What to Expect from Breast Reduction Surgery


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As with all cosmetic surgery, it is important that you know what to expect from breast reduction surgery before making the decision to undergo it. If you do not know exactly what to expect as a result of the surgery, you are likely to enter it with false expectations and become disappointed with the results.

What to Expect Immediately after Breast Reduction Surgery

After your surgery, you will be required to stay in hospital so that you can be monitored. This period can last up to four days depending on the hospital, and your individual healing time. If you are told to stay for longer than you expected you should not panic, it is likely that this is because of your medical history, or because you are slightly slower to heal than the average person.

You will not feel any pain immediately after the surgery as you will still be under the influence of the anaesthetic. However, once this has worn off you will start to feel discomfort and as a result of this will be prescribed painkillers. You may also be given antibiotics to limit the risk of infection. If you feel discomfort or pain, you should inform someone immediately.

You are likely to be fitted with a supportive dressing for your breasts, you should follow the instructions for wearing this, and it is likely that it will be removed after about a week. If this has not been provided you may be required to wear a supportive bra to aid the healing of the incision.

You are likely to need between two and four weeks off work, and may need at least six weeks off if your job involves vigorous physical activity or heavy lifting. The soreness in your breasts may last for months and you will need to use painkillers as required to treat this.

What to Expect from the Results of Your Breast Reduction Surgery

Your expectations of the breast reduction surgery results are extremely important, and you should be honest with your surgeon about these from the start. They will be able to tell you whether or not your expectations are reasonable and how the actual results may differ from them.

You should of course expect smaller and more even breasts. However, it is unrealistic to expect that they will be perfectly symmetrical. Your surgeon should do everything that they can to ensure that your breasts look even, however it is not possible for them to make them a mirror image of each other. Breasts are not naturally symmetrical and the amount of symmetry achieved through breast reduction surgery depends greatly on your body and its healing.

You will be left with scarring from breast reduction surgery. Whilst your surgeon will do whatever possible to ensure that this is minimal, it is not possible to make the scars invisible. You can reduce the appearance of your scarring by precisely following the instructions of your surgeon before and after your surgery. You can also apply serums to the area to reduce the appearance of the scars, but nothing can get rid of them completely.

It is possible that you will lose sensation in your nipples. This becomes more likely the more tissue you have removed. You may regain some sensation after a period of time, however this is not guaranteed, and you may be left unable to breast feed as a result of this lack of feeling.

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