Typically seen as the main drawback to performing breast lift surgery, placing incisions, and the resulting scars, on the breast itself are a necessary part of achieving a better more youthful breast shape.  Getting the best breast shape particularly out-of-clothes will usually outweigh the downsides of visible scars on the breast.  Most commonly the scars will fade to a less noticeable whitish color, even if they widened slightly as they matured.  

The placement of the scars will be determined by how much excess skin is on the breast (the skin envelope) and how much volume is desired with the implant.  Dr. Albright, one of the best breast augmentation surgeons in San Antonio, TX, will offer his insight to help you choose the best options available to you and your type of breast. For women who only need a short nipple lift, a periareolar mastopexy may be adequate and has the fewest visible breast scars. This limits the scars to just around the areola (pigmented skin around the nipple), with or without an incision at the breast crease. For maximum excess skin removal and nipple lifting, a full Wise pattern or anchor scar may be used. This will leave a scar around the areola and a short vertical scar that connects the areola to a side-to-side scar located along the lower breast fold.

Another deterrent for women seeking to reclaim their more youthful breasts is the possibility of compromising sensation to the nipples.  For women whose nipple sensation is an integral part of their erogenous experience, breast lift surgery with incisions placed around the areola (darker skin around the nipple) may not be worth the risk of decreased sensation.  However, the risk of losing sensation in BOTH nipples is extremely low.  Furthermore, in Dr Albright’s experience (one of the best surgeons in Texas for breast augmentation) most women are willing to trade a small risk of decreased sensation in one nipple for much more attractive breast shape when naked.

The short answer is yes.  An augmentation mastopexy combines two very different breast surgeries into one combined procedure which increases the complexity and thus the risk for complications.  General anesthesia is usually required for this aesthetic plastic surgery procedure. In addition to the individual risks involved with a breast augmentation and a breast lift surgery, augmentation mastopexy has a higher revision rate.  This means that there is a greater chance you may need or want a second “touch-up” surgery to improve the result.  Although only a minority of women will undergo a second revision surgery, if you were to instead separate the surgeries (for example, perform a breast lift, wait 4-6 months, and then perform a breast augmentation) you would have a 100% chance of needing two surgeries.  Also, when separating, or staging, the two procedures, 100% of patients will incur greater overall financial cost, and will have to undergo two postoperative recovery periods with activity restrictions.  As a top rated breast implant specialist in San Antonio, Dr. Albright may still recommend separating the procedures for you, if your risk of having a bad result is too high. Still not sure?  Come in today to get your questions answered and feel confident with your breast rejuvenation plan.

A great question, as this will also help determine what skin excision pattern (scar pattern) is needed. The issues with implants are inherently similar to those of breast augmentation alone (please see the breast augmentation surgery tab above for more information on implants). Whereas with augmentation alone, augmentation mastopexy more commonly places the implant completely under the pectoralis muscle when possible, as the implant will be better supported by the muscle itself instead of the skin. Dr. Albright will have a more specific plan after a detailed breast exam and discussion of your surgical goals. This is the reason why he owns the best plastic surgery center in San Antonio. Please see below for a short 3 minute video on how to size breast implants:

This is the first question to answer when considering a breast augmentation with or without a breast lift.  Dr. Albright will assess your breast tissue, the skin of the breast and the position of the nipple to help you decide between these procedures.  The ideal breast augmentation candidate is a patient that desires more breast volume and does not have much breast sagging.  If you desire to wear a larger cup size, then more volume will be needed.  If you are happy with the volume of breast tissue in a bra, but not with the droopiness of the breast out of clothing, then a breast lift is best.  Do you want more volume and need to fix a little breast droop?  Typically, if the nipple position is below the fold of the breast while standing in front of a mirror and you want larger breasts, a lift with an implant (augmentation mastopexy) procedure will likely be needed.  Never fear, Dr. Albright is an expert in all of these procedures and he is considered one of the best breast augmentation plastic surgeons in San Antonio, TX.

Congratulations on your weight loss! It is a difficult thing to achieve and you should be proud! Now that you have achieved a stable weight near your ideal or goal weight, it may be time to rejuvenate your breasts. For many women in this situation, it is easy to become disheartened. They say "I always had big breasts, but, now after weight loss, I have deflated breasts that do not match my figure." Well these patients may be ideal candidates for an augmentation mastopexy. Typically to remove excess skin, an anchor type scar is needed. An implant will then provide the missing volume.

Differences to consider for the massive weight loss patient are considering staging the procedure; doing a lift first then recovering from surgery and allowing the breast to settle before performing a breast augmentation later. Additionally, excess skin and residual fullness may exist around the sides of the breast toward the back (bra line). This may require additional surgery including excision (leaving a scar) and/or liposuction. Although this does increase the surgery time, complication risk, and overall cost, it may be necessary to give you the results you are looking for. Finally and perhaps most critically, where will breast rejuvenation fit in with your other cosmetic surgery goals (belly, arms, thighs, face, etc)? This requires a thorough assessment and discussion of your goals to fully answer. During your consultation for breast augmentation surgery, Dr. Albright will help you come up with a plan that works for you, your goals and your budget.