it to the breasts to enhance breast volume. When performed together with a lift, this procedure yields subtle size increases alongside reshaped, lifted contours for balanced, proportional outcomes.
Breast Lift Procedure
The procedure really starts with your consultation. Here, Dr. Smith will work with you to consider factors like degree of ptosis, breast size, and your aesthetic goals to select the best surgical method for your individual case.
Before surgery, Dr. Smith will provide preparatory instructions, including preoperative dietary and medication guidelines. You’ll receive comfortable surgical bras for post-surgery wear. We are always available for any questions along the way.
On surgery day, you will meet with Dr. Smith again to review your plan as well as with our board-certified anesthesiologist and nursing team. You will then be brought into our state-of-the-art operating room. For your comfort, general anesthesia will be administered.
When you are comfortably asleep, Dr. Smith will finalize the markings for your procedure. Excess skin is removed, and your tissue will be reshaped to achieve your desired goals. The breasts will be elevated, areolas reduced as desired, and nipple position lifted to achieve a natural, youthful result. Great care will be taken to achieve a meticulous closure and minimize scarring.
When you wake up after your procedure you will have soreness but not severe pain. After post-anesthesia monitoring, you’ll be advised on supportive bra use and activity limitations. You can plan to return home the same day.
Take the Next Steps to Lift and Rejuvenate Your Breasts
Your breast lift will achieve a lifted, refreshed look.Rather than accept the effects of age and gravity, you can take control and reinvigorate your appearance for years to come.
Dr. Darren M. Smith will work with you closely to understand your goals and design a surgical plan to help you achieve them. Schedule your consultation today to:
- Assess candidacy based on a thorough examination and review of your medical history.
- Discuss surgical strategies to attain balanced, naturally proportionate breasts.
- Address any questions or concerns in a comfortable setting.
Breast lifts are incredibly satisfying procedures that will boost your self-confidence and help you achieve a beautifully rejuvenated silhouette.. Take the first step by contacting Dr. Darren M. Smith today to embark on this transformative journey.
