Recommended Age to Have Breast Reduction?

Thank you for your question! I hope that these answers help in making your decision. You suffer from juvenile hypertrophy of the breasts, which is typically treated by breast reduction. It is not uncommon to have the symptoms that you describe such as neck/back/shoulder pain as well as infections/rashes and shoulder grooving, especially in teenagers once her breasts begin to fully develop. Once one begins to have the symptoms that you state above, consideration for a surgical procedure to ameliorate your symptoms, assist with self esteem, and allow you to get back to physical activities in your youth should be done. Given your symptoms, you would be an ideal candidate. You must first discuss with your parents and pediatrician, and then consulting with a plastic surgeon for evaluation and examination to assist you in deciding if this would be the right thing for you. Your surgeon will also go over what to expect as well as the risks and benefits of the procedure. Overall, your symptoms should be ameliorated almost immediately and hopefully give you more self confidence and an increased activity level. Your breasts may still continue to grow over the next several years, but it is certainly reasonable to consider this at this age with the issues that you are having. I hope that this helps! Good luck with your decision!

Depending on a variety of factors and overall health, individuals may qualify for breast reduction surgery when they are as young as 15. We just want to make sure in young patients that the breast size stays the same at least for a year to consider breast reduction surgery. Best wishes.

Not only do
you have large breasts at an early age, but you’re already suffering from
significant symptoms.I generally prefer
to wait until the breasts have stopped growing before proceeding with breast reduction,
but in your case early intervention may be appropriate because of your
symptoms.I recommend consultation with a
board certified plastic surgeon.Obviously your parents need to be involved in the process as well.Breast reduction has significant benefits and
patients who undergo the procedure at an early age experience the benefits over
a lifetime.There are downsides as well.These include the potential inability to
breast feed, prolonged healing, decreased nipple sensation and scarring.In my experience, patients who undergo breast
reduction at an early age, not only experience relief of their symptoms, but
also an improved quality of life.

I have seen breast reductions performed on girls who have been as young as 14 due to complaints of pain and discomfort. But this does not necessarily make it right. There are many factors that go into this decision making process and the risks must be weighed against the benefits. There is no simple answer and each person must be approached taking many factors into account. This can include: height, weight, growth curve, tolerance for scars, potential for continued growth, nursing potential, genetic history, overall health, emotional state, maturity, etc.

Thank you for the question.
It sounds like  you are dealing with juvenile breast hypertrophy along with the physical and psychosocial consequences of this diagnosis. In other words, the breasts are too large for the frame causing  both physical and psychological distress.

There is no specific age when breast reduction is “allowed”.  Many patients who suffer from juvenile breast hypertrophy will have the procedure done in their later teenager years.

As  you think  about  breast reduction surgery make sure you do your homework and understand the potential risks and complications associated with  the procedure.  Unsatisfactory scarring is  one of the potential complications. Make sure you also understands that further surgery may be necessary in the future (for example if the breasts were to grow in size again).

On the other hand, breast reduction surgery is one of the most patient pleasing operations we perform and I think that for the right teenager (enough symptoms) it may be an excellent option (regardless of the age).
Sometimes breast  reduction surgery is covered through health insurance. The best way to obtain insurance coverage for breast reduction surgery involves some “hoops” to jump through. The more documentation you have (for example, from your primary care doctor, physical therapist, chiropractor etc.) the better when it comes to obtaining insurance “authorization” for the procedure.
This documentation and letter/pictures from your plastic surgeon will help you obtain authorization.

Make sure you're  working with a well-trained/experienced board-certified plastic surgeon.


I hope this helps.