Breast Augmentation and Breast Lift to Treat Breast Asymmetry from Heart Surgery as a Child
This 39-year-old patient was concerned with very significant asymmetry of breasts and laxity on the right side. The left breast was much smaller in size following scarring from chest surgery as a child. The scar from her childhood surgery stretched around the whole left side of her chest, leaving her with a great deal of internal scar tissue. The patient also had a history of breastfeeding.
The breast augmentation and breast lift surgery was done using intravenous sedation anesthesia, rather than general anesthesia. Intercostal nerve blocks were used to keep the surgery pain free and help the patient remain comfortable following her breast augmentation and breast lifting surgery.
Bilateral silicone breast augmentation was performed with silicone gel implants through a circular incision at the edge of the areola. A breast lift was also performed on the right breast using a vertical incision between the areola and breast fold. To treat the breast asymmetry, a 150 cc silicone gel-filled Natrelle® Style 10 implant with a wider base diameter was used on the right breast to fill the concavity of the upper breast. A 371 cc silicone gel-filled Natrelle® Style 15 implant was used on the left breast. The breast implants were placed under the muscle (subpectoral).
Both dimension and volume of the implant are very important considerations in the artistic reshaping of breasts in the face of dense scar tissue and longstanding breast deformity. In this breast augmentation patient, the left breast never developed appropriately during adolescence and adult life. Thus, in this specialized breast augmentation treatment plan, the right breast was lifted using a periareolar incision (a circular incision at the edge of the areola) as well as a vertical incision between the areola and breast fold (sometimes called a lollipop incision). This incision was needed to adequately lift the right breast to better match the other side. While Dr. Patrick Sullivan tries to limit the incision to a circular incision at the edge of the areola, it is not always possible when excessive skin is present.