3-6months

Most people agree that waiting 3-6months is the minimum before undergoing any surgical breast procedure after pregnancy. Of course you have to be done breast feeding as well and the breasts have to be stable in their shape and size change for 3 months. First your body has to recover from the pregnancy to reduce your surgical risks and also your breasts have to stop changing so you can plan the reshaping and sizing as best as possible. My recommendation would be to seek a consultation with a board certified plastic surgeon once you have stopped breast feeding or 3 months after your pregnancy if you are not breast feeding.

It is very common in our practice to see women after they have completed their family to restore volume, lift, and somtimes reduce the size of the breast. Sometimes the first sign of pregnancy is a fullness and firmness in the breast which presists throughout breast feeding. This can be a prime motivation for augmentation or implants after pregnancy in those who enjoyed the fuller cup size.

Few after pregnacy will maintain the fuller cup and often the breast will lose volume, particularly in the upper part of the breast. The change can be slow but most will experience the volume loss within three to six months after breastfeeding or pregnancy. In order to correctly plan a breast lift or augmentation after pregnancy and breast feeding it is best to wait this time to know exactly what implant will give the size you expect to remain, or the shape that you expect to maintain with a breast lift.

8 of 10 found this helpful

Helpful?

Contact the doctor

There is no widely accepted answer for this but traditionally most surgeons would wait about 4 months following cessation of NURSING and LACTATION.

This means that if you deliver and then nurse for 6 months, you may want to wait for another 4 months (10 months after pregnancy)

There are exceptions to this such as prolonged lactation and discharge after cessation of nursing or recurrent bouts of mastitis (inflammation or infection of the breast tissue).

Occasionally, insertion of implants will also stimulate lactation which is known as Galactorrhea.

The choice of incsions may also affect the potential to sag in the future as well as future ability to nurse with additional children.

Although I understand your desire to undergo surgery as soon as possible while recovering from your delivery, the breast is still undergoing changes during this period with shrinkage of skin and breast tissue that can affect the utlimate shape as well as make infection potentially more likely. I have performed surgery at an earlier date but only after patients have understood that this carries a higher risk of complcations.

There may be other factors during preganancy and delivery regarding your general health that may have impact on the decision to proceed, delay, or even cancel surgery.

I hope this helps!

1 of 3 found this helpful

Helpful?

Contact the doctor