Internal bra gives women a permanent lift, claims surgeon
Reported November 23, 2009
Many women would love to have shapely breasts without needing the help of a bra. Now plastic surgeons have made that possible by developing an internal bra to permanently lift and shape.
The first woman to have internal bra fitted had her operation three weeks ago and surgeons have hailed it as a success.
The bra is fitted in a 40 minute keyhole operation that allows a woman to go into hospital in the morning and be out by lunch time.
Its inventors claim it has none of the drawbacks of a breast implant and will continue to look good for years without sagging.
Avi Cohen, managing director of the company helping develop the bra said: ‘The operation went really well and the woman, who is in her 30s, has made a good recovery.
‘The bra has given her the lift she wanted. Her breasts look natural and she is happy with the result. The surgeons have done a fantastic job.’
The Cup & Up bra is the invention of leading Israeli plastic surgeon Eyal Gur who has been besieged by women wanting the operation after they discovered his research on the internet.
He said: ‘This might not quite be the end of normal the bra, but we’ve shown that with a very small operation that it’s possible to give a woman an internal bra that she can have for the rest of her life.’
Dr Gur believes that women will be able to go bra-less if they want unless they are playing sport when an ordinary bra would be needed for additional support.
The internal bra is a harness-like device is inserted under the skin using a local anaesthetic. The procedure should also be cheaper than a traditional breast lift, which costs around £4,000 and often requires an overnight stay in hospital.
It is similar in shape to a fabric bra, but is made of silicone, the plastic already used in breast implants.
Surgeons make two tiny cuts less than a centimetre wide underneath each breast.
Silicone cups like the ones used in a traditional uplift bra are then are then inserted around 1cm below the skin.
Then surgeons fit fine straps made from a strong material that will hold the bra in place without it sagging These are attached to the ribs between the breast and the shoulder with a pair of titanium screws.
Then they are stitched to the cups and everything is tightened to lift the breasts into the desired position.
Dr Gur said: ‘A woman will be able to go back to work after a couple of days rest at home.’
The first woman to receive her internal bra was operated on by Belgian surgeons as part of a year long trial.
Mr Cohen’s company, Orbix Medical, is marketing the bra. He believes it will become widely available in Europe within the next 18 months.
‘We have enough women volunteers in the trial and we will be doing our second patient just before Christmas,’ he said.
‘In a year’s time we will have enough evidence that it works. Then we will be able to get the green light from the European medical licensing authorities.’
The operation is aimed at women with only a moderate degree of sagging, although a non keyhole version of the operation is being developed for women with more significant sagging.
Dr Gur said: ‘There are a lot of younger women whose breasts have started to sag even before they have had children and breast fed. Those who are sagging after having kids want to look like they were when they were teenagers. This operation will give them back youthful breasts.’
He added that it could also be used by women who have had breast reconstruction after mastectomies during cancer treatment.
‘These women often complain about their breast shape and position. The internal bra would be really beneficial to women who have had partial or full mastectomies,’ he said.
Source : Associated Newspapers Ltd