Breast uplift in Edinburgh

Yes. The consultant who assesses you at your first appointment is the consultant who plans your surgery, performs it at Waterfront Private Hospital, and reviews you afterwards. There are no handovers between consultants.

Your breast uplift is planned and performed by one of our consultant plastic surgeons, Mr Ken Stewart, Mr Omar Quaba, Ms Ewa Majdak-Paredes and Mr Will Anderson, all on the GMC Specialist Register. You choose your consultant, meet them at your first appointment, and the same consultant operates and sees you afterwards.

Yes. Our breast uplift before and after gallery shows patients treated at Quaba Plastic Surgery, shared with their consent. Results vary between people, and your consultant will show you what is realistic for you at your consultation.

Your Quaba consultant stays responsible for your care after surgery. A nurse sees you a week after your operation, more often if you need it, and your consultant reviews you at around six months, when the result has settled. If anything worries you before then, contact us and your consultant will reply directly and see you as soon as needed.

Breast uplift at Quaba starts from £8,800. An uplift combined with implants (augmentation mastopexy) is £11,800, and an uplift with fat transfer £11,200. Each price covers the surgeon’s fee, the anaesthetist’s fee, the hospital and theatre fee at Waterfront Private Hospital, and all post-operative reviews until you are fully discharged.

All our guide prices are on our pricing page.

Yes. Mastopexy is the medical term for breast uplift surgery — the two names describe the same operation, which lifts and reshapes the breast and repositions the nipple. “Breast lift” is also commonly used.

A breast uplift (mastopexy) is a surgical procedure performed under a general anaesthetic. It lasts 2 to 3 hours and can be performed as a day-case procedure or with an overnight stay. Most patients have an uneventful recovery, and satisfaction rates are high. When a breast lift is combined with breast implants, the surgery is more complicated and recovery may be more involved.

Depending on the extent of your procedure, many women may still breastfeed after a breast uplift. However, the possibility remains that you may not be able to breastfeed. Some studies have shown that women who have had breast lifts are as able to breastfeed as those who have not; many women who have never had breast surgery also struggle to breastfeed.

A breast uplift usually involves removing a little breast tissue. It can make your breasts look smaller but with a much-improved shape — for many women this is the desired outcome. Where volume is also wanted, a small improvement can be achieved by injecting fat at the time of the uplift, and more significant increases by combining the uplift with implants (augmentation mastopexy).

A breast uplift will improve the overall shape of your breasts and lift the breasts and nipples. While it can add some fullness to the upper part of your breasts, this will be subtle and not the same effect you would achieve with breast implants. A lift combined with implants or fat transfer may be a better option if you want added volume. You can see examples in our before and after gallery.

The main downside to breast lift surgery is that it leaves scars around the nipple and vertical or anchor-shaped scars. There is no way to lift breasts that have dropped beyond a certain point without removing and tightening skin, and the nipple cannot be moved upwards without cutting around it. Scars can take up to 18 months to mature, sometimes longer; most before-and-after photographs show results at around six months, when scars can still be red, and significant fading can be expected beyond that. There is considerable variability between patients.

To move the nipples up to a higher position on the breast, a cut is made around them. The areola is reduced in size as it has usually been stretched. The nipple remains attached to the underlying breast tissue to keep a blood supply, and the tissue is repositioned with the nipple attached so it sits at a higher position on the breast.

Surgery is carried out as a day procedure at Waterfront Private Hospital, or with an overnight stay at our partner facility in Edinburgh. You are seen in the dressing clinic one week after surgery to have your outer dressings removed. Take at least one week off work to rest. The wounds should be fully healed by two weeks, though this can take longer with delayed healing. Light exercise can usually be resumed at four weeks, and you should fully recover by six weeks.

At first your breasts will be tight and can look a little “boxy” in shape. By six months they will look much more rounded, and they continue to improve in shape for up to 18 months.