About Breast Lift Surgery in Fort Myers FL

Considering a breast lift in Ft Myers? Contact Audrey Farahmand, female board certified plastic surgeon. This is technically referred to as mastopexy. Over time, women’s breasts lose elasticity with gravity, age, and following pregnancy. This produces a sagging appearance to the breasts and a lowering of the nipple. To correct this process, a mastopexy (a.k.a. breast lift) is performed to remove excess skin, reposition the nipple, and to increase the fullness of the breast. Mastopexy can be performed with or without an implant. The incisions are around the areola, below the areola in a vertical line between the areola and the breast fold, and a small horizontal incision in the breast fold. Women who need only minimal lifting may be candidates for minimal scar techniques such as “doughnut mastopexy” where the scar as placed only around the areola, or “crescent mastopexy” where the scar is placed around the areola only around the top half of the areola. Patients are back to work after a week or two following breast lift surgery. They are restricted from lifting heavy objects for four weeks.

Breast Surgery – Home Care Instructions

• For the first postoperative week, patients should rest and sleep elevated at 30 degrees. You should not lay flat in bed. Thirty degrees elevation can be achieved in a recliner or using several pillows behind you back and shoulders. If you do not have a recliner, you must position pillows in bed so that you will not roll off your pillows and lose elevation.
• Movement of the arms is helpful in softening your breasts. By moving your arms, this moves your implants and keeps your pocket open to allow for soft breasts. Avoid lifting anything over 5-10 pounds for the first 3 weeks. If you are active in weight lifting, light weights 2-3 pounds with your arms is allowed after 3 weeks. Avoid power lifting for 6 weeks.
• You will be returning to the office for a postoperative check 24-48 hours after your surgery. Massaging in the beginning is painful, so approximately one hour to your appointment have a light meal and a pain pill. After your appointment, you will be allowed to shower.
• Intermittent ice to the breasts is helpful for the first 24-48 hours. After this time period, we recommend avoiding ice. Most patients find that wearing a bra provides support to the breasts and reduces pain, so a comfortable sports bra is recommended to be worn for the first few weeks. Avoid underwire bras. These are not allowed for the first 6 weeks.
• Avoid strenuous activity such as jogging, swimming, skiing, tennis for the first 3-4 weeks after surgery.
• Begin your postoperative antibiotics the night of your surgery and finish the entire prescription.

The following symptoms are completely normal:

• One side hurts more than the other.
• The feeling of Rice Krispies to the breasts. This is a small amount of air and will resolve in 2 weeks.
• Sloshing or gurgling. This is antibiotic solution around your implant. This will resolve in 2-3 weeks.
• Swelling to the top portion of the breasts is normal. This will resolve at about 6 weeks.
• Electric shocks, tingling, temporary numbness, hypersensitivity to the nipples, all of which are normal due to the stretching of nerves.
• Uneven swelling or bruising.
• Constipation from pain pills. Plan on using a laxative if you have not moved your bowels in 2 days.
• Itching from the pain pills is also very common, and we recommend that you take Benadryl 25-50 mg every 4-6 hours for itching. This medicine is available over-the-counter. The side effects are sleepiness, and you are not allowed to drive while taking your pain pills or large doses of Benadryl. Driving is allowed as soon as you stop your pain medicines.
• Postoperative bruising is normal, and this will vary from patient to patient.

Please call Dr. Farahmand’s office if your breasts become:

• One breast twice the size of the other.
• Red streaks extending from the the wound
• Fevers over 100 degrees (fevers under 100 degrees for the first 48 hours are normal).

Do not take any aspirin products, ibuprofen or vitamin E or any homeopathic medicines 2 weeks prior to surgery and 2 weeks after surgery. Medications for pain and antibiotics have been prescribed to you. If your pain is not that severe, you may take Tylenol.

Frequently Asked Questions about Breast Lift Surgery

Q: How do I know if I need a breast lift or just an augmentation or both?
A: Generally, what determines if a patient needs a breast lift is the position of the nipple with respect to the breast crease (the crease underneath the breast). If the nipple hangs below the breast crease, the patient would look better with a breast lift.

Some patients are borderline for needing a lift, meaning that they can have just an implant but the implants will sit slightly lower on their chest.

Q: Where are the incisions for breast lifting?
A: Generally, the incisions for breast lifting are around the areola (the colored skin surrounding the nipple), vertical to the breast crease, and one horizontal within the breast crease.

Q: Will I still have nipple sensation after breast lifting?
A: Most patients still have nipple sensation after breast lift surgery although it will be somewhat diminished.

Q: Will my breasts sag again years after I have a breast lift?
A: Provided that the patient’s weight stays stable and a conservatively-sized implant or no implant is used, the breasts should not sag again over time unless large implants are used. Weight loss, poor skin elasticity, and again- large implants can cause the breasts to sag over time after a breast lift.

Breast Lift; 43 years old

This 43 year old was a 34 B cup and was desiring some more fullness and better symmetry with her breasts. Dr. Farahmand performed a breast augmentation with silicone and a left breast crescent mastopexy (breast lift).

Breast Implant Exchange, Scar Tissue Removal

This is a 45 year old who came to Dr. Farahmand for a mastopexy (breast lift). She had implants which were placed many years ago by a different plastic surgeon. In order to reconstruct her breasts to a more pleasing shape, Dr. Farahmand performed a mastopexy (breast lift) and exchange of implants and capsulectomies (scar tissue removal).

Breast Asymmetry Correction

This is a 30 year old female with an asymmetry of her breasts where her left nipple is much lower than her right. Dr. Farahmand performed a breast augmentation with saline implants and a left breast crescent mastopexy (breast lift) where the scar from the lift is located just along the upper border of the areola. There is no vertical scar. The post operative photos were taken 3 months post-operatively.

Breast Lift (mastopexy) with Implants

This is a 39 year old woman who has had three children and desired improved shape to her breasts. Dr. Farahmand performed a breast lift (Mastopexy) with implants. The post-operative photos are taken 4 weeks after surgery.

Mastopexy with Implants

This is a 44 year old woman who lost 40 pounds and desired a better shape to her breasts. Dr. Farahmand performed a breast lift (mastopexy) with implants. The post-operative photos are taken 6 weeks after surgery.

Breast Lift Photos

This patient is a 40 year old mother of two who desired improvement in the shape and overall appearance of her breasts. Dr. Farahmand performed a breast lift (mastopexy). The post-operative photos were taken one year after surgery.

Breast Lift with Implants

19-year-old female with children desired enlargement of her breasts and an improved appearance. A breast lift with implants was performed.

Breast Lift with Adjustable Implants

This 33-year-old mother of two was dissatisfied with the sagging of her breasts and the position of her nipples. Before her operation, her cup size was 38D. A breast lift was performed in conjunction with adjustable breast implants. After her operation, her cup size increased to 38DD. The post-operative photos were taken after an adjustment to the implants; note the band-aid covering the port. She is 5’7″ and 175lbs.