What are the different types of top surgery that would suit you best? This is a highly personal question that can emerge for health reasons, gender affirmation, or a mixture of both.
Some top surgery procedures are better suited to your needs than others, so it’s important to learn about their subtle differences before getting a consultation. From reconstructive chest surgery to nipple grafts, this guide will teach you about these procedures and their end results.
What is Top Surgery?
Top surgery (also known as chest reconstruction) is a type of plastic surgery that focuses on sculpting, flattening, and rearranging the chest, nipple, and areola. Many patients seek out this surgery for gender-affirming care, to reduce weight, or to feel more comfortable about their appearance.
Top surgery also tends to refer to surgical procedures that make the chest appear more masculine or more flat. However, it can sometimes refer to any type of top surgery, including breast augmentation. This guide will primarily look at chest masculinization procedures.
How masculine a patient wants to look depends on their individual needs and goals. There is no one-size-fits-all when it comes to gender-affirming surgery. One patient may find the more drastic results of inverted T top surgery to be ideal, while another may be more interested in a minor breast reduction.
Chest Masculinization: Today’s Most Effective Procedures
While some forms of plastic surgery focus on trimming fat or reducing wrinkles, other forms focus on gender-affirming results. Patients who are interested in a more masculine chest contour — whether transgender, cisgender, or non-binary — may seek out the following procedures.
Keyhole Top Surgery (Also Known As Periareolar)
When a patient has a smaller chest size and wants to create a flatter chest, this surgery is ideal for creating a smooth and flat chest contour. A skilled top surgery surgeon will complete this procedure by creating a minor incision beneath the areola, then removing chest tissue.
This popular procedure leaves less obvious surgery scars while still providing strikingly natural results.
However, there are a few challenges to be aware of. Some patients reported reduced nipple sensation after the surgery, while other patients may still want further work done on the surrounding areola. If you have extensive work to be done, you may want to add areola reduction surgery.
This top surgery is also not recommended for people who have a larger chest size. If you need to remove more fatty tissue, consider the next procedure on this list.
Double Incision Mastectomy
Patients with a larger chest size that still need drastic results fare well with a double incision mastectomy. This procedure involves the surgeon making two incisions on both sides of the chest to remove larger amounts of breast tissue.
Not only does is this procedure wonderful for natural male chest contouring, it also involves shaping and replacing the nipples and areola. Many patients enjoy the drastic results of double incision top surgery and find the more extensive post-operative recovery process worth it.
That said, since double incision top surgery involves more extensive cutting and reshaping, patients need to set aside a lot of time to recover. Reduced nipple sensation is a common side-effect and the scarring is much more noticeable than with keyhole surgery.
Inverted T Top Surgery
If you’re concerned about double incision surgery and its impact on nipple sensation, you may be better suited to the inverted T approach. This surgical procedure looks similar at a glance since it also involves making two incisions on either side of the chest, though that’s where the similarities end.
Unlike a double incision surgery that removes and reshapes the nipples, the inverted T creates a third incision to avoid impacting the underlying tissue and nerves in the nipples and areola. This third incision is where it earned its name and it creates an end result that not only looks natural, but preserves nipple sensation.
Since inverted T surgery doesn’t require removing and reshaping the nipples with a nipple graft, it also requires a shorter recovery period. As a result, this procedure is becoming increasingly popular for patients who want to preserve as much of their natural sensation as possible.
Breast Reduction Surgery
For patients who want to reduce their chest size without creating a completely flat chest, they can seek out breast reduction surgery (or a reduction mammaplasty). This procedure involves removing breast tissue, excess fat, and excess skin.
Some of the most common reasons why people seek out this surgery is due to back pain, difficulties shopping for suitable clothes, or skin irritation caused by sagging breasts. However, this type of surgery is also gender-affirming for people who feel more confident with a smaller chest size. They may not want the completely flat chest of a double incision, yet still want to remove some breast tissue.
Frequently Asked Questions: Types of Top Surgery
Are you considering top surgery in the future? Today’s surgery techniques are more subtle and effective than ever, so here are a few common questions to look over before reaching out for a consultation.
What Type of Top Surgery is Best For Me?
Each type of top surgery will have unique benefits depending on your body size, skin elasticity, and personal goals. People with large chests tend to benefit more from the in-depth work of a double incision, while people with smaller chests fare well with keyhole surgery.
Which Top Surgery Has the Least Scarring?
Keyhole top surgery has minimal scarring due to smaller incisions and more subtle results. Best Plastic surgeons may also employ other peri areolar techniques to keep reducing scarring on chest skin.
Can You Be Denied Top Surgery?
There are many risk factors that plastic surgeons need to consider before providing top surgery, such as bleeding disorders, high blood pressure, a history of smoking, or a high BMI. An in-depth consultation is vital for exploring potential consultations so you can enjoy the safest surgical procedure possible.
How long is the overall recovery from FFS?
The final results and complete recovery from FFS can take up to a full year. The initial and most significant healing phase occurs within the first two to six weeks. While swelling can take several months to a year to fully resolve, many patients feel well enough to resume social commitments after two to three weeks.
Minimum age for FTM Top surgery
Atlanta clinics require patients to be 18 years old for top surgery. At 18, people can make their own medical choices without needing parents to say yes. Surgeons in Atlanta also want patients to live as their true gender for at least two years before surgery. They also want patients to work with mental health professionals who understand gender care.
Receive Gender-Affirming Care at Aesthera Plastic Surgery
At Aesthera Plastic Surgery, we’re passionate about helping patients receive the gender-affirming care they need to love the skin they’re in. Dr. CV Chegireddy is a Harvard-trained, board-certified plastic surgeon with an extensive top surgery portfolio.
When you reach out for a consultation, you’ll learn about vital details such as visual results, potential complications, and aftercare.
Are you considering top surgery? Contact us today for a consultation to start discussing your options.
