Breast is the secondary sex characteristic of female while the nipple plays a decisive role in sexual appearance. With the distinctive structure of nipple, it also functions for milk secretion and breast feeding. Therefore, most patients may neglect the importance of nipple appearance. With the rising of women autonomy, this type of meticulous plastic surgery has gradually been valued and accepted. Nevertheless, the most primary issue in the consideration for nipple surgery is to select a balancing point between appearance and functionality of nipple.

Nowadays, the two most common nipple surgeries include nipple reduction and inverted nipple correction. These surgeries have evolved into mini-incision, little scar and rapid recovery surgeries with the present technology advancement. Further explanation is shown below:

Nipple Reduction:
Generally, 30% of patients who underwent nipple reduction are naturally born with enlarged nipple while 70% of patients have enlarged nipple due to breast feeding or other external stimulus. The incision for traditional nipple reduction surgery is regularly made around the areola area which causes visible scars, limited reduction and influence on nipple sensitivity. Currently, the editor adopts the latest two-quadrant reduction surgery. The surgery comprises of two procedures including calculus removal of epidermis-dermis layer underneath the nipple (to reduce the lateral height of nipple) and vertical section to remove excessive nipple tissue which decreases the anterior nipple size. These procedures will concurrently diminish the size and height of nipple. With the effective alteration, the nipple may significantly reduce more than 50%. Since the surgery rarely damages the sensory nerves of nipple, the postoperative satisfaction of patients is greatly enhanced.

Correction of Inverted Nipple:
Most inverted nipples are caused by natural defect while others are induced by breast feeding or mastitis. There are three grades of inverted nipples:

Grade 1:
Lightly inverted nipples which can easily be pulled out with pressure exerted by using fingers.

Grade 2:
Moderately inverted nipple which requires stimulation from fingers or special devices to be protracted.

Grade 3:
Severely inverted nipple can rarely be pulled out with any methods. Nipple appears as volcano shape accompanying with discharge and unpleasant odor.

Commonly, lightly inverted nipple can be ameliorated by nipple massage as surgery may not be necessary. However, people with moderately to severely inverted nipple require inverted nipple correction to avoid nipple inflammation and other hygiene issues. Furthermore, most of the patients who receive nipple surgery are young and single. As a result, the surgery will consider reducing the damage of milk ducts and retaining the partial function of breast feeding.

Therefore, the editor has recommended the latest non-scarred nipple surgery from Japan. This surgery only involves four micro-incisions with each approximately 2mm. Permanent stitches are buried underneath the nipple to support the protraction. Besides reducing the previously high recurrence rate, the damage to milk ducts can be decreased due to the small incisions. As compared to conventional nipple surgery which requires the opening of nipple, this type of surgery reduces unpleasant scars as well as complications such as incapability in breast feeding.

From the editor’s experience of observation in several hundreds of related surgeries, the long-term recurrence rate is lower than 5%. Furthermore, the post-operative scar is hardly seen. Hence, it is relatively suitable for young ladies who seek for non-scarred surgery with appealing appearance. Consequently, it is by far the best surgery for inverted nipple correction.

As a summary, all readers may have grasped some basic understanding toward nipple surgery. However, the editor believes that patients should consult the surgeons regarding issues with nipple reduction or correction prior to the surgery. By evaluating the advantages and drawbacks of different surgeries, the fallacious of subjective perception can be reduced. Hence, the patients will acquire an ultimate balancing point in seeking beauty and maintaining the functionality of nipple. Nevertheless, this is the greatest meaning of nipple surgery.