Breast Reduction Gallery

A woman in her late 50s with bilateral macromastia described herself as a 38F cup bra.  She had problems with neck pain, shoulder pain, grooving and irritation of her shoulders from her bra strap, and back pain.  Her case is complicated by smoking a ½ pack of cigarettes a day.  Smoking damages the blood supply and can cause the nipple to turn black and necrose (die) with traditional techniques.  She was not able to stop smoking so we performed a free nipple graft technique, where the nipple is removed completely and replaced as a full-thickness graft. In a case like this, I like to use some of the breast tissue to add volume back to the upper part of the breasts.  The nipple typically will look like a scab for the first two months but then generally heals in well.  She is shown just before surgery and again, 3 months after her procedure.  More than 600 grams of tissue were removed from each breast.  9 454 grams= 1 pound)  Her symptoms have resolved and she loves her new shape and size. 

A woman in her mid 20’s with 38 D bra and problems  with neck, back and shoulder pain, as well as grooving and irriation of her shoulder from her bra straps.  She has smoked cigarettes for years.  Cigarettes are a problem with surgery, because they damage the blood supply to the skin and to the nipples, and with a traditional technique that depends on the small blood vessels to give blood supply to the nipples, the nipples can die and the breast tissue can lose its blood supply and cause “fat necrosis” with the tissue becoming hard and lumpy.  I cases such as this, I encourage patients to stop smoking for 2 months or more before and after the procedure.  A “free nipple graft” technique, where the nipple is detached completely and put back on in the correct position as a free graft can have a lower risk of problems.  At   7 months the breasts have healed well and are soft.  There is frequently some depigmentation of the areolas which can improve over time.  She loves her new breasts and is happy that her symptoms have resolved.  She and I are also both thrilled that she has stopped smoking for the surgery and has not gone back.

A 64 yo woman who described herself as a 36 DD bra and has had problems with back pain, shoulder pain, grooving and irritation of the shoulders, as well as difficulty exercising.  She is shown before and again, 5 months after breast reduction with the removal of more than 500 grams of tissue from each breast.  She is thrilled with her new shape and size.  Her symptoms are gone.  And she “wishes that she had done this sooner”.  She was worried about the pain from surgery, and although everyone’s experience is different, because of our Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) protocol, her surgery was performed as an outpatient, and she only took Advil after.

A woman in her mid 20’s with a 36 D cup breast who had problems with back pain, shoulder pain, difficulty exercising and a rash under the breasts in the warmer months.  She wanted to be a small C cup.  She is shown before and again, 21 months after bilateral breast reduction with the removal of 414 grams from her left breast and 339 grams from her right breast to reduce her to a small C cup.  Her symptoms have resolved and she is thrilled with the new shape and size of her breasts.

A woman in her mi 20’s with bilateral macromastia.  She wears a 34 DD bra and has problems with shoulder pain, back pain, rash and difficulty exercising.  She has had irritation of her shoulders from the bra straps.  Her breast becam larger in college when she was on birth control pills.  She is shown before and again, 5 months after bilateral breast reduction with the removal of 341 grams from her right breast and 459 grams from her left breast to reduce her to a C cup.  ( 454 grams= one pound).  She is 5’4” and 128 lbs.

A nurse in her early to mid 20’s who described herself as a 34 D cup and had problems with back pain and difficulty exercising due to the size of her breasts.  She was not able to obtain insurance coverage for her procedure because the amount of tissue to be removed to reduce her to a C cup did not meet insurance criteria for her carrier.  She proceeded as a cosmetic breast reduction and is shown before and again, 15 months after bilateral breast reduction with the removal of just over 200 grams of tissue from each breast to reduce her to a C cup.  Despite gaining 13 lbs, her breasts remain in a c cup range and her symptoms have resolved and not recurred.

An early ( 4 month) follow-up on a woman in her early 50’s with bilateral macromastia  and axillary lipodystrophy ( fat “bulges” in the upper breast/armpit area)

She describes herself as a 40 DDD cup and had problems with shoulder pain which did not resolve with massage and physical therapy as well as grooving and irritation of her shoulders from the bra straps.  She also had back pain and neck pain.  She is 5 feet tall and 160 lbs and is shown before and again 4 months after bilateral breast reduction along with liposuction of the axillary lipodystrophy.   She had more than 800 grams of tissue removed from each breast ( 454 grams = 1 pound).  She is thrilled with her new shape and size, and all of her symptoms have resolved.  Scars are typically redder and thicker for 6 weeks and then fade and improve over the next 2 years.

A woman in her later 50’s who describes herself as a 38 DDD and has had problems with grooving and irritation of her shoulders, back pain, shoulder pain, and a rash under the breasts.

She is 5’ 3” and 139 lbs and is shown before and again, 6 months after bilateral breast reduction with the removal of 475 grams of tissue ( 454 grams = one pound) from each breast.  She is thrilled with her new shape and size and her symptoms have resolved.  Scars will typically continue to fade for the next 18 months or longer.

A mother of 2 in her late 50’s who describes herself as a 38 DDD cup bra and has had problems with grooving and irritation of her shoulders from her bra strap, back pain, shoulder pain, rash under the breasts  and difficulty exercising .  She is shown before and again, 6 months after breast reduction.  He symptoms have resolved and she is thrilled with the new shape and size of her breasts.

A woman in her early 50’s who describes herself as a 36 F and has problems with chronic rashes under her breasts, neck pain, back pain, shoulder pain and difficulty exercising.  She is shown before and again, nearly 6 months after bilateral breast reduction.  Her symptoms have resolved and she is thrilled with her new shape and size.