Breast Revision Surgery Sydney

Breast Augmentation Revision Surgery

While the exact number of Australians with breast implants is not definitive, it’s estimated that over a quarter of a million Australian women have breast implants. Given their popularity, it’s no surprise that Breast Augmentation Revision surgery is also a common procedure.

Revisions can be requested soon after the initial surgery, due to unsatisfactory results, or several years later due to changes in appearance, capsular contracture or simply changes in the patient’s aesthetic preferences.

In all surgical procedures, the surgeon must communicate a realistic potential outcome to each patient, along with the associated risks and complications. It is also imperative that every surgeon does their utmost to achieve that outcome. However, every busy surgeon will have a small percentage of patients whose results fall below ideal and, consequently, would benefit from revision surgery in some form.

It’s also worth noting that the chances of revision surgery are decreased when patients diligently follow their post-operative instructions and follow-ups and have realistic expectations regarding their breast size and shape. However, there is still always a risk that, despite the best after-care, things may not go to plan and revision surgery may be required.

Reasons for Breast Augmentation Revision Surgery

Common reasons for Breast Augmentation Revision surgery include:

• Implants settling in a poor position
• Implants ‘bottoming out’
• A ‘double bubble’
• Capsular contracture
• Changes in breast tissue
• Ruptured implant
• Inadequate cleavage or ‘sideboob’
• Implants that are too large or too small
• Changes in the patient’s aesthetic preferences

If the initial surgery also included a Breast Lift (Mastopexy), then the potential problems are magnified. We will discuss this further below.

Non-Implant-related Revisions

BREAST LIFT & REDUCTION SURGERY

Sometimes, revision surgery is required to modify breast tissue. For example, this could be an early issue, where a patient with sagging breasts has had implant surgery, yet the degree of sag has not lifted to a level that the patient is happy with. Alternatively, it could be due to natural changes in breast tissue over time, with ongoing droop and an increase in breast tissue volume.

In these cases, surgery may be required to lift the breast tissue, and oftentimes to also reduce the volume of the breasts. (Depending on the circumstances, sometimes this surgery warrants a change in the implants during surgery.) As with any surgery, these operations entail unique potential complications and limitations that the surgeon must discuss thoroughly with the patient.

AREOLAR SURGERY

After breast surgery, some patients may be concerned about the size or shape of their areolae. In these instances, after the breasts have fully settled and softened, the surgeon may consider surgery to improve the size, shape and/or symmetry of the areolae to meet the patient’s expectations, provided they are realistic.

SCAR REVISION SURGERY

With any surgery, scars may not heal optimally. Some of the potential concerns include:

• Hypertrophic scars
• Keloid scars
• Tight/tethered scars
• Poorly placed scars

All surgery leaves scars. And, nothing can be done to make scars disappear. However, it is the surgeon’s job to ensure the scars are as neat as possible, placed in the ideal position and given the best opportunity to heal well. Sometimes, though, scars will not heal optimally no matter what is done, and this is particularly the case for patients who are genetically prone to develop keloid scars.

Combining Breast Augmentation & Mastopexy (a case of ‘further surgery’, not ‘revision surgery’)

Oftentimes, ‘further surgery’ does not mean ‘revision surgery’. The word ‘revision’ implies that there’s been a complication that requires further surgery to ‘fix’. While this is true in some cases, fortunately, it represents only a minority. This is best illustrated by discussing the types of breast surgeries.

If a patient undergoes a Breast Augmentation surgery, it typically takes around six months for the initial surgery results to settle fully. At this stage, the surgeon can critically assess the surgical results. And for the majority of patients, it’s highly unlikely they’ll need further surgery.

However, if a patient combines a Breast Augmentation with a Breast Lift (Mastopexy), it would not be unusual for the patient to be recommended further surgery to finesse the results. In this instance, it would not be classified as a complication of the original surgery, but rather, a reflection of the difficulty of the surgery and the unpredictability of how the implants and breast tissue settle into position.

Dr Dona often describes this process as being analogous to purchasing an expensive couture dress, where more than one fitting is required for an optimal fit. He will discuss these issues, including all risks and complications, with every patient before proceeding with any breast surgery.

Potential complications

As we’ve discussed, revision surgery may be attached to various breast surgeries, such as Breast Augmentation, Breast Lifts, Breast Reductions, Implant Capsulectomies, Fat Transfers and so on. Due to the extensive nature of the list, it’s not possible to provide a comprehensive list of all associated potential complications.

Each of these procedures has its own specific issues, which are magnified with revision surgery. The specific complications for each of these procedures are listed on the relevant pages. However, all surgery carries general potential risks that you must be aware of and can read about here.