Is This Done "Crescent Lift" Done Correctly? My Dr. Seems to Think This is Acceptable (photo) Doctor Answers, Tips
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Is This Done "Crescent Lift" Done Correctly? My Dr. Seems to Think This is Acceptable (photo)

after I politely expressed my concerns,& asked if we could fix it.I also stated how it's starting to make me feel self conscious but all he had to say(while yelling 3 ft away from me,as i'm sitting there with my breast exposed)how he felt nothing but sorry for me.Not in a apologetic way! He shouted, "if this makes u feel sad, then I.FEEL.SORRY.FOR.U! It put me in tears. PS:after he admitted 1 was bigger & his measurements told him so. 2nd opinion? What do i do now?

11 Doctor Answers | Asked by AndreaJohnson
+3

Concerned About Breast Result

Dear Ms Johnson, I am sorry for your experience. My question is what are you trying to achieve? Would it be better nipple position and small more symmetric areola? or symmetry of your breasts additionally? If the discussion and the agreed upon treatment was a simple crescent lift then based on the scar the location is correct and technically that would be the result. The crescent lift only removes some tissue just above the areola and lifts the nipple slightly. True... more
+3

Crescent Lift

Hi Andrea, I'm sorry for your bad experience,and I regret the attitude of your PS. Like Dr. Minniti mentioned, Crescent lifts don't work. Rather than re-positioning the nipples, all they will do is elongate the areola above the nipple. Your PS attitude shows an arrogance that is unacceptable. Ignore his comments. Find another surgeon. Good Luck, Ary Krau MD FACS
+3

Crescent Lift

Hello Andrea, Welcome to the world of the crescent lift. I am terribly sorry you are another victim of this antiquated and flawed technique. Only the smallest of breasts with an implant could potentially benefit from it, but would still be done better with a circumareolar lift. Your surgeon's indignation is probably based on his belief that the surgery was executed correctly, which is probably true, but irrelevant because the result could be much better if done... more

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+3

Yes it is done correctly

Now, having said that I feel you needed much more than a cresent lift. A cresent lift will work in patients who have minimal ptosis and are almost always adding an implant. If you did not have a full periareolar lift then I am not sure if there is an old scar from about 3-9 on the areolar. I would recommend revision with a vertical lift to place the breast and areolar above the iframammaryu crease. I know its upsetting but it is correctable. Good luck, Dr.... more
+3

Crescent lift with breast augmentation

Hello and thanks for your questions and photos, Andrea. I am sorry to hear that you had such a bad experience with your PS. With pre-op photos, a better opinion could be rendered about your crescent lift. This type of lift is usually reserved for a slight droopiness, and I mean slight, to the breasts. From the 2nd photo the left nipple appears to be in an excellent position, as it is well above the inframammary fold. Trying to correct the nipple position with... more
+2

Is This Done "Crescent Lift" Done Correctly? My Dr. Seems to Think This is Acceptable

Simply put you were NOT a candidate for a crescent lift from the get go! Best to obtain second opinions in person.
+2

You results are acceptable for crescent lift

The decision about the lift is complex and involves both the surgeon skills and the patient's expectations. The decision to have minimal lift and small scar is appealing before surgery, but leads to postoperative dissatisfaction. If you want higher positioned nipple , smaller areola, then you will need full lift. Your surgeon has done the lift correctly, but the crescent lift was not the best lift for you.
+2

Beware the Crescent breast lift

Your surgeon sounds like he has anger management issues. Oh well, now for your breasts. It's pretty common for the areola to spread out or become weirdly shaped with this type of lift. It's also pretty common for patients to prefer this type of lift because of the limited scar. You would likely get a better, rounder areolar shape with a revision that goes all the way around the areola or an even better shaped and smaller areola with a vertical lift... more
+1

Crescent lift mastopexy - not enough breast lift

The trade-off of having a mastopexy is having a more significant scar than would be achieved with implants alone. For every patient the acceptance of these scars is different. I am assuming that you chose this crescent scar pattern for the mastopexy because you wanted less scarring than would occur with a more significant lift. For some patients your postoperative result would be acceptable without the scars of a larger mastopexy. For most others, this would not be an... more
+1

Crescent Lift and Breast Augmentation

A crescent lift will never produce symmetric nipple area complexes. There is too much variability in preoperative size and shape along with inability to control the stretch of the nipple areola complex over time. If you want higher nipple areola complexes that are more symmetric, I would recommend a vertical lift or full breast lift.
+1

Unhappy with periareolar lift.

I am a little puzzled as to why the nipple/areolar position looks so low on the photo on the right, but looks better on the other three. It may be that you are pulling up on your breasts. Or leaning forward for the photo on the right. Assuming the photo on the right describes the current status, it appears to me that you would do well to have a full anchor pattern lift. One common problem with the Benelli lift is the tendency for the areolas to stretch out, not... more
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Comments (6)

AndreaJohnson 9 Jan 2013
I'm not sure if Doctors check the comments (realself told me they usually don't) but I just wanted to take the time and thank everyone who was helpful and gave me a better understanding of this procedure. I truly appreciate it. You guys are great! I'm happy to see that others see the problem too and it's not just me like I was led to believe. Will definitely be seeking for a second opinion. I also wanted to answer a few questions… The look that I wanted to achieve with my breast enhancement was upper fullness, big but not enormous to the point that it looked ridiculous on my body, considering I'm only 4'11. I wanted perkiness, roundness upfront, fluffy, youthful, cute, 34D or DD…(this is hard to describe in writing) I started out with a full 34a cup. Well, I was told that with my nipple position (low) we would possibly have to do a crescent lift in order to lift the nipples up a little bit so the implant would sit inside the breast right and that a full lift was not needed. My nipples had never bothered me before. I wasn't even aware that they were low. I'm only 24 years old (i didn't go in there with the intent of doing anything to my nipples). Therefore, I wanted to avoid the knife as much as possible but was not against having either procedure done, a crescent or full lift. We both agreed that we wouldn't take it a step further until the implants were in (during surgery), to see if it was truly needed. If either lift was necessary to achieve the look I wanted, I gave him the consent to go ahead and do it. I was not concerned about the scarring. So the problems that I'm experiencing now are, how this lift was supposed to help my nipple situation but it didn't. If I went through this procedure, I wanna see results. I feel like my nipples sit even lower now due to the implants. One of my nipples is bigger than the other one. I did not have this problem prior surgery so it's very difficult to accept the fact that they look this way now, when I know it can be fixed and look better. The other thing that I don't like is, how choppy the right nipple is. The lines are all over the place. It looks patchy and fuzzy while the left nipple doesn't. Bras don't fit properly either. My breasts bulge out of them no matter what size or style I wear. I'm not seeking perfection. I totally understand that plastic surgery won't give you perfection but, I do want the best results possible. I have to live with this forever. This is something that I've wanted ever since I realized my breasts weren't gonna get any bigger, so around the age of 17? I put in the extra hours at work, saved for months so I could be able to afford it. Therefore, I wanna look in the mirror and feel happy, smile and be 100% satisfied with my results :)
softgirl 8 Jan 2013
Andrea, even though your nipples r a little low on the breasts, they look absolutely natural and beautiful to me. What I see is that your natural line is very 'fuzzy' all the way around, and any kind of incision around the edges will show up, that's just the way it is. How long ago did you have your surgery? However, despite all this, your PS should never be raising his voice to you in this manner, it's so unprofessional. If he couldn't control himself, he should have excused himself with a simple 'let me think about it and see what I can do' type statement, and then get back to you. Maybe he can go back in and touch up the edge and take that little point off the top of the right breast.
AndreaJohnson 8 Jan 2013
I had my breast enhancement and crescent lift done 5 months ago. I brought it up to his attention in my three month checkup. His response then was, "Uh, I guess we could take a little out here but you're fine. Just don't show anyone." I was a little confused by his response and got caught up in his compliments that I just let it go and told myself to just try to accept it, also let my body heal since that could've been the issue. Two months went by and things were not changing at all. My nipple just got worse(discomfort in the breast as well). So I made an attempt to go talk to him again to see if we could come to an agreement. Well, things just got ugly after that. Like I said, he just snapped. I'm still trying to understand why, since I was completly polite and nice about it. I never said, "this is ugly, fix it now! I hate it, you're awful." Never did I mean to insult his work or demanded anything. Most women would've went in there with a horrible attitude. But like I said, his behavior was completly horrific. He turned bright red, as he proceeded to tell me that I was pathetic and that he felt sorry for me! I was in disbelief and just said "ok?" It was one of those situations where you can't believe it is actually happening and words don't come out. I think that's what is bothering so much. The fact that he messed up, admits it, then comes up with every excuse to make it seem right, blames it on me, and makes zero attempts to make the situation right. I absolutely agree with you. He could've just cooled down first. Thank you so much for taking the time to respond and the compliment. You are very kind and understanding. I really don't know where to go from now. I don't feel like putting one foot near his office in fear of what he might say to me again...
softgirl 8 Jan 2013
Dam. "don't show anyone"... really? Ok, so we go in for improvements and we should never get naked? For me the entire point was to rock it naked! This is bizarre. I like all the suggestions you are getting from the other Drs. here. I think the next step is lining up a ton of consults and taking lots of time to pick another Dr. to revise this. In the meantime, please be assured that you and your breasts are still very beautiful and any man [or woman, lol] should feel blessed to have you in their presence and treat you with the utmost respect and care. I wish you well, and keep us updated in the forum with your future plans. We'd love to know who you choose and how it's going!
AndreaJohnson 9 Jan 2013
Yep. I was just like, uughh? ok???!!! So now I can't show my husband? I just wanted to be like… Doc! I got news for you!!! You're a plastic surgeon. Aren't you supposed to fix people's insecurities? Cause you didn't seem to have a problem with me when I wasn't happy with my small breasts nor did you think I was pathetic?! Anyway… I like the suggestions as well. I'm starting to get a better understanding of this "lift." Thank you again! I will you posted ;)
AndreaJohnson 7 Jan 2013
No, I am not pulling on my breast on the right one. My hand is just leaning on my chest. I would be more than happy to take a picture without it laying there. From a front view, it's difficult to see it in a picture. But from a side, up close view you can. As you can see, my hand is resting on the left breast as well and it's not pulling on it at all. I think it would require both hands to hold the weight of the breast and be able to stretch out the nipple...

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