Lankan ladies want breasts downsized

FORGET PAMELA ANDERSON

Lankan ladies want breasts downsized

By Chamitha Kuruppu

Breast augmentation (commonly known as the boob-job) and breast reduction is gradually becoming popular among women in Sri Lanka. One might think it’s a luxury to go under the knife, but according to plastic surgeons, women from all parts of the country and from all walks of life, are now showing interest to undergo this form of surgical treatment.

The correct size

Due to the structure of Sri Lankan women, breast augmentation is the most common plastic surgery that is performed in the country. Due to the physical and mental trauma they have to stomach, women nowadays are showing much keenness in correcting their overly sized breasts.
That’s right. Pamela Anderson and others may go for silicon sacks to make them larger, but over here, they usually want to reduce the size of their breasts. Dr N. Y. Wijemanne, a well known plastic surgeon once delivering a lecture at the British Council told of one woman who came to him and told him, “Doctor, please take the whole thing off.’’
The audience was highly amused, but when the doctor showed a slide of the breasts concerned, nobody laughed - they were so large, that any sane person would not grudge the request for removal.
While the weight of their breasts may cause neck, back, shoulder, circulation, or breathing problems, many women hide themselves from society due to the social stigma and discomfiture due to oversize mammary glands. (ie: large breasts.)

Price tag

Unlike breast augmentation, breast reduction comes under the medical discipline of plastic surgery now covered by many insurance companies in the country.
The surgery that costs between Rs100, 000 - 120,000 is believed to be among the most ‘satisfying’ surgeries. The, most common procedure involves an anchor-shaped incision which circles the areola. The incision extends downward, following the natural curve of the breast. Excess glandular tissue, fat, and skin is removed. Duration of the surgery could be one to two hours and the patient could leave the hospital in a day.
However, it is not recommended for women who desire to breastfeed, as it can impair the likelihood of breastfeeding success and decrease the volume of breast milk produced. Scarring is the other disadvantage of breast reduction. The 4-5 inch incision mark from the areola to the crease at the bottom of the breasts is most likely to remain permanent. Although not uncommon in Sri Lanka, breast augmentation (enlargement) is the most popular form of plastic surgery in the world.
Although it is categorised as cosmetic surgery due to its nature, women may be compelled to undergo breast augmentation due to psychological pressure due to extremely small breasts.
Breast implant is a prosthesis used to enlarge the size of a woman’s breasts to reconstruct the breast (e.g. after a mastectomy; or to correct genetic deformities), or as an aspect of male-to-female sex reassignment surgery. (sex change.)

Saline vs Silicon

There are two primary types of breast implants: saline-filled and silicon gel-filled implants. Saline implants have a silicone elastomer shell filled with sterile saline liquid. Silicone gel implants have a silicone shell filled with a viscous silicone gel.


The surgery that costs around Rs.150,000 is however, not covered by insurance companies in Sri Lanka.
Although in 1998, the Women’s Health and Cancer Rights Act was passed mandating insurance coverage for breast reconstruction in the United States. Prior to this, many insurance carriers did not cover breast reconstructive surgery as they considered it cosmetic in nature.
The law is also known as “Janet’s Law”, named for Janet Franquet, a breast cancer patient who fought her insurance carrier with Dr. Todd Wider, a New York plastic surgeon who helped lobby for the legislation with Senator Al D’Amato.
The act mandates insurance coverage for the surgery of the affected breast and also the contralateral side for purposes of symmetry.
(Special Thanks to Plastic Surgeon Dr. N.Y. Wijemanne)

Following are the most prevalent aesthetic/cosmetic procedures. Most of these types of surgery are more commonly known by their “common names.” These are also listed when pertinent.
Abdominoplasty (or “tummy tuck”): reshaping and firming of the abdomen
Umbilicoplasty (or “belly button surgery”): reshaping the belly button
Blepharoplasty (or “eyelid surgery”): Reshaping of the eyelids or the application of permanent eyeliner, including Asian blepharoplasty
Augmentation Mammaplasty/breast augmentation (or “breast enlargement” or “boob job”): Augmentation of the breasts. This can involve either saline or silicone gel prosthetics.
Buttock Augmentation (or “butt augmentation” or “butt implants”): Enhancement of the buttocks. This procedure can be performed by using silicone implants or fat grafting and transfer from other areas of the body.
Chemical peel: Minimizing the appearance of acne, pock, and other scars as well as wrinkles (depending on concentration and type of agent used, except for deep furrows), solar lentigines (age spots, freckles), and photodamage in general. Chemical peels commonly involve carbolic acid (Phenol), trichloroacetic acid (TCA), glycolic acid (AHA), or salicylic acid (BHA) as the active agent.
Mastopexy (or “breast lift”): Raising or reshaping of breasts
Labiaplasty: Surgical reduction and reshaping of the labia
Rhinoplasty (or “nose job”): Reshaping of the nose
Otoplasty (or ear surgery): Reshaping of the ear
Rhytidectomy (or “face lift”): Removal of wrinkles and signs of aging from the face
Clitoroplasty (clitoral reduction): A management of the child with ambiguous genitalia. Goal is adequate cosmetic appearance prior to a time when the child herself would recognize the ambiguity, usually surgically repaired between 18 and 24 months of age.
Suction-Assisted Lipectomy (or liposuction): Removal of fat from the body
Chin augmentation: Augmentation of the chin with an implant (e.g. silicone) or by sliding genioplasty of the jawbone.
Cheek augmentation
Collagen, fat, and other tissue filler injections (eg hyaluronic acid)
Vaginoplasty: to reconstruct or create a vagina
(Source: Wikipedia )