Combining Breast Lift and Augmentation Surgery

Medically reviewed by Dr. Alex Facque on October 10, 2025.

Breast Lift vs. Breast Augmentation

Breast lift and breast augmentation are two types of plastic surgery that modify the appearance of the breasts. They can be performed together or separately, depending on a patient’s goals and unique anatomy. The primary differences between these two procedures are listed below:

Breast Lift

A breast lift, also known as a mastopexy, is a surgical procedure that raises the position of the breasts and removes unwanted sagging skin.

• Purpose: This procedure is meant to reverse the effects of breast ptosis, the medical term for sagging or drooping breasts. These are common effects of aging and weight loss.

• Technique: Your surgeon will make incisions in the breasts to excise and tighten sagging skin. In the process, they will attempt to remove as little breast tissue as possible to give them a raised appearance. This is in contrast to a breast reduction, which also removes sagging skin and repositions the nipple. However, a breast reduction as opposed to a breast lift removes breast sagging while removing a sizable amount of breast tissue to make the breasts smaller..

• Scarring: Scarring will be left on the breasts from the surgical incisions. With proper scar care, these may fade to faint lines. Although, genetics will play a large role in how any scar heals. The most common incision technique and scar pattern for a mastopexy is the Inverted T or anchor shape.

Breast Augmentation

A breast augmentation or augmentation mammoplasty surgically increases the volume of the breasts, making them larger.

• Purpose: to increase breast size or change breast shape

• Technique: Patients can have their breasts augmented with silicone or saline implants. Alternatively or in combination with implants, patients can have fat deposits from other parts of their body moved to the breasts to increase the size of their breasts.

• Consistency of results: Implants provide patients with certainty of the extent to which breasts will be augmented. Fat transfers, however, are less precise and less reliable in the amount of augmentation provided as each patient retains a different amount of fat in their breasts after surgery.

• Implant size: Rather than measuring by cup or bra size, the size of breasts are determined by the implant size, which typically ranges from 200cc-800cc. The final appearance of your breast size will have a lot to do with your unique anatomy.

• Scarring: Most commonly, surgeons make incisions under the breast at the inframammary fold to insert implants.

Which Procedure is Right for Me?

Depending on a patient’s anatomy, a breast lift, breast augmentation, or a combination of the two may be best suited to meet their unique goals. You can discuss which option would be right for you in a free consultation with one of our board-certified surgeons.

Breast lifts are most often performed in patients who are interested changing the following:

• Nipple position: When the nipples are on the lower part of a breast or even point downward, a breast lift can raise their position.

• Removing unwanted extra or sagging skin: A mastopexy involves removing drooping skin, tightening the skin around the breasts.

• Uneven breast position: By repositioning the breasts and nipples, your surgeon can fix any concerns you might have about uneven breast position.
• Breast perkiness: To perform a mastopexy, your surgeon will inevitably have to remove some breast tissue. Your breasts will appear the same size or slightly smaller.

Beast augmentation surgery is often sought out by patients interested in the following:

• Increase breast size: Whereas a mastopexy inevitably involves removing some breast tissue, an augmentation increases the volume of the breasts.

• Breast volume and lifting: By placing implants into the breasts, they become fuller in size, especially at their upper pole. This gives the breasts a slightly lifted or perkier appearance.

Combined Mastopexy and Augmentation Mammoplasty

Should I undergo a breast lift, augmentation, or both?

The answer to this question depends entirely on a patient’s goals and unique anatomy. Generally speaking, breast implant surgery can create a lifting effect by filling out the breasts. The amount of skin overhang and the extent to which the breasts sag (i.e., the downward point of the nipple), alongside the size of the implant, will determine how much the breasts can be lifted by an implant alone. Many patients choose to undergo both a mastopexy and an augmentation to lift and increase the size of their breasts.

Augmentation-mastopexy in 1 or 2 stages of surgery?

Your surgeon can perform a combined breast lift and augmentation at once, or as two separate stages of surgery. Having both procedures performed simultaneously means that the patient will only have to go through one recovery process.

However, there are some advantages to undergoing a mastopexy first and an augmentation procedure 3-6 months after. Namely, it helps the procedure be more safe and predictable because breast lifts and implant surgeries do opposite things to the breast. While a breast lift tightens breast skin, implants stretch it out to augment the breasts. Performing these two procedures separately can decrease the risk of nipple necrosis––i.e., loss of the nipple tissue––due to blood flow loss. Likewise, performing these surgeries in two separate stages can decrease the risk of delays in incision healing.

How Might Breast Lift and Augmentation Surgery Affect My Sensation?

Generally speaking, nipple and areola sensation should not be affected in the long-term by breast surgery. It is normal for patients to experience numbness, itching, and tingling sensations during the initial stage of recovery. About 3-6 months after surgery, most patients can expect to have full or near full sensation return to their breasts as their nerves heal.

However, even in the long-term, some patients report diminished sensation in one or both of their nipples after surgery.

Anecdotally, some of Dr. Facque’s breast reduction and breast lift patients experience increases in nipple sensitivity after surgery, potentially due to decreased stretch on the nerves that run to the nipple once the breast is lifted and repositioned. Every patient’s recovery experience is unique. Regardless of your sensation outcomes, patients report being satisfied with their sex lives due to the increased self-confidence that they get from the results of their surgery.