Mastopexy is the surgery which has the purpose of lifting the drooping breasts. The fall of the breast, or breast ptosis. Aging, weight changes, pregnancy and lactation there is a natural and gradual breast sagging, with or without a reduction in volume.
The skin becomes thin and inelastic, fat looses compactness, the parenchyma decreases in volume. Mastopexy enables to reshape the breast parenchyma, to let the nipple-areola complex goes back to the correct position and remove the excess skin. The surgical technique is not the same for each patient: if your breast has lost just a little of volume and it has slightly gone limp, it can be sufficient to insert a prosthesis to restore a conical shape of the udder. In case of a mild ptosis of breast it can be used the perirareolar mastopexy, with a possible scar around the areola and possible insertion of prostheses. In case of ptosis moderate or severe, it is suggested the vertical breast lift with related scars around the areola and vertical or inverted T scar.
Preoperative preparation
Before any surgery it is necessary to run some preoperative tests: blood tests, urine test, ECG, mammography and / or breast ultrasound. It is also important to tell the surgeon about some medical treatments such as steroids, contraceptives, antihypertensives, cardiac, anticoagulants, hypoglycemic agents, antibiotics, tranquilizers, sleeping pills. It is necessary to stop taking medicines containing Acetylsalicylic acid (eg .: Cardioaspirin) 10 days before the surgery: to stop or reduce smoking the week before. If, the days before the surgery, fever, cough, runny nose, sore throat arise, it is important to give information about them
It is important to have an adequate-sized elastic bra and on the day of admission to wear clothes open in the front. It is recommendable to take a bath the evening before the surgery, to remove nail polish and to shave armpits at least 2 days before the surgery. It is very important to fast the night before the surgery and not to drink 4 hours before the surgery.
The surgery: It can be performed under local anesthesia with sedation only in case of minor fixes, and it is usually performed under general anesthesia.
Postoperative
At the end of the surgery, a dressing-stretched elastic that holds and supports the breasts will be applied to the chest. This dressing will be changed when the drainage will be removed: at this stage it will be appropriate to wear an adequate elastic bra, which will be kept for at least the first post-operative month. At the time of discharge it will be given a post-operatively drug therapy and the conduct rules to follow, including: antibiotic therapy with amoxicillin + Ac. Clavulanic 1g 1 x 2 cp / d h. 8-20 with food for five days, pain relief with paracetamol 1000 mg 1 tablet as needed. It is recommended not to wet dressings. We recommend not to stress arms for at least 15 days and to avoid strenuous physical activity for 4-6 weeks. Do not expose yourself to ultraviolet light (sunlight, sunlamps) for at least 6 months after the surgery.
Possible risks and complications
Like all surgical procedures also mastopexy is not exempt from possible postoperative complications: Hematoma, steatonecrosis, tissue necrosis (1.5%) (irreversible degeneration of tissues in particular of the areola and nipple); pain (4.5%); serosity (2%) (formation of inflammatory liquid); hematoma (4.5%) (localized accumulation of fluid in blood); wound infection, with a possible change of the aesthetic result of the wounds(1.5%); the inexact symmetry of the breasts, both volume and form (20%); the opportunity, in some cases, to practice minor adjustments to improve the result (15%). The aesthetic result of the operation could be compromised by successive pregnancies or weight changes.
Insurance
The aesthetic nature of the operation must be considered to be uncovered by insurance reimbursements.
Results
After the surgery you have skin scars of different measure, depending on the extent of the defect and the technique employed. Any stretch marks will be reduced in extension and number, because of the removal of the skin and due to the tension of the reshaped breast, their appearance will be improved even if they will never disappear, completely. It is also important to notice that a laddered and inelastic skin is a condition to create an enduring result of the surgery. Immediately after the post-operation breasts become very mobile, too high, swollen, with the pleats along the scars: within 30 days the post-operative edema will gradually fade, folds will be flattened , breasts will assume its texture and natural shape in about 3-4 months. Scars will be considered stable after about one year after the surgery.