Should I get my inframammary fold lowered? Is it more painful of a recovery after BA? What could be the complications ?

Hello,These recommendations are not for you to decide if this is something you want.  This is a basic function of needing more space under your breast.  Your photos make it very apparent that your breasts are not only not saggy, but in fact are tight.  The distance from your nipple to your inframammary fold looks particularly short. You'll need at least 8 cm for a 300 cc to 325 cc implant; the only place that is coming from is your chest skin below the fold, which technically lowers the fold.Which brings me to another issue: lack of tissue covering your implants. A thorough physical exam would be appropriate, but from a 'dimensional planning' perspective, 300/325 may be too large without significantly increasing your risk of postoperative complications like rippling and double bubble deformity.Your best bet is to abandon thoughts of c cups, choose a low or intermediate profile, silicone gel implant, and have a surgeon size you properly to determine the implant's dimensions, including volume.Best of luck!

I think the sizes you mention are a good size for you.  Lowering the fold is routinely done in many breast augmentation cases and I agree it need to be done in your case.  You should not expect it to increase the amount of pain or lengthen the recovery.

Dear Colette, In order to obtain the best and most natural results, the most projecting portion of the implant must be centered on your nipple.  This is of utmost importance in someone as thin as you, given that the implant shape will be more visible in you than in a patient with more tissue covering the implant. Because of this, you are ideal candidate for shaped anatomic implants.  It appears that you have a very short distance from your nipple to your lower fold. If the radius the implant usually longer then this short distance, the fold needs to be lowered.  Pain is no different when lowering the fold, as most of the pain comes from the raising and stretching of the muscle when the implant is placed behind the muscle.  However, the risk of bottoming out or double bubble is higher when lowering the fold is necessary. Best of luck. 

Conservatively lowering the inframammary fold is almost always necessary in a patient with your similar breast shape.  In order to guard against bottoming out the implant position, the surgeon must rely on a certain degree of lower pole stretching AND gentle fold lowering in order to best accommodate the implant.  It will definitely not increase your recovery time.  You might also consider a form stable implant to preserve and more natural breast shape.  Good luck!

In most cases of breast augmentation, the inframammary fold is lowered. I have performed over 2 thousand breast augmentations, and you have fairly straight forward anatomy. I would definetely lower your inframammary fold. There is no more pain associated with this nor would you tend to "bottom out". Actually, you are an excellent candidate for breast augmentation.

Lowering  the inframammary fold in a breast augmentation is almost always necessary to accommodate even a modest implant. Lowering the inframammary folds would not necessarily increase the recovery time or increase the discomfort. I hope you are able to get the results you are after. If you want more information you can download a free informational guide at aBetterBreast.com 

A common error that leads to an unnatural appearance after breast augmentation, even with implants of an ideal size, is inadequate lower pole dissection and/or inadequate release of the pectoralis major origin just above the inframammary fold. As a result the implants sit too high and appear excessively full in the upper poles (the area above the nipple-areola complex), while the lower poles - which should be the fullest area of the breast - are underfilled. Inadequate muscle release may also result in bizarre-appearing breast implant animation when the pec major muscle contracts. In some cases this may result in one or both of their implants jumping up literally to the level of a patient's collarbones - an alarmingly unnatural look, and one that is totally avoidableA shaped form stable breast implant can give the patient the lowest risk of fold and ripples in the lower pole, the lowest risk of a visible transition between natural breast tissue and implant  (sometime refereed to as a double bubble) and the lowest risk of breast implant malposition with the breasts bottoming out. I think there is a performance difference between form stable breast implants. Consult with plastic surgeon who have experience and expertise perfuming this particular procedure. 

Regardless of what you are told the best thing to do is look at the surgeon's work (before/after photos) to decide if the work looks natural and/or to your liking.  When looking at the before/after photos make sure you are being shown three views from each patient (front, quarter turn, profile views) and make sure they show you patients who look like you.  I have never lowered folds and looking at your photos i don't think you need to.  Also, 300 to 350cc implants would be a good choice for you.  

There should not be more pain, nor a longer recovery.  There is a downside, and that is that sometimes the original fold acts as a tight band across the implant.  Usually these stretch out when they occur, but not always, and this is one cause of "double bubble."As part of the decision process, I would ask the surgeons how large an implant might be ok to place without altering the fold. Then you and your surgeon can make an informed decision on your procedure.All the best. 

The necessity to lower the fold is a function of the size implant chosen relative to the preoperative position of the fold.  If the radius of the implant is longer then the distance from the nipple to the fold then the fold needs to be loweredDr Corbin