When it comes to overall breast appearance, the nipple-areola is often the first thing people see, similar to the nose on a face. As such, areola size is a crucial component to every breast surgery and must be treated as such by your plastic surgeon. A breast lift with implant augmentation allows a plastic surgeon to not only correct the breast size and shape but also decrease areola size.
As we age, the effects of our skin stretching, the gravity and sagging pressure of the soft tissue will stretch and enlarge the areolas. Additionally, a breast augmentation with implants may also stretch the areola both acutely and chronically in time.
A breast lift with implant augmentation gives us the opportunity to definitively correct the nipple-areola appearance by moving it to a new position and decreasing the size. A proper nipple-areola is forward-facing and symmetric so any preoperative nipple asymmetry must be accounted for while lifting the breast.
The ideal areola size is about 42mm in diameter but may go as large as 50mm on a larger breast mound and as small as 35mm on a smaller one. Another key to decreasing areola size is understanding that the diameter will increase about 5mm in the post-operative recovery phase as well.
As far as breast aesthetics go, however, areola shape is actually more important than the size. Creating a round areola in a breast lift with implant augmentation may be tricky for an inexperienced surgeon because of the several pulling factors involved that result in a heart or oval-shaped areola. A heart shape is a result of pulling down from the vertical incision line.
This can be avoided by sewing the vertical first before insetting the final nipple-areola. An oval shape may be created by the uneven pulling (think of a tug of war) by the adjacent breast tissue. This is avoided by temporarily insetting the nipple-areola, allowing 5 minutes for the tension in the breast skin to reach a balance, and then redoing the insetting to create an ideal final shape.
If you are interested in a breast lift with implant augmentation to decrease areola size, contact Newport Beach plastic surgeon, Our Surgical Team MD today for your free consultation.
This is a 59-year-old female following bilateral breast implant removal and implant replacement. Notice the drastic decrease in areola size in the postoperative photos.
