title: The Delay Fill Technique: A Safer Approach to Combination Augmentation Mastopexy.
abstract: Combining breast augmentation with mastopexy is a challenging procedure that has a relatively high revision rate in the literature. Some surgeons prefer a two-stage procedure to avoid the potential for skin flap or nipple-areolar complex necrosis that can occur with a one-stage procedure. The authors compared 101 patients who had subpectoral breast augmentation with immediate implant fill and mastopexy with 203 patients who had subpectoral breast augmentation with delayed (10-14 days) implant fill and mastopexy. They found the revision rate for immediate implant fill was 24%; in the delayed implant fill group, the revision rate was 10.3%. Patients had soft tissue-related complications in 16% of the immediate fill group and in 2% of the delayed fill group. Delaying implant fill in combined breast augmentation mastopexy significantly reduces the risk of soft tissue-related complications and revision procedures; the delay flap phenomenon is responsible for fewer wound-healing complications when implant fill is delayed during a combined augmentation mastopexy procedure.
authors.affiliation: Department of Plastic Surgery, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, Texas.
authors.forename: Christopher K
authors.initials: CK
authors.lastname: Patronella
authors.affiliation: The Aesthetic Center for Plastic Surgery, Houston Texas.
authors.forename: Henry A
authors.initials: HA
authors.lastname: Mentz
authors.affiliation: Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas.
authors.forename: Jaclyn
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Johnson-Alviza
keywords: augmentation mastopexy; breast revision; delayed implant fill