San Francisco Breast Reduction (Reduction Mammoplasty)

Breast Reduction or Reduction Mammoplasty

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Breast Reduction, or Reduction Mammoplasty, is a surgical procedure that reduces the size and shape of the breasts by removing excess skin and underlying breast tissue. It also reduces the size of the nipple-areolar complex, which frequently becomes enlarged as a result of breast development. Breast Reduction surgery creates breasts that are lifted, smaller and more shapely.

With large breasts, a variety of medical conditions can result:

• “Shoulder grooving” due to excessive weight on bra straps
• Back and neck pain
• Difficulty fitting into clothes
• Slumped shoulders and other postural changes
• Difficulty with physical activities
• Irritation to the skin in the crease underneath the breasts
• Feelings of self-consciousness

For these reasons, most insurance plans provide coverage for Breast Reduction procedures. However, it can be purely a cosmetic procedure for women who are self-conscious about their breast size and do not meet the requirements of the insurance company.

Dr. Delgado has extensive experience with Breast Reduction surgery as well as working with insurance companies who cover this type of surgery.

WHO IS A CANDIDATE?

Women with disproportionately large breasts are good candidates for Breast Reduction. This is done for both cosmetic improvement and symptomatic relief. In general, women with size DD or greater are the most frequent candidates. However, even size C or D can be too large for a petite woman. While women from any age can benefit from the procedure, it is usually performed after the breasts are fully developed.

Insurance companies are making the approval process more and more difficult. There are numerous insurance companies, all with varying plans and coverage. Dr. Delgado’s surgery coordinator is experienced in securing authorization from insurance companies who offer such coverage. If supplied with the patient’s insurance card and her date of birth, the patient coordinator can submit a request for authorization from the patient’s insurance company. The application process can take three to six weeks and sometimes up to eight weeks or longer, before coverage can be successfully confirmed or denied.

These are some of the basic criteria that some insurance companies may require:

• DD in size or larger
• A total of 500 grams of tissue removed for each breast
• Symptoms not due to other medical conditions
• Failure of physical therapy or medications such as anti-inflammatories to alleviate symptoms
• The patient is not grossly overweight

It is very helpful if issues of this kind have been documented by your family care or other physician and we often include such documentation in requesting authorization from an insurance company.

 

Before Breast Reduction

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