Breastfeeding before breast reduction, should I be concerned about the presence of milk 9 days pre-op?

Yes, you should be concerned about the presence of milk 9 days pre-op; the milk ducts can increase the risk of post-surgical infection because they remain open and allow bacteria to enter. For optimal safety, wait at least 3-6 months after you have completed breastfeeding for your milk ducts to close and dry up before undergoing breast reduction surgery

It's completely normal to still have some residual milk after weaning, especially following extended breastfeeding, and this won’t interfere with your breast reduction surgery. Your plastic surgeon is right—small amounts of milk or fluid in the ducts are common and are usually managed easily during the procedure. Any remaining milk may drain naturally or be removed with the breast tissue, and while you might notice minor leakage afterward, it typically resolves on its own. This won’t affect your results or increase surgical risks, so there’s no need to worry. Avoiding nipple stimulation and using cold compresses can help the drying process continue before surgery.

You run a real risk of catastrophic surgical complications.

Need to rest your breasts 3-4 months, and you need to take a pill to interrupt milking.

Usually in my experience with breast feeding / milk producing patients - I've encountered that sometimes the milk production can cause more post-op swelling, fluid production, even possibly cellulitis / infection. And if there is a lot of engorgement from the milk production around your procedure, that can sometimes alter your results long term as the breast become more deflated (sometimes needing to re-lift because of so much deflation).
If your PS knows and is able to handle it - do what you feel is best. (Again, just my experience and assessment esp without seeing photos or examining you myself) Best of luck.

Hello, thank you for the question. I have my patients stop breast feeding 6 months prior to the surgery reason being we want the breasts to be emptied as much as possible to be able to get a good result. From what you are saying your breasts are empty and you are just having some milk present which in this case will not be a problem during surgery. Good luck with your upcoming surgery.

Plastic surgeons generally have different times that they recommend to wait after completion of breast-feeding to proceed with breast surgery. I generally recommend reading three months after breast-feeding. There are some women, however, that no matter how much time passes they still continue to produce milk and many times we as plastic surgeons come across milk in the breast tissue. The vast majority of times this does not cause any issues. There is a very very rare complication, called a galactocele in a pocket of milk can form and would need to be drained, but I would generally not recommend postponing surgery just because there is some milk present.

Thank you for your question. We advise patients to wait a minimum of 3 months after completion of breast feeding in order to allow the breasts to shrink back down to their normal size. I also highly recommend that you try to get back to your pre-pregnancy weight before having the surgery in order to prevent more sagging in the future. Best of luck to you

Hi Brave831841
It's normal to see breast milk in the breast tissue during a breast reduction surgery even if the patient has not breast fed in years. As your surgeon said, this will not affect your upcoming breast reduction surgery.

good luck with your surgery and recovery

There are many women who are able to express small amounts of breast milk when pressing on nipples long after weaning from breastfeeding. For some it can be unrelated to breastfeeding. I have performed over 1000 breast reductions and it is not uncommon to come across milk cysts in the breast tissue and ducts during the surgery. It is always best however to check with your health care providers to confirm that they have no concerns before your surgery or other reasons for the continued milk production.

I am not sure how long ago stopped breast feeding. Usually, after a few months, you could proceed with surgery. This allows your tissues to rebound from being stretched. The occasional appearance of milk would probably not be a problem at surgery. If you have a more constant milk flow, it would be a good idea to get checked out by your OB/GYN or primary doctor. Good luck with your surgery!