Quick blog, but I see this issue a lot.
Women come in saying their “breasts are drooping and they need a lift”. But do they?
For many, they are not drooping. Their breasts are just deflated. What is the difference? Many women lose the volume in their breast as they age and breastfeed. This leaves the upper pole of the breast empty, what I refer to as “deflated.” The fix for a deflated breast is to add volume, usually with an implant. A breast lift is to lift the breast. If you come in and your breasts are not actually drooping, a lift will not help. We grade breast droopiness by calling it degrees of ptosis.
PTOSIS:
- Grade 0 – not drooping. Your nipple is above the level of your inframammary fold (where your underwire goes.) NO LIFT NEEDED.
- Grade 1 – nipple is at the level of the fold. This is a grey zone. If you need to add volume, an implant is usually the fix, and the volume of the implant will lift the breast a bit. If you are the size you want to be, then you may need a lift to lift you a little and reshape the breast. It will lift minimally, because you are not that droopy.
- Grade 2 – nipple is below the fold. YOU NEED A LIFT.
- Grade 3– nipple is below the fold and/or pointing down. YOU NEED A LIFT.
Bear with my drawing, but you get the idea.
What is the pencil test?
The pencil test is when you can hold a pencil up using your breast with no hands – the pencil will not fall out. You can see how that happens from grade 2 and 3, but not sooner. If you pass the pencil test, alas, you need a lift.