Sagging
Breast
The
ideal size and shape of the human breast is a matter
of personal and cultural preference. It also varies
with the dictates of fashion.
Premature sagging occurs as a result of stretching
the Cooper's ligaments that help suspend and support
the breast. Breast ptosis (drooping breasts) can result
from a loosening of the skin and suspensory ligaments.
Gravity and weight of breasts take their toll over
time. Ptosis can also come from a reduction in the
volume of breast tissue. This can occur after pregnancy
and weight loss.
Although good breast care primarily means keeping
your breasts healthy, for some women it also means
keeping your breasts smooth and firm. There are two
reasons for breast to sag: large breasts and age.
Somewhere between the age of 30 and 40, the elastic
tissue in the breast begins to degenerate. The breast
fibres, which act like rubber bands and provide that
resilient bounce as you walk, will still stretch,
but they don't snap back quite as well. The result
is saggy breasts. Adding to the problem, hormonal
changes - both during pregnancy and as you reach menopause
- make breasts sag even more.
Three types of aesthetic procedures are commonly performed
on the breast as under:
Breast augmentation (making the breast larger)
Mastopexy (lifting up the sagging breast)
Breast reduction
Mammaplasty (Breast augmentation)
Breast augmentation (also called mammaplasty) is a
surgery to contour and enlarge breasts using implants.
Many women choose the procedure because they feel
their breasts are too small for their body. Some women
lose breast size after childbirth or breastfeeding.
For others, nature was not overly generous to begin
with. And there are other women who are bothered by
uneven breasts and would like a more naturally balanced
look.
It is done by placing an implant (also called a prosthesis),
either directly behind the tissue of the breast gland
or underneath the pectoral muscles as well as the
breast. Many designs of implant are used. They all
consist of a silicone bag containing a fluid. The
outside of the silicone bag or envelope is sometimes
textured. The first fluid used to fill implants was
silicone gel, followed by saline (salt water).
The breast implant is inserted through either an incision
around the lower border of the nipple (at the edge
of the areola or pigmented area), an incision in the
skin fold below the breast or an incision in the armpit.
Choice of incision and breast size is largely a matter
of preference of the patient and plastic surgeon.
Mastopexy (Breast Lift)
Breast lift (or mastopexy) is a surgical procedure
to reshape and raise sagging breasts. The surgeon
removes excess, stretched skin, which has allowed
the breasts to droop, and lifts the nipples to a higher,
more pert position. If desired, the size of the areola
can be reduced as part of the procedure as well. In
some cases, breast implants are inserted at the same
time to round and shape the breasts for a fuller,
more natural appearance. A breast lift is similar
to breast reduction mammaplasty - both procedures
remodel the breast. The breast lift reshapes the breast
by the removal of stretched and sagging skin; the
breast reduction removes fat and breast tissue as
well.
There are several techniques for a breast lift that
the cosmetic plastic surgeon can consider depending
upon the degree of droopiness (ptosis) of the breast.
In a youthful breast, the nipple lies above the inframammary
fold on the mound of the breast. The surgeon will
examine your breast, decide on the degree of ptosis,
and then determine the surgical treatment best for
you.
Breast reduction
Reduction mammaplasty (breast reduction) is the surgical
reduction of the breast tissue, and re-tailoring of
the overlying skin. This operation involve cutting
around the nipple, leaving it attached to the chest
wall by a stalk of breast tissue, removing excess
skin (and glandular tissue in a reduction) and closing
the re-shaped breast.
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