New research suggests the frequency of breast lift procedures is growing at twice the rate of breast implants.
Since 2000 breast lifts have grown by 70 percent, "outpacing" breast implants two-to-one, an American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) news release reported.
"Many women are looking for a youthful breast by using the tissue they already have," ASPS President Robert X. Murphy, Jr., MD. , said in the news release.
In 2013 over 90,000 breast lift procedures were performed by ASPS surgeons; about 70 percent of the women who choose this procedure are believed to be between the ages of 30 and 54. In 2000 only about 53,000 breast lifts were performed.
"The breast lift procedure is way up in my practice," Anne Taylor, MD, an ASPS-member plastic surgeon in Columbus, Ohio, said in the news release. "More women are coming to us who've had children, whose breast volume has decreased and who are experiencing considerable sagging," she said. "For many of them, we are able to get rid of excess skin and lift the breasts back up where they're supposed to be."
Women choose breast lifts over artificial implants for a variety of reasons.
"Childbirth, breastfeeding and aging takes a toll on the body," Kim Beckman of Casstown, Ohio, who recived a breast lift from Doctor Taylor, said in the news release. "I finally decided one morning that I was going to lose weight and get healthy."
Beckman succeeded in losing 75 pounds, but was still not satisfied with her body.
"From the waist down, I was happy with what I saw. But from the waist up, I knew that there was still something I needed to do in the chest area," she said. The weight loss along with other factors had caused her breasts to sag.
"In those situations, there's really no other way to get the breast lifted back up without the breast lift surgery," Dr. Taylor said.
Breast lifts use only the patient's natural tissue, instead of an implant made of silicone or other materials.
"The ideal candidate for a breast lift is a woman who has a good amount of breast tissue left, who doesn't necessarily want to have implants," Dr. Murphy said. "Many women aren't sure if they are a candidate for this type of surgery, but a simple pencil test can tell them if they are."
"If the breast tissue holds the pencil in place against the chest, that implies that there's a hanging nature to the breast that can be fixed with a lift," he said.
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