Breast Lift With Implants

Q: Dr. Eppley, I am 32 years old with a full 34C cup breast size.. I went for a plastic surger consult last week and I figured I would need a breast lift because my breasts were very saggy. I also wanted a breast lift with implants as I want perky very round (ok to look fake) looking breasts. I wouldn’t mind being bigger even a DD cup. My plastic surgeron said he won’t do a lift and breast implants at the same time. I was shocked that he would not do them at the same time as this ultimately means more money, recovery and longer to finally get the breasts that I want. Why won’t he do them together? And do you think just a lift will give me the perky round look I want?

A: It is important to understand the combination of breast lift and breast implants is a ‘ying and yang’ type or procedure where want (how much) is done in one will usually adversely affect the other. If I needs a big breast lift (lifts and tightens the breast skin) it will be impossible to put in very big implants at the same time. Conversely if one wants big breast implants the amount of lift obtained will be small and you will likely end up with some residual sagging.

When one needs a lot of breast lifting and also wants larger breast implants, it is best that the procedures are staged. That way you can get the maximal breast lift and then secondarily (3 months later) you can put in implants of the size needed to obtained the amount of fullness that you want. Trying to both at the asme time dramatically increases the your risks of complications and has a very high incidence of the need for revisional surgery. If you are going to get two surgeries anyway it is far better to have the second surgery on your terms…not managing complications from the first procedure.

Dr. Barry Eppley

Indianapolis, Indiana