Candidates
Patients desiring a breast reduction are usually looking to improve the proportion of their breasts with the rest of their figure. Additionally, a breast reduction eases chronic back and shoulder pain caused by overly large breasts.
Patients who are candidates for breast reduction are women that desire smaller breasts. A breast reduction can be performed at any age, however Dr. Quintero advises that a patient’s breasts are fully developed.
You may want to postpone breast reduction surgery if you are planning pregnancy or significant weight loss.
Dr. Quintero aims to provide patients with natural results that fit their goals; enhancing the already beautiful you.
Procedure Steps
A breast reduction is an outpatient surgery, allowing you to go home that same day. The procedure rarely requires a hospital stay.
The specific technique used to reduce the size of your breasts can vary. The procedure will include surgery through incisions and liposuction to remove the excess fat in your breasts.
To perform a breast reduction, Dr. Quintero will make an incision around the areola (nipple), down each breast, and underneath the breast (reverse T incision). He will then remove excess breast tissue, fat, and skin to reduce the size of each breast.
Safety Preparation & Risk
In order to perform a safe breast reduction, a patient must be up to date on their mammogram if it applies to their age group.
We also ask that patients stop certain medications and all nicotine products. Dr. Quintero would like for patients to follow these recommendations for a better healing and recovery process.
Possible risks of a breast reduction include the following:
- Bruising, which is usually temporary
- Scarring, your incision scars might fade over time but will never completely disappear
- Loss of sensation in the nipples and skin surrounding
- Areola reduction (which is expected in the majority of cases)
- Difficulty or inability to breast-feed
- Differences in the size, shape and symmetry of the surgically altered breast, which might lead to further surgery to improve your appearance
Recovery
Recovery for a breast reduction varies from patient to patient, but recovery time usually lasts around two weeks. Full recovery to return to everyday activities (normal workout routine, etc.) is usually one month after the procedure. After surgery, it can take months for the swelling to completely go down and the surgical scars to fade.
