You might be considering breast reduction surgery as a weight loss option if you are battling with obesity. There is a widespread misperception that breast reduction is exclusively appropriate for obese women. Women of any size, even those who are underweight, can benefit from breast reduction.
An wonderful technique to lessen back pain, enhance posture, and boost confidence is through breast reduction surgery. Before deciding if a breast reduction is the appropriate course of action for you, it’s crucial to conduct your homework if you’ve been thinking about having one.
In this article, we’ll also consider common problems after breast reduction surgery and also answer the question that says will i look fat after breast reduction
Breast Reduction Surgery and Weight Loss
Breast reduction can help improve physical comfort. During breast reduction surgery, heavy, lumpy, and asymmetrical fat and tissue is removed from the breasts before loose and sagging skin is excised. The end result is smaller, more comfortable, and more complimentary breasts that no longer cause back pain or require extraneous support. In the process, breast reduction helps tone and trim the upper body, producing a slimmer, more attractive, and more appealing look to all surrounding areas.
Will I Lose Weight After Breast Reduction Surgery?
Breast reduction surgery may result in weight loss, though it is not intended as a weight-loss procedure. Designed to remove excess fat, tissue, and skin from heavy and pendulous breasts, reduction surgery improves physical comfort and brings the chest into ideal contour with the chest, ribs, and hips.
By removing excess fat and skin from the breast mound, reduction surgery may assist with:
- Weight Loss
- Greater Range of Motion
- Enhanced Clothing Options
- Improved Self-Esteem
The best way to learn what breast reduction surgery may be able to accomplish for you is through a one-on-one consultation at our comfortable Los Altos office.
Body Contouring
Body contouring can be used to sculpt and tone the frame – from the ankles to the neck – and may be used in conjunction with breast reduction to improve overall results. If your goal is weight loss, procedures that may be suggested in addition to breast reduction include:
- Abdominoplasty
- Liposuction
- Body Lift Procedures
We offer arm lift, thigh lift, butt lift, and similar contouring procedures that can be used to eliminate loose and sagging skin along with stubborn fat deposits for a more comprehensive result. We will help you determine if additional procedures will be necessary for meeting your specific goals.
Your Responsibility
Following breast reduction or weight loss through body contouring, you will have to work to maintain your results. This means eating healthy and getting plenty of exercise.
We can produce remarkable results. You will have to take steps to maintain them. We will discuss this in greater detail during your time in our care.
PATIENTS RECOMMEND WEIGHT LOSS BEFORE BREAST REDUCTION
Very large breasts can be extremely uncomfortable and prevent women from wearing clothes that make them feel confident. Many women with heavy breasts also find that they avoid certain physical activities because of their breasts, leading to weight gain and more discomfort.
For those who want a breast reduction and weight loss surgery, it can be tough to know which surgery to pursue first. Should you lose weight before breast reduction surgery, or should you have a breast reduction first? I often advise my Guildford, CT, patients that it’s usually best to have breast reduction surgery once they’re at or near their goal weight. And new research supports that recommendation.
STUDY SAYS: LOSE WEIGHT BEFORE BREAST REDUCTION
The best results from breast reduction come when patients lose weight first, according to a new study in the September edition of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, the official journal of the ASPS. The study was conducted by Jeffrey A. Gusenoff, M.D. and his colleagues at the University of Rochester Medical Center.
The study analyzed a group of women who (except for one) chose bariatric surgery to achieve major weight loss. Fifteen of the patients had a breast reduction before weight loss surgery, while 14 of them did not. Outcomes from breast reduction were good: they reported good aesthetic outcomes and felt better able to exercise. However, after bariatric surgery, they experienced a subsequent reduction in breast size.
WHY NOT HAVE BREAST REDUCTION BEFORE WEIGHT LOSS?
Many women believe that a breast reduction can help them lose weight—both because it’s extra motivation and because some breast weight is removed during the surgery. But if you have breast reduction before losing weight, you should consider how that extra weight loss in your breasts will affect your surgically reduced breasts. Because of the changes in the skin after major weight loss, the cosmetic outcome of a previous breast reduction can change.
In some cases, women who lose their excess weight first find that they simply need a breast lift instead of a reduction.
FRIEND-TO-FRIEND: WEIGHT LOSS FIRST
After significant weight loss, 86% of the women who had undergone a previous breast reduction thought their breasts looked worse. “If giving advice to a friend, they said they would recommend losing weight before undergoing breast reduction surgery,” the ASPS reports. Interestingly, the benefits of breast reduction seemed to outweigh this cosmetic concern, as most of the patients “did not regret their decision to have reduction mammaplasty first.”
Among the group that did not have breast reduction (but did achieve major weight loss), about half said they were planning a breast reduction, while many others said they would if they could afford to pay for it.
What this study suggests is that women planning weight loss, whether through bariatric surgery or traditional methods, should expect changes in the appearance of their breasts. If these changes could potentially cause significant dissatisfaction, the patient may want to plan for breast surgery after weight loss is complete.
I’ve found that breast reduction surgery can help my patients’ confidence and daily lives, and you can read more about that in this related blog post.
Common Problems After Breast Reduction Surgery
Overall weakness and fatigue
Even if surgery is deemed medically necessary, the procedure itself is a type of trauma.
In fact, even after uncomplicated surgeries, it’s commonTrusted Source for people to experience postoperative fatigue.
Postoperative fatigue is thought to be caused by a combination of the following:
- an inability to increase your heart rate via exercise
- nutritional changes
- hormonal imbalance
- the energy it takes the body to heal
It typically lasts for a month following surgery.
But it can be sped up by:
- increasing your water intake
- eating nutrient-dense food
- limiting or avoiding caffeine
- avoiding alcohol and substance use
- moving gently when given the green light by your care team
Chest soreness or tenderness
Some tenderness and soreness at the surgical site are common and should be expected.
If you think about it, it makes sense! If you slice your finger with a potato peeler, it’s tender for a few days. If you get stitches on your head after running into a post, it throbs for a few days. Even a paper cut makes itself known days after being delivered.
But there is a difference between typical tenderness and tenderness that’s a sign of infection, explains Sean Satey, MD, a plastic surgeon based in Beverly Hills, California.
“Infection after breast reduction surgery is fortunately very rare and occurs less than 1% of the time,” he said.
But when tenderness is combined with redness, discharge, fever, vomiting, or chills, you could have an infection and should get the area looked at by a healthcare professional.
Scarring
You can expect some scarring. Any procedure that involves surgical incisions will lead to some degree of permanent scar tissue.
The scar’s location and overall visibility depend on the type of breast reduction surgery you have, your body chemistry, and how well you take care of the area.
According to Constance M. Chen, MD, a plastic surgeon and breast reconstruction specialist in New York, you can generally expect scarring around the nipple-areola complex and a vertical scar at the bottom of your breast.
“If you’re curious how your scars will heal, you should look at the other scars on your body,” said Satey.
If you typically have minimal scarring, you’ll likely experience the same after breast reduction surgery. If, however, you typically have keloid scarring, you likely will have keloid scars at the incision site.
To minimize scarring, Satey recommends:
- working with a surgeon who specializes in breast reduction surgery
- keeping the wound clean to prevent infection
- an aggressive postoperative scar management protocol
- waiting the recommended amount of time before lifting weights
How to care for your chest to prevent scarring
Surgeons typically recommend the following to prevent scar formation:
- Avoid the sun.
- Apply anti-scar medication.
- Regularly massage the scar.
- Use silicone bandages.
- Regularly redress the wound.
“The scars can be treated with silicone scar therapy, laser therapy, or microneedle with platelet-rich plasma,” said Alexander Zuriarrain, a quadruple board certified plastic surgeon at Zuri Plastic Surgery in Miami.
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Breast tissue or nipple asymmetry
You can expect some differences between sides when fully healed.
“Breasts are sisters, not twins, so they may not be perfectly symmetrical, just as many breasts are not perfectly symmetrical before surgery,” said Chen.
Keep in mind, she adds, that it will also take months for the final shape and size to develop as the tissue settles after surgery.
Loss of nipple sensation
About 10% of all patients experience some sensation loss, says Satey.
According to holistic plastic surgeon Shirley Madhère, founder of Jet Set Beauty Rx, sensation loss may be more likely if:
- a high volume of breast tissue is removed
- a larger portion of the nipple is removed
- you have a history of smoking cigarettes or vaping nicotine
- you have an underlying condition that affects your blood circulation, nervous system, or your ability to heal
“Sometimes the sensation loss is lasting and full; other times it is temporary or partial,” said Madhère.
Difficulty with breastfeeding or chestfeeding
“It’s a myth that people will lose the ability to breastfeed following breast reduction surgery,” explained Jonathan Kaplan, MD, a plastic surgeon with Pacific Heights Plastic Surgery in San Francisco.
Most people will still be able to breastfeed because the milk duct isn’t removed, adds Kaplan.
You may be more likely to lose the ability to breastfeed or chestfeed if your nipple and areola are removed during surgery.
So, if breastfeeding or chestfeeding is important to you, talk with your surgeon about which technique will give you the aesthetic you want and preserve your ability to produce milk in the future.
Delayed wound healing
You can expect healing to take at least a few weeks, according to Chen.
Typically, people experience swelling and tenderness for a few weeks while the wounds heal, she says. “And it takes a few months for the swelling to go down and for the breasts to settle into their new size.”
Still, for some people, the wounds take extra long to heal.
“Delayed wound healing can usually be treated with standard wound care and dressing changes,” said Chen.
If you’re worried about how long your body is taking to recover from surgery, consult with your surgeon.
Hematoma
A hematoma is a type of blood clot that occurs under the skin. Far less serious than a blood clot in the veins, a hematoma is basically a bad bruise.
However, hematomas do become a cause for concern when they don’t stop growing, notes Chen.
“Be on the lookout for an expanding hematoma, which is when a blood vessel starts bleeding after surgery,” she explained. “It can cause the breast affected to become tight, bulging, and painful.”
If you have a hematoma or something you think is a hematoma, go to the doctor ASAP.
“It may require a trip back to the operating room to evacuate the blood and stop any bleeding if it hasn’t already stopped on its own,” she said.
Fat or nipple necrosis
Nipple necrosis, also known as necrosis of the nipple-areolar complex, is a very rareTrusted Source complication of breast reduction surgery.
Put simply, it’s the death of a nipple.
Typically, it happens when the blood supply isn’t successfully reattached to the nipple after the breast was moved or reshaped during surgery.
Without nutrient-rich blood being pumped to the sensitive tissue, it’s unable to heal properly and subsequently dies.
This can also happen if there isn’t enough blood leaving the nipple, as it can cause blood to get trapped in the tissue.
The main sign of nipple necrosis? An unexpected color change.
If your nipple is paler than expected, there may not be enough blood flow into the nipple. If your nipple is purple or darker than expected, there may not be enough blood flow out of the nipple.
If a doctor or other healthcare professional concludes that you do have nipple necrosis, your surgeon can either go back in and reattach the nipple to the blood supply or perform a free nipple graft. The latter involves detaching the nipple from the underlying breast tissue and reattaching it as a graft.
Infection
“The incidence of infection after breast reduction surgery is low and generally only appears in 1% to 2% of patients,” said Madhère.
“If an infection does occur, it usually occurs within 5 to 7 days after,” she said.
Common signs of infection include:
- redness or skin that feels hot to the touch around the incision
- intense pain or discomfort around the incision
- foul-smelling discharge from the wound
- fever
- chills
- nausea
Will I Look Fat After Breast Reduction
There is a common myth among women in Beverly Hills that breast reduction surgery can cause weight gain. The fact is, the perception is very different from the reality. The simple answer here is that there is no correlation between breast reduction surgery and weight gain. Breast reduction directly impacts a woman’s overall proportions and it can appear as though women have gained weight following surgery. With larger breasts, a woman’s torso and hips actually appear smaller. When breasts are reduced, it can actually make the hips and torso appear larger. It is important to note that after breast reduction surgery, the ratio between the breasts, hips, torso, and waist have fundamentally changed.