Nipple Correction Surgery

Nipples come in all sorts of shapes and sizes, but inverted nipples, oversized nipples or irregular nipples can reduce your confidence and cause pain or discomfort. Nipple correction surgery aims to correct any abnormalities or nipple conditions, reducing the height or width of the nipple or areola, or correcting an inverted nipple. There are three different types of nipple surgery, all of which address a different issue.

How Does Nipple Correction Surgery Work?

Nipple correction surgery is carried out under a local anaesthetic. You will usually be in and out of the clinic within an hour. You can take a couple of days to rest and then can return to most normal activities. These are the typical steps involved in each treatment.

Areola Reduction

1. A local anaesthetic is administered to the area. 2. Your surgeon will remove a circular portion of the outer brown ring of the areola. 3. The skin is pulled inwards around the areola to make the area smaller.

Inverted Nipple Correction

1. Anaesthetic is administered as mentioned above. 2. An incision is made at the base of the nipple. 3. The milk ducts are detached from the nipple, allowing it to project forward.

Nipple Reduction

1. Anaesthetic is administered as mentioned above. 2. An incision is made into the neck of the nipple, and some tissue is removed to reduce the height of the nipple. 3. The area is sutured shut, pushing some of the nipple into the breast tissue and decreasing its size and protrusion.

What Should I Expect From Nipple Correction Surgery?

Patients usually choose nipple correction surgery because they are unhappy with an abnormality in their nipples or something in this area is causing them pain and discomfort. This procedure is a relatively straightforward and a safe option to help restore some confidence and alleviate any pain. Of course, the choice to elect for this surgery still shouldn't be taken lightly. You should ensure you discuss your options and expectations with your surgeon during the initial consultation, and you should feel happy and confident to go ahead with the procedure. All risks and side effects should also be explained to you during this time.

During surgery, you will be given a local anaesthetic. This means you will be awake during the procedure, but you won't feel any pain. If you're particularly nervous, you might be able to opt for a sedative also.

After the procedure, you will be able to go straight home. It's usually best that you have someone drive you while the effects of the anaesthetic wear off. It is advised that you take a couple of days to rest as you will likely notice some mild discomfort during this time and you need to avoid aggravating the area. For the same reason, you should refrain from any strenuous exercise for a number of weeks as it might irritate the area and cause chafing and discomfort.

After the procedure, you might notice some slight soreness, but it'll likely be mild and something you can control yourself with over-the-counter pain medication. A gauze dressing may be applied to the area, but you will be shown how to care for and change this if necessary. Your surgeon should advise that you don't wear any tight tops or padded/tight bras for around two weeks after your procedure because they will compress the nipple and hinder recovery.

The effects of this procedure are immediate, although it may take a couple of days for any swelling to subside and for you to see the final result. There will likely be some minor scarring, but it will start to fade after several weeks, continually doing so over the months following the surgery.