Which breast procedure is right for you
Small breasts, or breasts that emptied after pregnancy or weight loss while the nipple stayed above the fold, need volume, not a lift: breast augmentation with a saline or silicone implant, or breast augmentation with fat transfer, about one cup size from your own fat with no device.
A nipple at the fold or below it needs a breast lift, which moves the nipple up without adding volume; an implant alone will not raise it. Our saggy or deflated breasts page explains how the nipple position decides.
Breasts that are heavy as well as low, with back, neck or shoulder pain or bra-strap grooving, need a breast reduction, which removes tissue, fat and skin and lifts the breast in the same operation; a heavy breast lifted without being reduced sags again.
Uneven breasts get two implant sizes, a lift on the lower side or fat to the smaller side. A narrow, cone-shaped breast with a puffy areola is tuberous, and an implant alone gives a double bubble; tuberous breast correction releases the constricting fibers and adds an implant and a periareolar lift.
If you already have implants: a breast implant exchange swaps them for new ones in the same pocket, breast revision surgery corrects capsular contracture, a shifted implant, rippling or a rupture, and breast explant surgery removes them, in almost every case with the whole capsule. Our breast implant problems page describes the signs.
A lift or reduction that did not hold is redone through the existing scars, at least six to twelve months later: a revision breast lift when there is nothing to remove, a breast reduction revision when tissue comes out or the shape is rebuilt.
How Dr. Cat approaches breast surgery
Dr. Cat is a board-certified plastic surgeon, trained in both head and neck surgery and plastic and reconstructive surgery, Harvard-educated and UCLA trained. She performs every step of every breast surgery, one major surgery per surgical day, in the QUAD A accredited surgery center in her Beverly Hills penthouse with a board-certified physician anesthesiologist. She uses Mentor implants, from 175 cc to 700 cc, and recommends exchanging silicone implants about every 8 to 10 years; in her fat transfers more than 80 to 90 percent of the fat survives. A tummy tuck is never on the same day as a breast augmentation with implants; a breast lift with a tummy tuck is staged.
Before and after photos
Before you choose a breast surgeon in Beverly Hills, look through the breast gallery, Dr. Cat's cases by procedure, each with case notes. In the breast augmentation before and after photos, compare implant sizes on frames like yours; in the breast lift before and after photos, check the nipple against the fold and the scar; in the breast reduction before and after photos, look for a starting size and asymmetry like your own.
What breast surgery costs in Beverly Hills
Dr. Cat's surgeon's fee for a breast augmentation with implants is $17,500 to $22,500, for a breast lift $35,500 to $45,500, for a breast lift with implants $55,000 to $65,500 and for a breast reduction $50,000 to $70,000; the implants, the operating room and anesthesia are quoted at your consultation. Surgeon's fees are typical ranges: a more complex case can cost more, and your fee is set at your consultation and is final only in your written quote. For second surgeries, a simple implant exchange is $19,500 to $21,500 and a breast revision with capsule work $60,000 to $75,500. Our plastic surgery cost guides explain the quote; financing is available through Cherry, CareCredit and Alphaeon Credit.
Recovery and aftercare
Recovery after breast plastic surgery with Dr. Cat follows one pattern: walking a few hours after surgery, Tylenol for most patients, the arms below shoulder height for two weeks, and a shape close to final at three months. You go home the same day after an augmentation, an implant exchange or a first lift; after a reduction or a full revision of a lift or reduction, the first night is spent in a plastic surgery aftercare center. The breast augmentation recovery guide covers it week by week.
How to start
Book a free discovery call: our Patient Concierge answers your first questions in 15 minutes and books your consultation with Dr. Cat, $500, or $1,500 for a revision consultation, credited toward your surgery. Out-of-town patients consult by private video through OnPatient, the practice's HIPAA-secure patient portal. You leave with an itemized written quote.
