Deciding to undergo breast reduction surgery can vastly improve your quality of life, especially if you’ve been dealing with discomfort or pain due to your breast size. But if you’re also working to lose unwanted pounds, you might be wondering: should you get a breast reduction before or after weight loss?
The answer depends on your personal health journey, your goals, and your doctor’s advice.
Let’s walk through the factors you need to consider when planning breast reduction surgery around weight loss, including what to expect in each scenario.
How Breast Reduction Before or After Weight Loss Impacts Your Outcome
Breast reduction before or after weight loss can lead to different outcomes. That’s why it’s important to work with your doctor to choose the best time for your procedure.
| Breast Reduction: Before vs. After Weight Loss | |
|---|---|
| Before Weight Loss | After Weight Loss |
Quicker relief from pain and physical discomfort. | Your surgeon can address any skin laxity at the same time, offering a more complete cosmetic outcome. |
Insurance is more likely to cover the procedure if it’s medically necessary. | Less likely to need future revisions due to body changes. |
If you lose significant weight afterwards, you might need a minor revision to address additional skin laxity. | Recovery may be smoother because your body is healthier and more stable after weight loss. |
Ultimately, there is no objective right answer. It all depends on your personal situation, goals, and timeline. It’s important to consider what your priorities are and what’s realistic for your body and your health. Talking with an experienced surgeon and your primary care doctor is the best way to make an informed decision that will lead to the best long-term results.
Is it Better to Lose Weight Before or After Breast Reduction?
It’s best to ask yourself what your goals are when considering when to have breast reduction surgery. If your priority is immediate pain relief and an improved ability to exercise to lose weight, going ahead with a breast reduction before weight loss may be the right choice. On the other hand, if you’re close to reaching your ideal weight and want to address appearance issues such as loose skin, choosing to undergo breast reduction after weight loss could get you more of the aesthetic you might like.
Differences in Insurance Coverage Before or After Weight Loss
If finances are a concern, it’s worth noting that insurance is more likely to cover breast reduction when it is medically necessary, regardless of future weight changes.
Breast Reduction Before Weight Loss:
Macromastia’s severe symptoms include chronic back pain, shoulder grooving from bra straps, posture issues, or recurrent skin infections under the breasts. If this sounds like what you’re experiencing, it might be medically necessary to proceed with breast reduction sooner rather than later.
Many insurance companies cover breast reduction if it’s performed to relieve these symptoms, even if you haven’t yet lost additional weight.
Breast Reduction After Weight Loss:
Waiting until after weight loss, however, ensures that your surgeon can better tailor the procedure to your final body size after losing significant weight. This lets your surgeon combine breast reduction with a lift for longer-lasting results. However, this type of breast reduction surgery is often less medically necessary, and therefore might not be covered by insurance.
Harris Plastic Surgery Can Help You Decide
Deciding on breast reduction before or after weight loss isn’t easy, but you don’t have to make the decision alone.
At Harris Plastic Surgery, we’re here to listen to your concerns, understand your lifestyle and goals, and help you create a treatment plan that fits your needs.
And, if you’re planning to have surgery, there’s good news. The “No Surprise Bill” enables patients to select their surgeon even if the surgeon is not in their insurance’s preferred network. This law states that as long as the procedure takes place at a hospital, patients only have to pay the same co-pays, deductibles, and coinsurance they would normally pay for an in-network surgeon. We work with patients to navigate the insurance process and help them maximize their benefits for the most affordable surgery options.
Dr. Stephen Harris brings over 20 years of expertise in breast reduction and reconstruction, helping patients regain comfort, confidence, and freedom to live their lives fully.
Stephen U. Harris, MD FACS
Dr. Stephen U. Harris is a board-certified cosmetic surgeon and recognized expert in breast reduction and reconstruction surgeries, having performed thousands in his career. When it comes to patient care, his philosophy is that every surgery should improve his patient’s overall quality of life, not just their appearance. Dr. Harris stays up-to-date on all the latest advancements in breast augmentation, reconstruction, and reduction and is a recognized innovator in the field. In fact, he was the first surgeon at Good Samaritan Hospital to offer primary prepectoral implant breast reconstruction, as well as secondary prepectoral revision surgery.
Dr. Harris also serves as Chief of Plastic Surgery at Good Samaritan Hospital in West Islip, New York and is an active staff surgeon (and former Chief of Plastic Surgery) at South Shore University Hospital in Bay Shore, New York.