I have my breast done 2 years ago and was left with horrible areola scarring. Do I need to remove my implants? (photos)

The problem is tension on the scars. One option I have found very useful is to implant a Strattice donut under the skin when revising the benelli scars. This minimizes re-expansion and takes the tension off. I am placing a link to an article describing the details of the procedure.

Dear frz11.11,
for scars, I close all of my incisions in 5 layers and do not use absorbable sutures because they cause inflammation and worse scarring. I tape all of my incisions in the office visits once a week for six weeks after surgery to improve the appearance. After taping, I start my patients on a scar gel therapy for 3 months that they have to put on their incisions twice daily.You should discuss your concerns with your plastic surgeon as different surgeons have different approaches in scar management.
Daniel Barrett, MD
Certified, American Board of Plastic Surgery
Member, American Society of Plastic Surgery
Member, American Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery

It appears that your implants are in front of the muscle and therefore only the skin envelope is holding up the weight of the breast. You may benefit from a mini lift with small implants. Using a circumareola incision, the breast is reshaped, elevated higher on the chest wall and more medial to increase your cleavage. At the same time, smaller implants can be exchanged and placed behind the muscle.

Best Wishes,

Gary Horndeski, M.D.

Hello @frz11.11 thank you for your question. Is important to remember that the healing if the scar is inherent to the patients post operative care. The best way to generate a good result is to develop a surgical plan according to the expectations of the new process, as well as everything related to aftercare and scar healing. For more information and recommendations, it is best to consult with one or several board certified plastic surgeons. Best wishes! Alan Gonzalez MD, FACS.

Poor scarring after donut style or peri-areolar lifts is one of the downsides of this type of lift. Lots of women like the option of hiding the scar around the areola (which is one of the up-sides). When an implant is placed in conjunction with this type of lift, the tension across the scar during the healing processes is the biggest factor causing the wide scar. In order to expect a different results with a scar revision surgery you would need to change the tension on the repair during the healing process. Sometimes if a non-permanent stitch was used to close the incision, closing the incision with a permanent stitch will help. Removing the implant, or adding a vertical lollipop style scar to redistribute the tension could also help.

A full consultation would be necessary to answer all your concerns. It is unlikely that the implants need to be removed at this time. A different type of lift procedure may be necessary to fully correct the scars you have now, but you could also work on other scar treatments and hold off on any surgery in the near future.

I'm sorry to hear of the scar issues you have been having. You may want to revise the scars and reduce the size of the implant which would reduce the tension on the scars. The degree of lift required will be dependent on the size of the implant and/or if you choose to remove the implant completely.

You might consider going down in size if you elect to have your scarring revised. Going down in size will give some extra skin so that the closure around the areolae is not tight and spread again.