Breast Reduction and an “Internal” Bra
Breast Reduction Comments Off
Bottoming Out with Breast Implants
Of the usual things can go astray in one breast reduction procedure, one of the most troubling is a condition known as “bottoming out.”
(Read our last post on the list of other things that can go wrong after any breast enhancement procedure.)
Bottoming out means that a lot of breast tissue sits in the very bottom of the breast. That, in turn, makes the nipple point up so much that some wags have nicknamed the condition, “star gazing”.
In some varieties of breast reduction, the areola is moved to the upper part of the breast because both breasts are so large, they often hang to the patient’s belly button. The technique is technically known as the pedicle method.
But a side effect of that method can be creating pseudoptosis (literally,”false sagging”) and bottoming out.
But don’t confuse this bottoming out with a condition of the same name in breast augmentation when a breast implant falls from its pocket to the bottom of the breast.
Many women say bottoming out after breast reduction feels like having a heavy or hanging sensation in the breast. The discomfort ranges from mild discomfort to noticeable pain.
Needless to say, such patients want bottomed-out breasts fixed! And quickly!
One concept is creating what amounts to an internal bra or sling to support the breast. That procedure requires a very skilled hand.
Now, writing in a recent issue of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, three plastic surgeons from Baylor College of Medicine, Division of Plastic Surgery, describe a method of using AlloDerm, (donated human skin with all the cells removed) to create an internal bra. Strips of AlloDerm were sutured to the patients’ chest walls as slings to support the heavy part of the breasts.
Widely used in all surgeries, AlloDerm becomes a natural part of the recipients own body.
One of the surgeons used the technique on 27 patients and found that the internal AlloDerm sling also provided better projection, or, how far out in front the breasts project.
The average weight reduction of each breast was 850 grams, or one and ¾ pounds.
Most importantly, though, no patient had bottoming out at the most recent follow-up at 29 months. Plus, the breast shape was described as “aesthetic”, meaning they just looked good.
(Read more about preventing bottoming out in breast reduction.)
admin @ August 9, 2010
