How can I have pert nipples without losing the ability to breastfeed?

Aurora Clinics is now part of The Private Clinic, Mr Adrian Richards is part of The Private Clinic expert team of Consultant Plastic Surgeons who specialise in Breast Surgery procedures. Click here to find out more about Breast Surgery at The Private Clinic.

Question:

I am 21 years old and very unhappy with the appearance of my breasts. I lost a lot of weight about 5 years ago which completely changed their shape. They became saggy and my areolas are now very big and oval. The right one is 9cm in height and 6.5cm in breadth.

Would it be possible for me to have a peri-areolar mastopexy, which I believe will give my nipples a small lift and decrease the size of the areolas? I would like this type of breast uplift surgery as it will not affect my ability to breastfeed. This is important to me as I have never had any children.

I have visited three plastic surgeons here in Norway, and they all recommend breast reduction surgery. I know this kind of operation will involve cutting the lactiferous ducts which will make it impossible to breastfeed. I have watched your videos on areola reduction and am very impressed with your work. Therefore, I trust your opinion and look forward to your advice.

Answer:

Unfortunately when you lose a lot of weight it can affect the appearance of your bust. This can often result in volume reduction from the upper part of the breast and descension of the nipple.

In many cases an areolarplasty is enough as it has the advantage of limiting scars to the area around the nipples. In other cases, such as yours I think a mastopexy with a vertical scar may be more appropriate.

Please have a look at some of the videos on our website. This will give you a further idea as to what is involved in each of these specific procedures. We do generally advise that all forms of breast surgery carry a risk of not being able to breastfeed afterwards, so if this is very important to you it may well be worth waiting until after you have finished your family.

Although certain procedures (like areolarplasty and uplift) are potentially less risky for breastfeeding than, say, breast reduction they do still carry this risk. The extent of the risk largely depends on the individual procedure which would be needed to create the best results for you: whether your surgeon would need to operate mainly on skin or tissue.

This is always best assessed at a consultation by your surgeon who can give you a much more accurate idea of the risk that you would be taking regarding breastfeeding.

Also remember that, even in the case of procedures like breast reduction, a number of women do go on to breastfeed successfully: it is simply that we like to make our patients fully aware of the possible risks so that you can make a balanced, informed decision regarding your breast surgery.

If you feel that you would like to schedule a consultation, please do so by ringing us on: 0333 920 9135 or click here to book consultation.