Nipple areola reconstructing reduction mammaplasty.

[BACKGROUND] The pigment density and texture of breast skin are not uniform. Especially in patients with massive breasts, lower pole skin can be significantly darker and coarser than the upper pole skin. Nipple areola reconstructing (NAR) reduction mammaplasty is a technical modification of the "free nipple" procedure in which the original nipple areola complex (NAC) is discarded and the new NAC is reconstructed from coarse pigmented lower pole skin using a modified skate flap purse-string technique.

[OBJECTIVES] The authors review their initial clinical experience with NAR reduction mammaplasty.

[METHODS] Between 2010 and 2012, 16 patients (31 breasts) underwent the NAR procedure, and these cases were retrospectively reviewed for patient demographics, preoperative topographic breast measurements, amount of reduction per breast, and complications. The operative goal was to obtain the smallest breast size that can be achieved with tension-free wound closure. Patient satisfaction was also assessed.

[RESULTS] Breast reductions varied from 1150 to 2850 g/breast (average, 1590 g/breast), and patients were followed up for a minimum of 1 year (average, 15.9 months). No major local or systemic complications were encountered. Two patients required touch-ups for the correction of minor periareolar irregularities resulting mainly from the inversion of wound closure. At 1 year, average score for general satisfaction was 4.6, and the average score for NAC satisfaction was 3.9, on a scale from 1 (not satisfied) to 5 (extremely satisfied).

[CONCLUSIONS] NAR reduction mammaplasty enables the surgeon to perform massive reductions, design different non-NAC-bearing glandular pedicles for breast shaping, and obtain tension-free closure without the fear of ischemic complications.