ABSTRACT
Introduction: Mammary hypertrophy is common cause of physical and emotional suffering among women. The Costa Lima technique endeavors to treat this abnormality and ease the rising of the mammary areole complex (MAC). Objective: To evaluate the effectiveness of the Costa Lima technique in mammary hypertrophy when there is difficulty with the ascension of the MAC. Methods: Between July 1998 and June 2009, were operated patients with II and III with BMI between 18.5 and 39.9, with an average distance between the point "A" of Pitanguy and the MAC between 6 and 19.5 centimeters. The Pitanguy marking system is used in this technique, amputating the mammary base, by which a trapezoidal sub-areole segment is removed from the superior pole which enjoins a thin areole dermalglandular shred which is easy to cranially mobilize. Results: The greatest incidence of hypertrophy was of third degree (50.85%), eutrophic (42.37%), mostly in the second decade (31.36%), with a 0.86% occurrence rate of deep venous thrombosis, under general anesthesia at 84.75%. The benefit was being able to shape conic breasts in harmony with the trunk, with not difficulties in raising the MAC, which showed partial necrosis in 3.39% of cases. Conclusion: The technique showed itself to be advantageous due to the easy mobilization of the MAC and could be applied in therapeutic surgery.
Keywords: Mammaplasty/methods. Breast/surgery.