Breast Surgery: Customizing the Silhouette
Breast Augmentation with Implants ( + Hybrid & Awake)
Breast Augmentation: Tailored Volume & Advanced Techniques
However, the “one size fits all” approach is outdated. Dr. Thomas Colson offers a bespoke experience in Abu Dhabi, utilizing the safest FDA-approved implants and three advanced surgical techniques that prioritize safety, natural aesthetics, and minimal downtime.
1. Awake Breast Augmentation: The Tumescent Technique
The “Awake” Advantage:
- The Process: Dr. Colson numbs the breast tissue using a large volume of dilute anesthetic solution (tumescent fluid). This provides complete pain control and significantly reduces bleeding/bruising.
- The “Sit-Up” Test: Because you are awake, Dr. Colson will ask you to sit up during the surgery before the incisions are closed. This allows him to check for perfect symmetry and implant position relative to gravity—a level of precision impossible when a patient is lying flat and unconscious.
- Rapid Recovery: Most patients walk out of the clinic shortly after surgery. Without the side effects of general anesthesia, return to normal daily activities is often possible within 24–48 hours.
2. Hybrid Augmentation (Composite Breast Surgery)
For the most natural aesthetic, Dr. Colson often recommends Hybrid Augmentation. This combines the structural projection of an implant with the softness of Autologous Fat Transfer.
Why choose Hybrid?
- The Core: The implant provides the desired cup size and projection.
- The Cover: Your own fat is harvested and grafted around the edges of the implant. This “softens” the transition between the chest wall and the breast.
- The Result: It creates a natural cleavage line and hides implant rippling, which is particularly beneficial for athletic patients or those with very low body fat.
3. The "Scarless" Option: Endoscopic Transaxillary Approach
For patients who wish to avoid any visible scarring on the breast itself, we offer the Endoscopic Transaxillary Approach.
- Incision: A small incision is made in the natural fold of the armpit (axilla), hiding it completely from view.
- Precision: Using a high-definition endoscope (camera), Dr. Colson creates the implant pocket with extreme precision, ensuring no damage to tissues.
- Outcome: A pristine, scar-free breast mound. This technique requires specialized expertise available at our center.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Awake Breast Augmentation painful?
No. The tumescent fluid completely numbs the chest area. Patients may feel movement or pressure, but no sharp pain. The mild sedation ensures you remain relaxed throughout the procedure.
What is the difference between Hybrid and Standard augmentation?
Standard augmentation uses only an implant. Hybrid augmentation adds a layer of your own fat over the implant. This is ideal for thin women to prevent the “ball-on-chest” look and ensure the implant edges are not felt under the skin.
Can any implant be used with the Transaxillary (Armpit) approach?
This technique is best suited for smooth, round silicone implants. Dr. Colson will evaluate your anatomy to see if you are a candidate for this “scarless” technique or if an inframammary (under-breast) fold incision is safer for your specific goals.
Breast Augmentation with Fat Transfer
Natural Breast Augmentation: Your Body, Your Beauty
Is This Procedure Right for You?
- You desire a size increase of 0.5 to 1 cup size.
- You want to correct breast asymmetry (one breast smaller than the other).
- You prefer a completely “foreign-body-free” solution.
- You have adequate donor fat in other areas of your body.
The 3-Step Process: Sculpt & Enhance
This “Eco-friendly” approach to beauty recycles your body’s own resources.
- Harvesting (Liposuction)
Using gentle, low-pressure liposuction, Dr. Colson harvests fat from donor areas where you may want to reduce volume, such as the abdomen (tummy), thighs, flanks (love handles), or hips. This step effectively contours your silhouette.
- Purification
The harvested tissue is processed to separate pure, healthy fat cells from fluids and oils. Only the highest quality fat is selected for transfer to ensure long-term survival.
- Precision Grafting
Dr. Colson meticulously injects the purified fat into the breast tissue.
- Technique: The fat is placed in identifying “micro-droplets” across multiple planes (depths) of the breast.
- Why? This ensures every fat cell is surrounded by healthy tissue to establish a blood supply, maximizing the amount of fat that survives permanently.
Dr. Colson’s Insight: “This is often the procedure of choice for the ‘Mommy Makeover.’ We take the volume from where you don’t want it (post-baby belly) and restore it to where you lost it (the breasts).”
Frequently Asked Questions
How much bigger can my breasts get with fat transfer?
This technique relies on the available space in your breast tissue to support the new fat. Typically, we can achieve a one-cup size increase. If you desire a larger increase, a second session may be performed 3-6 months later, or implants might be a better option.
Will the fat disappear over time?
Once the transferred fat establishes a blood supply (usually within 3 months), it is permanent. However, because it is living tissue, it will behave like the rest of your body fat—if you lose a significant amount of weight, your breasts may get smaller; if you gain weight, they may get larger.
Does fat transfer affect mammograms?
Modern digital mammography and experienced radiologists can easily distinguish between transferred fat and breast abnormalities. However, calcifications can sometimes occur. Dr. Colson recommends a baseline mammogram before surgery to ensure safety.
Breast Lift (Mastopexy)
Breast Lift (Mastopexy): Restoring Youthful Elevation
Tailored Techniques: The Right Lift for You
Dr. Colson believes in the principle of the “smallest necessary scar.” During your consultation, he will assess the degree of sagging (ptosis) to determine which incision pattern will yield the best result with the least visible scarring.
1. Periareolar Lift (The "Donut" Lift)
- Best For: Mild sagging or minor nipple repositioning.
- The Incision: A circular incision is made only around the edge of the areola.
- The Result: A subtle lift with a scar that blends seamlessly into the natural color transition of the areola.
2. Vertical Lift (The "Lollipop" Lift)
This “Eco-friendly” approach to beauty recycles your body’s own resources.
- Best For: Moderate sagging.
- The Incision: Involves the incision around the areola, plus a vertical line running down to the breast crease (resembling a lollipop).
- The Result: This technique allows for significant reshaping and tightening of the breast mound without creating a horizontal scar underneath.
3. Anchor Lift (Inverted-T)
This “Eco-friendly” approach to beauty recycles your body’s own resources.
- Best For: Significant sagging or major weight loss patients.
- The Incision: Includes the vertical pattern plus a horizontal incision along the breast crease.
- The Result: While this involves the most extensive incision, it provides the most dramatic transformation, removing large amounts of excess skin and completely reconstructing the breast shape.
"Auto-Augmentation": Volume Without Implants
Frequently Asked Questions
Will a breast lift change my cup size?
A breast lift is primarily a shaping procedure, not a sizing procedure. While your breasts will look fuller and perkier because they are lifted, the actual volume remains the same. If you want to increase size, we can combine the lift with an implant (Augmentation-Mastopexy).
Can I breastfeed after a breast lift?
In most cases, yes. Dr. Colson uses modern techniques that preserve the milk ducts and the nerve supply to the nipple. However, as with any breast surgery, there is a small risk of reduced milk production.
How visible are the scars?
Scars are an unavoidable trade-off for lifting the breast, but Dr. Colson places them strategically to be hidden by bikinis and bras. With proper care, these scars fade from red to thin white lines over 12-18 months.
Breast Reduction
Breast Reduction: Lightness, Relief, and Proportion
Beyond Aesthetics: Treating the Symptoms
While the aesthetic improvement is significant, the primary driver for this surgery is often physical relief. Dr. Colson specializes in treating patients suffering from:
- Chronic Pain: Persistent back, neck, and shoulder pain.
- Shoulder Grooving: Deep, painful indentations left by bra straps supporting heavy weight.
- Skin Irritation: Rashes or intertrigo (inflammation) in the fold underneath the breast.
- Lifestyle Limitations: Inability to exercise or find properly fitting clothes.
Dr. Colson’s Note: “The most common feedback I hear after this surgery is, ‘I wish I had done this years ago.’ The relief from the weight is often felt immediately after waking up from surgery.”
The Procedure: Reshape and Resize
Breast reduction is technically a “reconstructive” process.
- Removal: Excess fat, glandular tissue, and skin are precisely removed.
- Lift: The remaining breast tissue is reshaped and lifted to a higher, more youthful position.
- Refinement: The areola is often reduced in size to match the new, smaller breast shape.
The “Vertical” Advantage Whenever possible, Dr. Colson utilizes the Vertical Scar technique (Lejour method). This modern approach avoids the long horizontal scar under the breast often associated with older techniques, resulting in a rounder, more projecting shape with less scarring.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Breast Reduction covered by insurance in Abu Dhabi?
Because this condition (Macromastia) causes physical health issues, many health insurance plans in the UAE do cover breast reduction if specific medical criteria are met (e.g., amount of tissue to be removed, proof of chronic pain). We recommend scheduling a consultation so we can provide the necessary medical report for your insurance provider.
Will I lose sensation in my nipples?
Dr. Colson uses techniques specifically designed to preserve the blood and nerve supply to the nipple-areola complex. While temporary numbness is common, permanent loss of sensation is rare.
Does liposuction work for breast reduction?
For patients whose breasts are composed mostly of fatty tissue, Liposuction-Only Reduction can be an option. This results in virtually no scarring. However, if you have dense glandular tissue or excess skin, a surgical reduction is required for a good result.
Breast Revision Surgery & Asymmetry
Breast Revision & Asymmetry: Restoring Balance and Confidence
1. Correcting Implant Complications
Over time, or due to initial surgical technique, implants can shift or the body can react poorly to them. We specialize in:
Capsular Contracture (The “Hard” Breast)
This occurs when the scar tissue capsule around the implant tightens and squeezes the implant.
- The Fix: Dr. Colson performs a Total Capsulectomy. This involves removing the hardened scar tissue entirely and often replacing the implant. In some cases, an Acellular Dermal Matrix (ADM) is used to support the new pocket and prevent recurrence.
Implant Malposition
- Bottoming Out: When an implant slips below the natural breast fold, creating a “double bubble” look or nipples that point upward.
- Correction: Internal suturing (Capsulorrhaphy) to tighten the pocket and reinforce the fold with mesh or ADM.
- Symmastia (“Uniboob”): When implants migrate toward the center of the chest, merging the cleavage.
- Correction: A delicate repair of the sternal pocket to redefine the separation between the breasts.
2. Congenital Asymmetry & Tuberous Breasts
Not all asymmetry is due to previous surgery. Many women suffer from Tuberous Breast Deformity, a congenital condition where the breasts are constricted, tube-shaped, or have puffy areolas.
The Reconstructive Approach: Dr. Colson does not simply place an implant, which often worsens the appearance of tuberous breasts. Instead, he utilizes a specialized multi-step technique:
- Release: The constricted tissue band inside the breast is surgically released to allow the breast to expand.
- Reshape: The breast tissue is unfolded (scored) to cover the implant naturally.
- Volume: An implant or fat grafting is added to create a round, normal breast shape.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can Tuberous Breasts be fixed with just an implant?
Rarely. Placing an implant without releasing the constricted tissue often leads to the “Snoopy Dog” deformity (where the implant sits behind the constricted breast). Dr. Colson performs specialized tissue scoring to reshape the breast before adding volume.
What is the difference between a capsule release and a capsulectomy?
A release (Capsulotomy) simply cuts the scar tissue to open the pocket. A capsulectomy removes the scar tissue entirely. For recurrent or high-grade contracture, Dr. Colson typically recommends total removal (capsulectomy) for the safest long-term result.
How soon can I have revision surgery after my first operation?
It is generally recommended to wait at least 6 to 12 months after your initial surgery. This allows all swelling to subside and the tissues to soften, giving Dr. Colson a stable foundation to work with.