Breast Augmentation/Lift

If you are unhappy with the size and/or shape of your breasts you are not alone. As one of the most popular procedures performed at McCormack Plastic Surgery, we can offer you many options when it comes to breast enhancement surgery. Through the placement of saline or silicone implants, breast augmentation can enhance the shape and increase the size of your breasts, as well as correct asymmetry. Dr. McCormack believes in providing a natural result that will help you feel more confident with your body without appearing too “fake”. There are many reasons women undergo breast augmentation including reshaping breasts that have lost their size and shape due to breast feeding or weight loss, making breasts larger to become more proportional in overall body shape or balancing breasts that are different sizes. That being said, your reasons are personal and unique. Your decision to undergo breast augmentation should be based on your own needs and expectations.

Types of Breast Implants

Breast implants come in many styles and sizes. Choosing the size that is right for you is based on specific measurements, as well as the look that you are hoping to achieve. Dr. McCormack will spend time discussing your desired breast augmentation outcome and measuring you to help choose an implant that fits your body type while giving you the individual appearance you want to obtain. In addition to size and shape, breast implants are available in different profiles each of which offer a different projection. Breast implants come in a low profile, moderate profile or high profile. High profile implants provide the greatest forward projection and tend to be designed for a narrower chest. Dr. McCormack will show you the differences between implants and guide you toward the best option for your body type.

Breast Augmentation Incisions

Depending on your body type and the size of the breast augmentation desired, breast implants can be placed through an incision made around the areola, underneath the arms or in the lower fold of the breasts. Dr. McCormack will discuss the pros and cons for the incision site specifically recommended for you. The incision for a silicone gel breast augmentation will be slightly larger than for a saline breast augmentation. Breast implants can be placed either under the pectoralis muscle or on top of the muscle. Dr. McCormack will discuss the advantages and disadvantages of implant placement either way.

Breast Augmentation Recovery

Breast augmentation surgery is commonly performed as an outpatient procedure, and most patients are able to return to work in one to two weeks. It is normal to feel somewhat tired and sore for several days following breast augmentation. You may also feel tightness in the chest area for some time. To minimize your risk for complications such as hematoma (bleeding around the implant) we recommend that you limit your activity for the first two weeks. Strenuous activity should be avoided for 6-8 weeks following breast augmentation. You will be given antibiotics to minimize your infection risk, and we will instruct you to use specific breast massage techniques following your surgery to help keep your breasts mobile, soft and natural looking, and to help prevent capsular contracture (excess scarring around the implant from the inside). It is normal for your breasts to appear high and swollen for several weeks following your surgery until they “drop” into a normal position. One breast may drop before the other and this is not a cause for concern. You may experience numbness in the nipple/areola that is often due to swelling and usually resolves. In a small number of patients the numbness will remain permanent.

Breast Augmentation with Lift

Implants are used to make the breast larger. It is important to understand that implants alone may not adequately lift the breast, or correct the effects of pregnancy, weight loss, or skin stretching. Dr. McCormack may suggest additional procedures at the time of breast augmentation, such as a breast lift or mastopexy, to optimize your results.

Breast Lift Overview

Many women are troubled by breasts that have lost elasticity and begun to sag due to the effects of pregnancy, nursing, weight fluctuations, time, or gravity. A breast lift reshapes sagging breasts to a more naturally rounded shape and repositions the breast, nipple, and areola to a more youthful position and projection. Dr. McCormack can combine a breast lift with breast augmentation for patients who have thin, drooping breasts, with nipples at or below the fold. A breast implant will often help shape the breast and provide fullness in the upper portion even if it is not used to make the breast larger.

Breast Lift Surgery

There are many different ways to perform a breast lift. Some women simply require an incision around the nipple/areola while others require a vertical breast lift that results in a “lollipop” type incision. Still others require a full anchor scar incision. Dr. McCormack will assess your individual situation and help determine the breast lift that best suits your needs. Dr. McCormack does not believe in a “cookie cutter” approach whereby each patient gets the exact same procedure. She is very aware that each body is different and each patient’s aesthetic goal will vary. Regardless of the incision required, breast lift surgery is performed in such a way that scarring is hidden by a bathing suit or bra. Patients usually return to work after a week or two, with healing gradually taking place over about three months.

Breast Augmentation and Lift Before and After Photographs

Through breast augmentation surgery either with our without a lift, you can achieve a shapelier, more feminine figure. View our before and after photo gallery to view results of our Reno breast augmentation and breast lift patients.  If you would like more information about the breast enhancement procedures we offer, please contact McCormack Plastic Surgery today.