Age, weight loss, pregnancy and lactation cause the force of gravity to act on the woman’s chest. This sagging, sagging or falling is very frequent over the years in medium or large breasts . It can also occur after being pregnant, breastfeeding, or losing weight. “The option to reposition the breasts in their optimal place is mastopexy, surgery that we carry out to elevate the breasts in the event that they have fallen off (breast ptosis),” explains Ainhoa Placer, spokesperson for Communication and Social Networks of the Spanish Society. of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgery (Secpre) .
According to Antonio Jesús Pineda , a medical specialist in Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgery and head of the Aesthetic Surgery Unit of the London Clinic, “it is a very grateful surgical technique where women regain security and self-esteem when they see their breasts rejuvenated, with more fullness , more symmetry and normalized in his thorax ”.
The exact figures of mastopexies performed in Spain “are difficult to know due to the great bias that may exist due to the important professional intrusion that exists in our specialty,” highlights the surgeon. The latest figures registered by the Secpre date from 2014 and were as follows: 2,452 women underwent mastopexy and 3,970, mastopexy plus increase; thus, around 6,500 mastopexy surgeries were performed per year.
In fact, mastopexy is often associated with an increase in volume with breast implants ( augmentation mammoplasty ), since the breast is empty, or a reduction mammoplasty in cases where the breast is too large. “In this way, the cleavage of the woman can be enhanced, in the first case, and a more harmonious and aesthetic result can be achieved, in the second situation”, Pineda specifies.
Operation and recovery
The duration of this surgery depends a lot on each case, but it can be said that between 2 and 4 hours. The specialist in Plastic, Reconstructive Surgery and of the London Clinic, indicates that “it is usually a painless and outpatient intervention (day hospital) that allows a prompt recovery of the patient, with an incorporation into working life between 5 and 7 days later. So it is increasingly demanded in our consultations, reaching 20 percent of these. ”
Depending on the degree of sagging and flaccidity of the chest, adds the expert, “we must fix the excess skin through incisions that become hidden over time, becoming inconspicuous even for the patient, despite the fact that they need a process of easy care for the first year . However, this is not a major cause for concern for women as their breast is more aesthetic and rejuvenated. ”
As for the postoperative period , Placer comments that “it is very simple, since it is a surgery that does not hurt. You only have to wear a bandage for a few days and a sports bra for a month. It is important not to make sudden movements with the arms or to gain a lot of weight ”.
Do the results of this technique last? Pineda recalls that its effect is long-lasting, “although general hydration and antigravity care similar to that recommended for any unintervened woman is recommended , by applying moisturizing cream after the shower and the use of a bra without a rim whenever possible. Despite the fact that breast reduction over time is highly dependent on the characteristics of women’s tissues and their care, with mastopexy a more rounded and aesthetic shape is usually maintained. ”
What risks does this technique have?
“The risks in mastopexy are few, as long as it is performed by a properly trained specialist in Plastic, Aesthetic and Reconstructive Surgery,” says Placer, noting that there are cases such as, for example, in female smokers, where complications can occur. ” In patients who smoke, the microcirculation is greatly altered, which is responsible for bringing blood to the tissues for healing. When several factors come together, such as the great mobilization of tissues that must be done in a mastopexy to keep the areola-nipple complex alive, at the same time that we mobilize it to its ideal position, if they are smokers, since the risk of necrosis of the tissues increases exponentially ”.
Will a woman undergoing mastopexy be able to breastfeed?
“Breast and nipple-complex complex sensitivity is affected in the first postoperative stage, but usually recovers in a similar way to the previous one in a few weeks. The capacity for breastfeeding cannot be ensured after having performed this intervention, being highly dependent on the technique used according to the degree of fall and the hormonal state during the postpartum period, “concludes Pineda.
Specifically, and according to Placer, techniques that poorly mobilize tissues (periareolar and circumvertical mastopexy) would be more compatible with subsequent lactation than those that move more tissues (mastopexy with Wise pattern and inverted T scar).
