Breast surgery can mean several things to every patient. Whether they are looking for a reduction to help with their day-to-day comfort, or an augmentation to boost their overall confidence, undergoing a procedure like this needs to achieve the results they have been looking for. Thinking about the size and shape of the breast is what instantly comes to mind, but many think about the look of their nipples too.
Patients are often interested to know if they can reduce the size of their areola (the darker skin around the nipple) whilst they are having their breast surgery done.
Who is eligible for an areola reduction?
Anyone who isn’t happy with the size or shape of one or both of their nipples can discuss having this procedure done. This can be done in conjunction with many different breast procedures and is often done as a part of the breast reduction surgery as standard.
Why do some want to reduce the size of their Areola?
Nipples can become enlarged for many different reasons such as pregnancy, rapid weight change, breastfeeding, hormonal changes, trauma, and breast augmentation as this can stretch the areola skin.
Some also have larger nipples naturally due to genetics. This can leave people believing that their nipples are ‘too big’, or that their nipples aren’t proportional to the size of their breasts. This can lead to avoiding certain clothing choices and feeling conscious about the appearance of their breasts.
There are also some cases where patients come in with asymmetrical nipples. This, again, can cause major insecurity and is something that can be dealt with alongside another breast breast procedure. Having the areola reduced, especially if you are already undergoing breast surgery, is a great option to tackle this issue. It can restore confidence and create a more harmonious look in the breasts.
How is an Areola reduction done?
Generally, during breast surgery, the nipple will always stay connected to the body. Your surgeon will carefully cut around the areola and ensure the nipple is attached to the internal nerves and milk ducts. Your surgeon will then remove a circular area around the outer edge of the areola to achieve the desired size or to give the nipples a more symmetrical look. Finally, they will reattach the skin to the newly sized areola, and in some cases (for example in a reduction) some of the surrounding skin will also be excised.
This will leave a small scar around the entire circumference of the nipple, but if combined with other procedures can have vertical scarring from the bottom of the nipple to the bottom of the breast, or scarring underneath the breast itself.
What are the risks?
There are always risks when it comes to any surgical procedure. This will be done under general anaesthetic. This comes with risks during the procedure and the healing process. If you have any pre-existing conditions or are a smoker, please let your surgeon know so they can work around these issues. More general risks accompany any surgery, including infection, bruising, and swelling following the procedure.
More specific risks are a loss of sensation in the nipple. There is a possibility that breastfeeding will be much harder or become impossible. Even though your surgeon will do everything they can to keep your nipple attached to your nerves and milk ducts, these can be damaged during the reduction process. If breastfeeding is something that you are planning to do in the future, please speak to your surgeon about your options.
Having this done in conjunction with another surgery will also involve the specific risks from that surgery.
What is the Recovery time?
Having your areola reduced during another surgical procedure will not significantly extend your recovery time. Many surgeries will involve cutting around the nipple to keep the nerves and milk ducts attached, even when the nipple itself will not be altered.
Having these done at the same time is a great way to reduce your risks. Only having one recovery period means that there is less chance of infection, and you can get back to your normal life much quicker.
Conclusions
Having your areola reduced during your surgery is not only possible but recommended! Mr Mark Ho-Asjoe often does combination surgeries that are recommended to tackle many issues during one surgery.
The most popular of these surgeries is the Mummy Makeover. Having the reduction done at the same time as another procedure reduces the total time you are under anaesthesia, and reduces the total recovery time, but produces the same results.