PLASTIC SURGERY

Q: I am embarrassed of my inverted nipples. Is surgery the best solution? A: It is not unusual to feel selfconscious about your condition. Some may say don’t be worried about such a thing. You are not alone, and there is a very good solution obtainable as an office procedure under local anesthesia. An estimated 9 to 10% of women have at least one inverted nipple. In most cases, having an inverted nipple won’t affect your overall health or your nipple sensitivity, but they usually make breastfeeding difficult. Some nipples only invert occasionally, and reverse after changes in temperature or stimulation. Other nipples are permanently inverted, and require treatment. A permanent solution is a minor surgery. Surgery is readily performed with any other breast procedure, or on its own in the office under local anesthesia conditions. It is called papuloplasty if we make the nipple papule bigger or smaller or uninverted. For a nipple inversion reversal procedure, a very small incision is made at the base of the papule which is tethering the nipple in the upside-down fashion. This allows for me to release these fibrotic tethers and allow the nipple to evert. A suture is placed in the papule (it doesn’t hurt) and is kept with a splint on the chest wall for five days while this heals in an un-inverted position. Both sides are done the same day and you will wear a pad in your bra for a few days to protect the new shape of your nipple papule. You can drive to and from the office, and shower the next day. My patients are highly satisfied with this procedure. You don’t need to be selfconscious or embarrassed any longer.

Paul Vanek, MD, FACS