Tuberous Breasts

 Tuberous breasts (or tubular breasts) are a result of a congenital abnormality of the breasts which can occur in both men and women on one breast or both. During puberty breast development is stymied and the breasts fail to develop normally and fully. The procedure to change the appearance of tuberous breasts can be more complicated than a regular breast augmentation.
Breast shape, size, symmetry and proportion play a unique role in every woman’s sense of physical balance, femininity, and confidence. Becoming obvious to most women during the earliest phases of puberty and breast development, tuberous breasts can deeply influence psychosocial well-being and sexuality. While tubular breasts may be deficient in size, they are not simply “small breasts” that have not completely developed. The characteristics of the tuberous breast deformity include breast constriction, breast hypoplasia (small breast size or underdevelopment), breast skin deficiency, malposition of the inframammary fold (the crease beneath the breast), areolar herniation (puffiness or bulging of the nipple-areolar area), and breast asymmetry.
There are considerable differences between tuberous breast correction and breast augmentation. Tuberous breast deformity correction is a very specialized procedure that often incorporates breast augmentation when necessary, but requires a variety of technical maneuvers to achieve the most consistent aesthetic outcomes. The most common problem is that tuberous breast deformity in its milder forms is commonly under diagnosed. When unrecognized, treating the less obvious variants of the tuberous deformity with more common breast augmentation techniques will often fail to appropriately address the deficiencies and restrictions of the breast lower pole, and may worsen areolar herniation, resulting in a less pleasing breast shape. Moderate and severe forms of tuberous breast deformity require a delicate balance of breast reshaping, areolar balancing, and breast augmentation as indicated by the tubular breast deformity type and individual desires.
With so many different degrees of severity and asymmetry, no two tuberous breast corrections are the same. Each is as different as the individual’s breast shape, body type, and unique goals, and as different as the breast surgeon who performs them.
For more information, please call our office at 310-550-6886, or visit our website at www.bhips.com.