Video
Voiceover:
Dr Dawn meets young mum Kirstie, who has inverted nipples. She’s been suffering from the condition since puberty.
Kirstie:
It’s just a hole, it just looks like a hole.
Voiceover:
Dr Dawn sent her to see cosmetic surgeon Dr Yannis Alexandrides.
Mr Alexandrides:
The, um, ducts that provide with milk go through your nipple and sometimes these ducts are short. And because they’re short, they pull the tip of the nipple inwards. And we can extend and lengthen the ducts, so that this problem reverses.
Kirstie:
What are the chances of me, um, being able to breastfeed?
Mr Alexandrides:
They’re very high, they’re over 90%.
Mr Alexandrides:
Okay, if you look at the nipple, you’ll notice small dots. These are the points where the milk ducts attach to the surface of the nipple, and that’s how they pull it down. So I will be making a small incision around here to get access underneath and fix the problem.
Kirstie:
Okay.
Mr Alexandrides:
Okay?
Kirstie:
Yeah.
Mr Alexandrides:
Very good.
Voiceover:
Today she’s having surgery, and hopes to be able to breastfeed afterwards.
Mr Alexandrides:
Okay, so we’re ready to start. Um, we’ve already put a little bit of numbing gel, so I’ll do a small injection with the anaesthetic. If it hurts, let me know…
Kirstie:
Yeah.
Mr Alexandrides:
We’ll do it slowly, so that’s as painless as it gets.
Voiceover:
Inverted nipple correction surgery is a swift procedure, and is normally done under a local anaesthetic.
Mr Alexandrides:
This is the worst part.
Voiceover:
Surgery involves making a small incision in the aureole, around the base of the nipple. The milk ducts are stretched, and then the nipple and underlying tissue are then raised and stitched into a protruded position, while partially preserving the milk ducts with the aim of allowing her to breastfeed.
Mr Alexandrides:
Okay, good. All done. Now I’m going to put this uh, dressing on it, so it will keep it up for the first week, okay?
Voiceover:
The average recovery time is between one and two weeks, though scarring may take many months to fade.
Mr Alexandrides:
All right, you did very well.
Kirstie:
Thank you.
Mr Alexandrides:
Happy?
Kirstie:
Yeah, more than happy.
Mr Alexandrides:
Okay, very good. Well, it all went very well, we had no problems, and uh, we placed some special uh, dressings on the nipples to keep them erect for the first week. It’s important during the first week for the nipple to be in this position, so everything that heals underneath will secure it in that position, so it won’t go back again. Ah, so after a week she’ll come back to our clinic here, we’ll check on her, we’ll remove this dressing and the stitches, and following that, she can go back to her normal activities.
Voiceover:
Eight weeks after the operation to correct her inverted nipples, young mum Kirstie is back to see Dr Dawn.
Dr Dawn:
How have you got on?
Kirstie:
Very well, thank you.
Dr Dawn:
Okay, and so, are you pleased with the results?
Kirstie:
Oh yeah.
Dr Dawn:
Oh, look at you, are you?
Kirstie:
I feel like a full package now, and not sort of like a discounted, uh, thing.
Dr Dawn:
So it’s had a huge impact on you emotionally, then.
Kirstie:
Yeah.
Dr Dawn:
Okay, and did they talk at all about the implications for breastfeeding?
Kirstie:
Yeah, he said there’s about a 5% chance that I wouldn’t be able to breastfeed, so…
Dr Dawn:
For you that was a risk worth taking, then?
Kirstie:
Yeah, definitely.
Dr Dawn:
Okay. Can we have a little look at the results?
Dr Dawn:
So there’s no scar at all, really, is there?
Kirstie:
No.
Dr Dawn:
Where was the incision, just…
Kirstie:
Um, I think it’s…on this one, you can see a little bit, it’s just where those two holes are there.
Dr Dawn:
Well, that’s just amazing, isn’t it?
Kirstie:
There’s nothing, you can’t really…Unless you knew, you wouldn’t know.
Dr Dawn:
No, you’d never know. Because when I saw you before, the actual nipple was really retracted into the breast tissue.
Kirstie:
Yeah, it was just a hole.
Dr Dawn:
Yeah, and do they stick out more when you get cold and things now as well?
Kirstie:
Yeah, they’re huge!
Dr Dawn:
Well, I think you’ve done really well, thank you very much for coming back, all right?
Kirstie:
Thank you.
Kirstie, 21, dropped in to see Dr Dawn concerned about her inverted nipples which she’d been suffering with since puberty. Kirstie’s inverted nipples meant that she had been unable to breastfeed her baby and the thought of going through the same pain again was putting her off having more children. Dr Dawn sent her to see breast specialist Dr Yannis Alexandrides who advised a surgical procedure which would give Kirstie a 90% chance of being able to breast feed. Surgery was successful so Kirstie returned to the clinic to show Dr Dawn the vast improvement.
Patient name: Kirstie Tillier
Condition: Inverted Nipples
Specialist: Yannis Alexandrides
Clinic: 111 Harley Street Harley Street”:http://www.111harleystreet.com/
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I have flat chest 32aa and inverted nipples all my life. I feel very......... embrassing to wear anything low neck. I can not show my naked body to anyone. I like to improve my brests so that i can feel like a woman. please tell me is there a free trestment under NHS for my breasts or private trestments how much will it costs ?
Asked on 15 Sep 2011 07:39 by Judy
replies - can you help?
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I don't know why you are all getting so stressed about this. Inverted nipples need no apology or explanation. They just happen sometime, live with it. I have always had them, but they popped out when I was at the breastfeeding stage (I had to bend slightly forward to make them pop out lol). They are back in now and rarely show the light of day, but they don't cause me or my sex life any problems ;-)
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im not sure if i have inverted nipples, or im just not fully developed yet. im 14 and my nipples havent really changed since puberty? if they are inverted is there any way to make them normal? and how can i tell if its just a growing up thing or if they are like this, can someone help please??
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Hello im 14 years old and also have inverted nipples im very unhappy about it and sometimes get very upset, what can i do about this,Im dont want surgery i just want something simple and wont include needles and knifes and scissors please i would really like too know all me qwestions and i would be happy for everyon to answer :( please help me
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Reply to Megans comment. i do feel self conciouse when my bra is off when im with my boy friend but i dont think he really minds. at all. i never really told him, it just happened and he found it for him self. im sure he does not even notice. my boobs are still small. :( its not like i oppted for my bra to be off, it just got taken off and it felt ok. dont worry too much, my boyfriend can be a complete a**e some times about stupid things but he knows how to make me feel ok.
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i am 16 and i suffer from inverted nipples as well, except when I am cold or when I am turned on. i am not too embarrassed about it but when my nipples are not raised my boobs are not the boob like shape, they are more triangular. i was thinking of getting a boob job when i am older to boost my confidence. my boyfriend also agrees with me that my boobs are not big but he does not mind.
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im 16 and i have the same problem as you, except i haven't told my boyfriend yet, and i don't have the confidence to take my bra off when we have sex. how did you tell your boyfriend about the fact you have inverted nipples?
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Hi I am 17, and i suffer from inverted nipples as well, except when I am cold or when I am turned on. I am really embarassed about this is there anything I can do to fix it? And would this affect me in the future?
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hi i have suffered from same prob for years with nipples i have asked for doctors help and havent got it,it really has and still does effect me emotionally i have been depressed about it for long time i feel like a freak and very embarrass about it and couldnt breast feed my children,if you could help me it would change my life,i used to be a confident person and done modellin and dancin,but i had to give it all up please please help me someone
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