Anisomastia or breast asymmetry – MAPFRE Blogs

Breast asymmetry is a difference in breast size that can be treated with surgery or lipofilling. Discover options to restore symmetry.

The development of the mammary gland starts between 8 and 12 years old due to the influence of hormones secreted by the ovaries. The first sign is the growth of the so-called breast button, a prominence 1-2 cm in diameterraised, under the skin of the areola, sensitive to the touch. This breast bud appears first on one side and then on the other. The delay between one and the other is usually weeks or months, on average between 6 and 12 months. Subsequently, changes in the size and shape of the breast will also be identified. does not complete its development until 18-20 years.

How do they change?

So, Breast growth is asymmetrical from the beginning, but as development is completed they become symmetrical.and although exact symmetry between the left and right halves of the body does not exist, and the breasts are not exactly the same, the differences are usually minimal and imperceptible, but in 10% of cases they can be very evident and it is in these cases that we talk about breast asymmetry. Technically, breasts with a difference of 25% or more between them are considered asymmetrical.

However, the breast continues to change throughout life, especially with the hormonal changes of pregnancy, breastfeeding and menopause, and unequal breastfeeding can also cause asymmetries that were not as evident before pregnancy.

Other causes

Apart from these types of Developmental asymmetry and physiological changes across the lifespanany change in the size or shape of a breast beyond having completed its maturity must be evaluated by a doctor as it may be due to some benign, or even malignant, breast pathology.

But the purpose of this review is to talk about breasts that, without a pathology, develop unevenly, with women reaching adulthood with an objective difference between the size or shape of their breasts, which does not entail any danger and is merely an aesthetic problem, but which should not be underestimated, as it can have a great impact on their self-esteem and cause a lot of suffering.

Are all asymmetries equal?

There are different degrees of asymmetry, the extreme cases being amastia, a rare condition in which there is a total lack of unilateral or bilateral breast development, or a genetic condition also of very low frequency called Poland Syndrome, in which, congenitally, a breast and the pectoral muscle are missing.

With MAPFRE Health Insurance, you can access surgical interventions such as mastopexy or lipofilling to correct breast asymmetry and improve your well-being.

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Leaving aside these rare congenital causes, the main cause is simply a difference in the development of one breast or another, although it can also be secondary to some external factor such as trauma, surgery or radiotherapy in the area, which has secondarily impacted the normal development of a breast.

How is it addressed?

• Surgery: once a responsible pathology has been ruled out, and once the physiological maturity of the breast has been acquired, if the asymmetry is evident, even if it is a mere aesthetic difference, if the patient is concerned enough, surgery should be considered. The technique will be individualized according to the case. Sometimes you have to reduce the size of the larger breast if it is exaggerated, or place a prosthesis in the small one. In these cases it is important for the patient to state what size is normal for her. Other times you have to act on both, since frequently the larger breast, due to its weight, may have a different position and projection.
• Another useful technique in these cases is lipofillingthat is, extracting the woman’s own fat from another place and implanting it in the breast. There may be infinite options depending on the case, but the goal is to achieve reasonable symmetry between both breasts and the areola/nipple complex, both in shape, size and position.

Nowadays, surgeries in general must be considered safe, the knowledge and evolution of materials, anesthetic drugs and the expertise of plastic surgeons, increasingly in demand, must give women confidence to solve the problem if it is for them.

In other cases, where the difference is not so great, or is simply not a cause for concern for the woman, it is obviously a condition that does not require any treatment and for which practical solutions can also be found with the use of pads or asymmetrical bras.

What you should know…

• Breast development is naturally asymmetrical since puberty and, although it usually balances with maturity, up to 10% of women present visible differences without pathology.
• Breast asymmetry can be due to uneven development, hormonal changes in life (pregnancy, breastfeeding, menopause) or external causes, and should only be of concern if it appears after maturity or is accompanied by other clinical signs.
• The approach depends on the degree of asymmetry: it may not require treatment, can be resolved with practical resources, or resort to surgery or lipofilling to achieve reasonable symmetry if it causes aesthetic discomfort.