Breast Lift Candidates

Drooping breasts may cause you to wonder if breast lift surgery can help. Although mastopexy is not for everyone, many women have benefited from the procedure. Determine if you are a good candidate for a breast lift.

Ideal Mastopexy Candidates

Ideal breast lift candidates are women who are seeking a remedy for drooping breasts. It is important to have realistic expectations about the results of breast lift surgery. Although a breast lift can be performed on any size breasts, women with smaller breasts seem to attain the most benefits from mastopexy.

General Breast Lift Requirements

In general, a mastopexy candidate should be a woman who:

• Is over the age of 18.
• Has drooping breasts (breasts with stretched skin and less volume than in the past).
• Is physically healthy and emotionally stable.
• Is not pregnant or breastfeeding (and does not plan to get pregnant).
• Does not have plans to loss excessive amounts of weight.

Visit the DocShop gallery to view breast lift before and after photos.

Photo credit: James P. Wire, MD

Breast Lift after Pregnancy

Many women begin to consider a breast lift after they have children, since pregnancy and breastfeeding can turn once firm breasts into drooping breasts. It is recommended to postpone mastopexy until after you are finished having children.

Although breast lift surgery does not hinder a woman from becoming pregnant, future pregnancies could cause additional stretching of breast skin and alter breast lift results. By waiting to have a mastopexy, you increase the chance that your breast lift results will last longer.

In most cases, mastopexy does not affect the ability to breastfeed. However, the inability to breastfeed could occur after surgery and is listed among potential breast lift complications.

Breast Lift with Augmentation

In addition to stretched skin, drooping breasts may have lost additional volume due to tissue loss. In such cases, a mastopexy with augmentation may produce better results than a breast lift alone. Breast implants inserted during a mastopexy procedure can fill missing volume and create fuller breasts.

Breast Lift after Massive Weight Loss

Massive weight loss can give you a new lease on life. It can also leave you with drooping breasts due to fat loss. Once you have achieved your goal weight (or have come close to it), a breast lift is an option to restore firmness and shape to your breasts. To avoid needing a second surgery, a mastopexy should be postponed if you plan to lose a significant amount of weight.

Because your breasts are not the only areas on your body to accumulate excess skin after a sizeable weight loss, in addition to a breast lift, you should discuss additional procedures including a body lift, tummy tuck (also known as abdominoplasty), or other post bariatric surgeries with your surgeon.

Contact a Plastic Surgeon in Your Area

To help you locate a qualified plastic surgeon in your area, DocShop offers a physician finder tool through this website. Learn what to look for when selecting a breast lift surgeon. Be sure that you feel comfortable with the qualifications, skills, results, and personality of the cosmetic surgeon who will be performing your mastopexy. It is also important to discuss your concerns and obtain answers to all of your questions during a consultation with your surgeon.