How is it determined how much breast tissue can be removed?

Hello and thank you for your question.
You want to be at a healthy ,stable weight prior to surgery. With a BMI no higher than 32. This will help to reduce complications and wound healing issues. Size depends on how many grams need to be taken under your health insurance benefits, and what will be appropriate for your body frame. Schedule a consultation with a board certified plastic surgeon to discuss your options. Best wishes!

Thank you for your question. Determining the amount of tissue to be removed will involve a physical examination by your surgeon. The amount of fat removed depends on the size of your breasts and your frame. Good luck.

Hello @beckee1975, thank you for your question. As part of any breast reduction procedure, one of the most important factors to consider is the amount of breast tissue a patient has. This is in order to achieve the final objective, which is to give harmony and uniformity to the breasts. During a breast reduction, the amount of tissue removed does not always match in both breasts. This is because the amount is subject to what can be found during the surgical process. For more information and recommendations, it is prudent to consult with one or several board certified plastic surgeons. Best wishes! Alan Gonzalez MD, FACS.

The technique I recommend is The Bellesoma Method. This will reduce and reshape your breast tissue is reshaped creating upper pole fullness without implants, elevate them higher on the chest wall and more medial to increase your cleavage. The weight of the breast is transferred to the underlying pectoralis major muscle resulting in pain relief without excessive reduction. Vertical scars are avoided, nipple sensation (in 95%) and the ability to breast feed are maintained.

Best Wishes,

Gary Horndeski, M.D.

It is very hard to give you meaningful opinion without photos or better, in person consultation. We generally use liposuction as a mayor tool for reduction of breast tissue; 70-90% of breast tissue is fat! Surgery also includes removal of portions of breast tissue and skin by means of excision. This method better preserves blood and nerve supply to the remining breast tissue, so the loss of nipple and areola is very rare even with so large breasts like yours. One can remove 1.5 litters of fat and up to 1000 gr. of tissue in such a reduction. In person consultation with a board certified plastic surgeon with experience in breast reduction for very large breast like yours, is recommended.

Dear beckee1975,
breast reduction is best suited for women who wish to decrease the size of their breasts. While there are different techniques used to perform this surgery, I prefer the vertical incision (lollipop pattern) breast reduction technique instead of the anchor scar pattern, which reduces more noticeable scarring than usual. I also use a SAFE liposuction technique to reduce additional fat around the stubborn axilla area and bra line. This way, my patients are achieving beautiful results with minimal incisions which reduces downtime and delivers an overall better breast shape long term.If you are considering breast reduction surgery, you should consult with a board certified plastic surgeon to discuss your options and make sure your surgeon understands your goals. Only after a thorough examination you will get more information and recommendations.
Daniel Barrett, MD
Certified, American Board of Plastic Surgery
Member, American Society of Plastic Surgery
Member, American Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery

This is a challenging question. If your breast size has never decreased even with a 35# weight loss, then most likely your breasts are very dense (fibrous) as opposed to being very fatty. Fatty breasts will reduce with weight loss, but dense breasts will not. It is difficult to determine size based on “letter” cup sizes. Instead, we use volume of tissue removed. Every 150 grams of breast tissue is more-or-less 1 cup size. In the surgery planning phase we would have a conversation about how many “letter” cup sizes you’d like to reduce and then that provides a guide for how much breast volume is removed at the time of surgery. This is just an approximation. We can’t know the exact amount to be removed until the time of surgery. If you are symmetric, we remove the same amount from each side and confirm the weight during surgery. If you are asymmetric, we can adjust the amount we remove from each side to help balance you and make things more even.

I encourage you to complete your weight loss prior to having your breast reduction even though in the past it hasn't affected your breast size. Determining the amount of tissue to remove involves a conversation between you and your surgeon. After an exam you discuss your surgical goals to determine approximately how much would be removed in order to achieve the breast size you are wanting. If you go through insurance the carrier will often dictate a minimum amount that must be removed. See a board certified plastic surgeon near you to learn more.