Before and after breast revision in a 31 year old woman. Her previously placed breast implant had developed capsular contracture on the right. She disliked the large size of her areolas but wanted to avoid the lollipop scar of a breast lift.
Her breast revision involved a capsulectomy (removal of scar tissue from the breast implant pocket) on the right and an implant exchange. A new smooth round silicone gel implant was placed on top of the muscle, in the subglandular position.
Instead of making her areolas smaller with a breast lift, which is the standard procedure, since her areolas were so lightly pigmented we made use of medical tattoo. A slightly brighter color that was natural looking was used to pigment both of her areolas, creating new areolar circles that were smaller than her original areolas.
The brighter color draws attention away from the larger areolar circle. This is standard practice for breast reconstruction. Revision breast surgery often borrows principles and practices from reconstructive surgery.
Follow up photos are shown 3 months after surgery. She has improved symmetry and she loves her smaller areolas! The bright tattoo pigment will slowly fade over time to an even more natural appearance. The tattoo can always be redone in the office if needed in 5, 10 or 20+ years as it fades.
*All photos are actual patient photographs and are for illustrative purposes only. Individual results may vary.
