Breast Reduction

Women who suffer from enlarged breasts often endure social embarrassment, strain on the neck and shoulders, feel unable to comfortably perform exercise and feel generally fatigued. After undergoing breast reduction surgery, many women wonder why they waited so long to have the surgery in the first place. Breast reduction patients as a group are extremely satisfied with the surgical results.

This is an outpatient surgery lasting around three to four hours depending on the size of the patient. Most women feel immediate relief and their post-surgical discomfort often times has resolved within one to two weeks.

Dr. Lucas has analyzed the issues of breast reduction surgery completely. Most of the traditional techniques rely on the skin to be the final arbiter of breast shape. Women who may already have damaged skin with loss of skin elasticity will continue to show signs of skin failure resulting in changes in breast shape and size over time. Other complications of using the skin as the final determinant of the breast shape include the risk of wound breakdown post-surgery at areas of increased tension on the skin. Recent techniques that many surgeons are utilizing can be described as the "short scar techniques" which avoid the horizontal scar under the breast. Despite the smaller scars these procedures still require the skin to sustain the breast shape which can weaken over time or result in widened scars around the nipple-areolar complex.

Through his experience, Dr. Lucas has evolved his breast reduction technique into a procedure based on a mastopexy or breast lift operation. The key elements of the operation are central wedge resection of breast tissue, narrowing the breast base and adding integrity to the breast tissue through an internal breast tissue suture plication technique. With this unique procedure, breasts of any size and shape can be reduced and the residual breast tissue is attached from above and all the forces holding the breast shape are internal and not at the skin level maintaining shape over time and reducing the risk of wound breakdown or widened scars.

Breast reduction surgery can be a very positive step for women with large pendulous breasts who are seeking relief.

An individual consultation can allow Dr. Lucas to evaluate and make recommendations for your situation. Even medically compromised patients given approval by their primary care physician may be candidates for breast reduction surgery.