Thousand Oaks Breast Lift - Crescent Lift Mastopexy with Breast Augmentation

Thousand Oaks, Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, Calabasas, Ventura, Camarillo

Breast Lift Surgery
How I like to do it

Breast Lift surgery should really be thought of as breast contouring.  This procedure will tighten loose skin, raise and reduce the size of the nipple and areola and add projection outward to the breast.  When you are evaluated, I will discuss whether you would benefit from a breast lift, if a breast implant would improve your shape and if any other breast procedure might enhance your result?  Listed below is my overview for determining a lifting technique.

To determine if a lift is needed, I will ask you the following questions

• Do you wish to be larger or stay near your current cup size?

• Do you desire more projection outward?

• Are you willing to accept visible scars as a trade off for a better shape?

• Did you know that a breast lift will not move your breast from a low, hanging position to a very high position?

Next, I'll examine your breasts for the following

• Is your distance from the base of neck to the nipple proper?  
       Normally this is 18-22 centimeters.

• Is your nipple positioned in the center and fullest part of the mound?  
       Normally this is 7 1/2 to 8 centimeters      from the breast fold.

• Is your nipple pointing downward or below  the line of the breast fold?

• Is one nipple positioned lower on one side only?

• Are your breasts symmetrical in size?

 

                                

Match your breasts with one of the following scenarios to find out if I would do a Breast Lift on you

Take a ruler and measure in centimeters the distance from the lowest point of the groove (sternal notch) at the base of your neck to the middle of your nipple on each side.
If you don't have a centimeter ruler 1 inch = 2.5 centimeters          

Submuscular Breast Augmentation only

 

If your sternal notch to nipple distance is between 17 - 21 centimeters, you do not need a Breast Lift, unless all of your breast tissue has sagged to the bottom.

Subglandular Breast Augmentation

 

If your sternal notch to nipple distance is 22 - 23 centimeters, you are not to thin, your nipple is centered properly and you have very little loose skin, then this will shape you the best.

Crescent Lift with Breast Implants -

 

If your sternal notch to nipple distance is around 22 - 23 centimeters, but nipple position is pointing downward and you have very little loose skin, then you should have a Crescent Lift with a Breast Augmentation.

Standard or Vertical Mastopexy -

 

If your sternal notch to nipple distance is 24 centimeters or lower, your breast mound flat and you don't want bigger breasts ,  then you will need either a Standard or V-Shaped Mastopexy to create some projection outward and shape each breast.

Standard or Vertical Mastopexy with Breast Implants

 

If your sternal notch to nipple distance is 24 centimeters or lower, your breast mound flat and you want bigger breasts, then you will need either a Standard or V-Shaped Mastopexy and a Breast Implant to create some projection outward and shape each breast.

Reasons you should have a 2 Staged Operation: Mastopexy (Lift) followed months later with Breast Implants.

If you have:

• Heavy breasts with very little loose skin
• Severe bottoming out or sagging of the breast tissue
• A desire for large breasts, but your natural breasts are small and sag
• 2 different size and shaped breasts with sagging

Doing the Mastopexy separate from the Breast Implant will almost always give you a better final shape and less visible scars.

 

FAQ / My Opinion and My Recommendations

I heard of a Laser Lift, is this important?

 

No, using a Laser during a Breast Lift adds no advantage to the procedure. The Laser is a cutting or vaporizing tool which acts as a surgical knife. Therefore, the Laser cannot shape your breasts to make them look better, make the Breast Lift last longer or make your breasts heal better or faster.

The Laser Lift is used as a marketing tool to entice women interested in a Breast Lift. Because most persons think that using Lasers for Cosmetic Surgery means they are getting the most advanced technologies, Cosmetic Surgeons advertise Lasers for use in hopes you will select them over another surgeon.

I do not use Lasers for Breast Lifts because this increases the cost, increases the time of the operation and adds absolutely no benefit to the women having breast shaping.

I head you can get a Breast Lift with only a circular scar around the areola?

 

That's true, however, this type of Breast Lift is not a shaping lift and is only used with a breast implant. My preference is the Crescent Breast Lift which will raise your nipple position. This is important if your nipple position is slightly low or pointing downward. This allows me to position the implant higher so you get more fullness at the top of your breasts.

Benelli or Doughnut Lift is a very poorly designed Breast Lift and because of this I no longer use this lift, but instead use the Crescent Lift. The problems I've seen with the Benelli Lift are flattening of nipple, wide areolas, wide scars and very little lifting.

Should I get a Breast Implant with my Breast Lift?

 

For some woman a breast implant will be beneficial. If you breasts are sagging, gotten smaller after pregnancy and lost support, the a breast implant will give you back fuller breasts and a better shape.

However, if you have reasonably good support, no significant loss in size, but your breasts have begun to sag, then a Breast Lift without an implant would be a good choice.

Why would I need an anchor incision Breast Lift?

 

Putting an incision along the fold at the bottom of the breast is important in some women to keep the proper distance from that fold to the nipple. I may suggest this to you for shaping during your consultation with me.

 

Types of Mastopexy

Crescent shaped
Doughnut or Benelli
V-shaped
Standard (anchor type incision)

Crescent Lift  is used to reposition the nipple upward in order to place the implant slightly higher. This procedure will also correct small discrepancies in the nipple level between the two breasts or tip the nipple upward if it is pointing down.

A crescent of skin (1/2 moon shape) is removed from just above the nipple/areola area. I like to place the implant through the periareolar incision on the bottom half of the areola, thereby creating a full circular incision around the whole areola.The drawbacks to any lifting procedure done around the areola is that the areola itself may enlarge in size. Also, nipple elevation can only be moved upward a small distance.
The Crescent Lift is normally done with a Breast Implant.

Doughnut or Benelli Lift takes a rim of tissue around the whole nipple- areola area, helping to tighten the skin and lift the nipple. Not used by me because of the problems with poor scars, widening of the areola and flattening of the nipples.

Standard Mastopexy (anchor incision) raises the nipple and tightens the skin of the breast.   I use this most of the time in conjunction with a breast implant.

V-Shaped Mastopexy ( lollipop incision) gives some of the best overall contouring, because it keeps the nipple position centered on the mound, while giving the greatest amount of shaping and tightening to your breasts.

Breast Reduction followed by the placement of a breast implant is a better choice than a Breast Lift with a breast implant if you fall into the following categories:

You have heavy, low hanging breasts;  
These large breasts tend to be wide and will look better with a larger diameter implant.  Also, by removing some of this non supportive tissue and replacing it with a larger volume implant, your breast will be higher and more projecting.

If you want to remain about the same size; I would first reduce and shape the breast. Then add the volume back with a breast implant. This will allow you to stay around the same size.   Whereas a Breast Lift combined with a breast implant placement at the same time will make your breasts bigger.

Thousand Oaks Cosmetic and Plastic Surgeon Chris Costanzo MD performs Breast Lift - Crescent Lift Mastopexy with Breast Augmentation for women in Thousand Oaks, Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, Encino, Sherman Oaks, Malibu, Tarzana, Woodland Hills, West Hills, Granada Hills,Calabasas, Agoura, Westlake Village, Moorpark, Oxnard, Simi Valley, Ventura, Camarillo, Santa Barbara, Los Angeles County, Ventura County and Santa Barbara County. Dr. Costanzo is a Board Certified Plastic Surgeon trained at the world famous Mayo Clinic who specializes in the Breast Lift, Crescent Lift, Mastopexy with Breast Augmentation procedures Beverly Hills style.