Growing up, there is no gurantee on what your breast size may be. Many seek larger breasts which is often influenced by the idea of the perfect female body as portrayed in the media. However having large breasts is not always ideal and many women find themselves wishing they had a smaller bust.

Larger breasts can come with many downsides. They can get in the way, and make it difficult to get involved in sports. Let’s not forget that finding a perfectly fitting and supportive bra, or any kind of clothes shopping for that matter, seems as intense a quest as finding the Holy Grail.
More importantly, a large bust can cause intense back pain and physical discomfort, making normal daily activities particularly taxing. Sometimes the discomfort can become emotional, especially when you get unwanted attention and harassment because of the size of your breasts.

For some it’s simply a matter of feeling uncomfortable in your own skin and suffering from low confidence, self-esteem and even embarrassment because of their disproportionate bosom.
Be it for cosmetic or health reasons, if your bust has become a nuisance you might be considering getting a breast reduction, in which case you probably want to know how it works before you commit to anything.

Surgical Breast Reduction / Mammoplasty

A mammoplasty is a cosmetic surgery procedure during which a surgeon reduces the size of a patient’s breasts by removing any excess fat, skin and glandular tissue. Once these have been removed, the surgeon will then work to make your breasts more uplifted and proportionate to your body by moving your nipples upwards and in some cases reducing the size of the areola.

Breast reduction surgery can lasts around three hours. When you arrive at the hospital, you will meet with the surgeon again before your procedure to go over what is going to happen, your desired results and they will draw surgical markings on you to assist them during the procedure.
There are different techniques your surgeon may use which will determine which scarring you will have following surgery.

• Anchor type or inverted T reduction – is the most common type of breast reduction, resulting in an anchor-shaped scar starting around the areola, going down vertically and then horizontally across your natural breast crease.
• Vertical pattern breast reduction – results in a circular scar around the areola, and a vertical scar directed downwards. This technique has the advantage of leaving no scarring under the breast and a lower chance of wound complications. However, this technique may leave a small fold of skin, initially, at the lower end of the vertical scar.
• Circumareolar reduction – only results in a circular scar around the areola. This technique is only suitable when removing a small amount of tissue.

At the end of the procedure the incisions are stitched up, your breasts wrapped in a special supportive bandage and you will be required to wear a surgical bra for the next 6 weeks following your procedure.

A breast reduction may require an overnight stay and this will be discussed with your surgeon prior to your surgery date.

Breast Surgery Recovery

It is common to have swelling and bruising after a breast reduction procedure but these usually subsides after 1-2 weeks. You may also feel a little numb or tingly in certain areas which are down to nerve irritation which again should stop after 1-2 weeks. We recommended taking 1-2 weeks off work as full recovery can last 2-6 weeks. All exercise is best to be avoided for at least 6 weeks following surgery.

The great advantage of this procedure is that you get to tailor your breasts to look exactly how you want them to and since a mastopexy (uplift) is often undertaken in combination with the mammoplasty your breast can be significantly lifted.

Breast Surgery Before and After Results

See more breast reduction surgery results here.

Is it possible to reduce breast size without surgery?

Exercise and diet changes can sometimes lead to a reduction in breast size, but overall – breast surgery is the only proven method for a significant reduction in breast size.

This is because breasts are made up of fatty and glandular tissue. Glandular tissue can not be reduced through exercise and diet so depending on which you have more of, the results from this method will vary. The best method to remove Glandular tissue is surgical treatment.

If non-surgical methods have not been successful, get in touch to see how our Consultant Plastic Surgeons can help you.

Are there alternatives to breast reduction surgery?

Breasts can be reduced with liposuction however there is a risk that the breast may sag as liposuction does not tighten the skin. Due to this, it is not a procedure that we commonly perform. We prefer the results that can be achieved by Breast Reduction surgery which automatically combines a breast uplift procedure which removes any excess skin. This results in not only smaller breasts but tighter and firmer breasts too.

Breast Reduction Surgery at The Private Clinic

Our clinic has over 40 years of experience in providing patients with pioneering treatments performed by world-class doctors.
Our biggest priority is YOU and that includes your health and safety, meaning our doctors won’t go through with a procedure if they judge that it won’t benefit you.
We’ve worked hard to select an elite medical team that will guide you through the treatment process from start to finish and support you throughout.

• We offer top UK consultant plastic surgeons for breast reduction, who have accumulated decades of experience
• 40 years of medical cosmetic expertise and experience
• 24-hour patient helpline to ensure you are always in the best of hands.
• Comprehensive Breast Reduction Patient Guide.
• Outstanding hospital facilities.
• 5 Star Trustpilot Rating
• 96% of patients would recommend us to friends and family
• As many post-operative care and appointments with your surgeon and nursing team as required.
• See our selection of breast reduction before and after photos.
• Read our extensive breast reduction FAQs.

Breast Reduction Surgeons at The Private Clinic

• Mr Davood Fallahdar, MD&Surg (Hons), FRCS (Eng), Chir Plast (Hons), MicroSurg (Hons), ORL (H&N) GMC Number: 4686602
• Mr Dario Rochira, BS, MD. GMC Number : 6130664
• Mr William Van Niekerk, MB ChB, MSc, MRCS, FRCS (Plast), FCMI, RAF (qs). GMC Number: 4362791
• Mr Navid Jallali, BSc, MB ChB (Hons), MD FRCS (Plast). GMC Number: 4404969
• Ms Helena Antoniadou, MBBS, MD & Surg (Hons), FRCS (Eng). GMC Number: 3700956
• Mr Maisam Fazel, MA(Cantab), MB BChir, MSEd, FRCS. GMC Number : 4767420
• Mr Giuseppe Di Taranto, MD. GMC Number: 7614248
• Sandip Hindocha – Consultant Aesthetic Plastic Surgeon, MD, MPhil, MBChB, MRCS, MFFLM, FRCS (Plast). GMC Number: 6122218
• Ms Rieka Taghizadeh, MBChb, MRCS (Glas), FRCS (Plast), GMC Number: 4743910
• Mr George Samouris, MD. GMC Number: 7064009

Our specialised breast surgeons are available to meet at our clinics in: London Harley Street, Birmingham, and Northampton.
To find out more about breast reduction or to book a consultation at a clinic near you, please call 0333 920 2471 or use our online contact form.