Whatever your case, having breast surgery is always a big decision in life. In this article, Dr. Tiago Baptista Fernandes, Clinical Director of Plastic Surgery at Up Clinic, which works in partnership with the HPA Health Group, sheds light on the most common types of breast surgery.

Mastopexy

Also known as breast lift surgery, mastopexy is used to correct sagging breasts, lift, reshape and tighten them. This procedure can have really good results for ladies who were pregnant or breastfeeding.

To do this, there are two possible ways. If the breast has enough volume, a lift can be done with the person's own tissues without any artificial material, using the patient's own fat (lipofilling) or by remodelling the mammary gland. Option number two is to use breast prosthesis to improve the final result.

Breast Reduction

There are many ladies who seek breast surgeries to reduce the size of their breasts. This is more common than we might think, even in younger generations.

In fact, about 10 percent of patients are under 20 years of age. "We have teenagers with large breasts and with deformities in the development of the mammary gland, who because of this have difficulties in carrying out their social activities. Simple things like doing sports at school or going to the beach," he said.


Breast Augmentation

Perhaps the first that comes to mind when we think of breast surgery is breast augmentation, which is surgery that aims to increase the size of the breasts by placing breast implants.

Implants can come in different sizes and textures to appeal to a different range of tastes. For example, younger generations are generally looking for a more natural result "with little or no artificiality at all, because young women are afraid of the snide comments they might hear," Tiago Baptista Fernandes said.

“After 30, the ladies who look for these surgeries are people who don't really care about the criticism of others, they just want to feel they have a body like they had before or even better than before. They are no longer afraid of society," he said.


Recovery

Breast augmentation is a procedure that takes one hour, a breast lift can take two hours and a breast reduction can take up to two and a half hours. However, patients can go home on the same day and resume their professional activity in one to two weeks, depending on their job”, he said.

When I asked about the pain that might come with the surgery, the doctor didn't hide the fact that it would be uncomfortable. However, with the techniques they use and painkillers, recovery is quite simple. In addition, they suggest starting physiotherapy the day after surgery. "We have a network of physiotherapists in the Algarve that cover us," Tiago Baptista Fernandes stressed.

Prostheses Replacement

It is important to note that patients who decide to have implants must be aware that one day they will have to have them replaced in a procedure that can take three hours in the most complicated situations. Although some doctors say otherwise, Dr. Tiago explained that these claims are not accurate.

The truth is that even with the best prostheses in the world, "in 10 to 15 years the woman will want to have an intervention". For two reasons, for an aesthetic reason because the body has changed, or for a functional reason because the prosthesis is bothering her", he said.

If you want to know more details, please visit https://upclinic.pt/cirurgia-estetica/mama?lang=en


Author

Paula Martins is a fully qualified journalist, who finds writing a means of self-expression. She studied Journalism and Communication at University of Coimbra and recently Law in the Algarve. Press card: 8252

Paula Martins