| Dr. Jeffrey Darrow is a plastic surgeon certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery. Here the Doctor has answered some of the common questions bizymoms visitors have about Breast Reduction Surgery.
Q. What is Breast Reduction Surgery?
A. Breast reduction surgery is done to reduce the size and weight of the breasts so that there is relief of neck and shoulder pain, improvement in the symmetry of the breasts, correct the disproportion between the body and the size of the breasts and to lift and shape the breasts into a better appearance.
Q. Who is a good candidate for a breast reduction?
A. Patients are good candidates for the surgery if there is disproportion between their body and their breasts, they have pain of the neck/upper back due to the weight of the breasts, they can't participate in normal daily activity due to the size of their breasts and they have trouble finding clothes to fit.
Q. What are the benefits of breast reduction surgery?
A. The benefits of breast reduction surgery are the relief of the chronic neck/upper back pain, improvement in the size and shape of the breast, lifting of the breast to put the nipple in the correct position on the breast, and better appearance in and out of clothing.
Q. What are the risks involved of breast reduction surgery?
A. There are risks involved with any surgery but the ones most specific to breast reduction surgery are fluid collections in the breast after surgery, loss of skin sensation on parts of the breast, poor appearance of the incision lines and the possibility of tissue loss (most common in smokers and/or diabetics). Lucky all of these potential problems are very rare and the vast majorities of patients do extremely well, recover quickly and are very pleased with the result.
Q. What does breast reduction surgery involve?
A. The surgery is done either as a same day surgery, meaning you go home after the surgery (most common) or as a overnight stay. General anesthesia is required and the surgery takes about 3 hours. Drains may or may not be used but if they are they will be removed painlessly in about 5 days in the office. I put all my sutures beneath the skin, so there are no sutures to remove. The sutures dissolve in about 3 weeks. Once the skin is closed with the sutures, it is sealed with special "crazy glue for the skin" which allows for no dressings, no wraps and the patient can shower as soon as they wish. This glue simply wears off in about 3 weeks. Most breast reduction surgery is covered by insurance, but different insurance companies have different criteria for covering the procedure. All have a certain requirement for the amount of weight in grams that must be removed for them to consider it a reduction and most are based on some combination of the patient’s height, weight or body mass index. Some are fairly liberal and some quite restrictive.
Q. How much does a breast reduction cost?
A. If the patient won't meet the insurance requirements and wishes to pay for the procedure, the cost is approximately $7000, which may be different depending on which hospital is used.
Q. What type of scarring should I expect?
A. Scarring is usually very good and very well hidden. There may be an individual propensity to scar poorly so this and potential corrective efforts would be addressed during the consultation.
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