Breast Reduction: Q&A

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Breast Reduction Complications

What risks and complications could I be facing from having breast reduction surgery?

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19 Doctor Answers | Asked by anon

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Risks and complications of breast reduction

It is good that you think about surgical risks and potential complications of breast reduction. There are several potential risks: 1) bleeding, 2) scar, 3) pain, 4) hematoma/seroma, 5) nipple sensation change/loss, 6) fat necrosis (hardening of breast tissue), 7) wound dehiscence (break down), 8) infection, 9)breast asymmetry, 10) removal of too much breast tissue or lack of, 11) revisional surgery. These seem to be a lot of risks and potential complications and may sound... more

Breast Reduction and Complications

There are many risks associated with this procedure. Fortunately, complications of any kind are rare, and the likelihood of a significant complication is low. However, there are risks with this, as with all, surgical procedures. Rather than just list them, I thought I'd provide you with the consent form that is used by the American Society of Plastic Surgeons. Neither it nor anything else is necessarily mandatory to use, nor a standard of care, but it is,... more

Complications after breast reduction surgery:

First, there are the complications after any surgery: bleeding, infection, unsatisfactory scars, skin sensation or color change, dimples, ridges, irregularities, subcutaneous firmness, asymmetry, need for re-operation, or more serious complications including, but not limited to, heart attack, stroke, blod clot, or even death. After telling patients this "heavy" list, I usually pause, take a breath, and add "You could also be hit by a bus before having your... more

Breast Reduction Complications

Some of the risks and side effect that may result due to Breast Reduction include are: Permanent loss of feeling of the nipples Permanent scarring Reaction to anesthesia Infection Delayed healing requiring dressings Problems with nursing Regrowth of excess breast tissue or drooping To reduce your chances of any problems, choose a board certified plastic surgeon and be sure to follow your doctor's instructions carefully. It is... more

Risks associated with breast reduction

Depending upon who performs the surgery your down side is as follows: 1, Loss of the nipple = total or partial 2. Mild loss of skin 3. Some loss of skin sensation 4, Fat loss and asymmetry of the breasts -size and placement upon the chest. All of these complications are rare but they are dependent upon the skill of your surgeon.

Breast Reduction Complications

There are multiple possible complications to a breast reduction. Fortunately, most patients have a very pleasant experience and are very happy with their results. However, the possible complications include: Nipple/areolar and skin sensation changes, asymmetry, scars, keloids, infection, fat necrosis, and others.

Breast Reduction Risks and Complications

Breast reduction carries the usual surgical risks of infection, bleeding, and complications of anesthesia. On rare occasions, there may be a slight difference in size from one breast to the other, or the nipple-areola complex will have some differences. For most breast reduction procedures, there will be incision scars around the nipple-areola complex down to the base of the breast, and along the bottom crease of the breast. Occasionally, sensation in the nipple and breast area is... more

Breast Reduction Risks?

Thank you for the question. Some of the risks/potential complications associated with breast reduction surgery include: infection, bleeding, seroma, hematoma, wound healing problems, abnormal scarring ( hypertrophic or keloid), loss of sensation, inability to breast-feed, breast asymmetry, necrosis of tissue or skin, unsatisfactory cosmetic results, unpredictability of exact cup size postoperatively, recurrence of the breast hypertrophy, and the potential for... more

Breast reduction risks

There are risks associated with every surgery. The risk to benefit ratio for breast reduction surgery, however, is quite favorable. Most patients get immediate relief of symptoms such as midscapular back pain, bra strap grooving, headache, neck ache and a recurrent rash beneath the breast. Generally, the complications are few and require little treatment. These include infection, bleeding, poor scar formation, asymmetry, need for revision surgery, loss of sensation of... more

Potential Risks with Breast Reduction Surgery

Here are some of the potential risks that come with breast reduction surgery: unfavorable scarring, infection, changes in nipple or breast sensation, which may be temporary or permanent, risk related to anesthesia, bleeding (hematoma), blood clots, poor wound healing, breast contour and shape irregularities, skin discoloration, permanent pigmentation changes, swelling and bruising , damage to deeper structures such as nerves, blood vessels, muscles, and lungs can occur and may be temporary... more

Breast reduction complications

Most serious complications with any procedure requiring general anesthesia are the risks of anesthesia and blood clots which can lead to pulmonary emboli and death. There is also risks of poor scarring, bleeding and infection which may require re operation. Because tissue is being removed there is also risk of skin loss, open wounds and nipple loss. Ensure you go to a qualified surgeon who can handle these risks if they should arise.

Risks of breast reduction

There are risks to crossing the street or flying in an airplane and, of course, there are risks to any surgical procedure. These risks can occur regardless of surgeon or technique. These include but are not limited to: infection, hematoma, discomfort, wound breakdown, hypertrophic scar formation, asymmetry, unfavorable healing, interference with mammography or surgical evaluation of breast masses, interference with nipple sensation with nursing and aging, discoloration of the nipple/areola,... more

Otto Joseph Placik, MD

32 reviews

Chicago Plastic Surgeon

Breast reduction complications

Breast reduction surgery is a pretty safe procedure. There are common and rare complications. This includes, asymmetry, unfavorable scarring, hematoma, seroma formation, fat necrosis, skin flap loss, nipple loss, and need to have additional surgery to name a few.

Steven Wallach, MD

12 reviews

Manhattan Plastic Surgeon

Breast reduction complications are uncommon

Breast reduction is very safe procedure and carries relatively low risks. The usual surgical risks are present, bleeding, infection, poor scaring, however the procedure and recovery most often go very smoothly. Over the past seven years we have performed many more short scar reduction procedures which improves the recovery. Also patients do not stay over in the hospital, all go home directly, and we no longer use any drains which made the procedure unpleasant. There are two risks which we... more

Breast Reduction Complications

Breast reduction complications include the potential problems with any surgery--bleeding, infection, risk of anesthesia, poor wound healing, and poor scar formation. All of these risks are very low in a relatively healthy, nonsmoking patient. Other more specific risks include loss of sensation and problems with future breast feeding. I can tell you that patients having reductions are among the happiest patients I see and virtually all would have the procedure performed again if they had it... more

Breast Reduction has risks

Medical risks are bleeding, infection, delayed wound healing, nipple numbness, difficult lactation after pregnancy, and scarring. Anesthetic risks are low, but larger reductions likely need general anesthesia and anesthetic risks are related to your health. Cosmetic risks are uneven breasts afterword, widened scars, thick scars, and uneven size of breasts related to weight gain or loss in the future. Most women are thrilled to reduce size D breasts or larger and feel that scars fade! more

Complications of breast reduction surgery

There are generic consequences and risks and there are specific consequences and risks. 1. Generic Consequences--bleeding, scars, pain, mild asymmetry, temporary sensation alteration, swelling, bruising 2. Generic Complications--severe bleeding, abnormal scars, permanat loss of sensation, severe asymmetry, tissue loss, poor wound healing 3. Specific Complications--loss of nipple sensation, necrosis of the nipple, fat necrosis, hypertrophic scarring, severe asymmetry, chronic pain more

Complications of breast reduction surgery

A properly done breast reduction by an experienced plastic surgeon (ie over 10-15 years in practice) in a well qualified not overweight patient has very few complications. The main risks are the anesthesia, bleeding (rare), infection (even rarer), numbness (about 10%), inability to breast feed (possibly but not likely), wound separation (higher in smokers so they should be off all nicotine for one month before and after surgery), and loss of the nipple areola requiring reconstruction (very... more

Breast Reduction safe but has potential complications like every operation

Breast Reduction is an EXTREMELY safe operation and is done thousands upon thousands of times every day across the world. Like EVERY operation it has potential complications most of which are seen in less than 2% of people; Among the complications are Anesthesia complications, bleeding, infection, ugly scars, loss of nipple sensation, asymmetry, wound separation, nipple death (in very large fat necrosis, or when areas of the breast fat lose their blood supply and drain spontaneously for a... more