Breast ReSensation® in Houston, TX

Breast resensation (or breast neurotization) is microsurgery performed for women during an initial or revision autologous flap reconstruction to have feeling again in reconstructed breasts. Our board-certified plastic and reconstructive surgeon, Dr. Pierre Chevray, is highly skilled in breast resensation surgery and a leading surgeon in the Houston, TX area. With microsurgical techniques in reconnecting the nerves fiber by fiber, he can assist you in regaining feeling in your breasts. As you heal over time, the nerves may recover and regenerate after surgery.

At Chevray Plastic Surgery, we provide this surgery with the hopes that your breasts not only look aesthetically pleasing, but you experience feeling, too. Dr. Chevray would be happy to talk to you in a private consultation in his office within Houston Methodist Hospital. Call today to get more information.

This is a very specific breast reconstruction surgery that only works with autologous breast reconstructions at this time. Candidates may be:

• A patient in the planning stages of their mastectomy and breast reconstruction process
• A patient who had autologous breast reconstruction in the past and would like to have resensation surgery to breasts with limited or no feeling
• A patient who had a mastectomy years ago and would like to have delayed autologous breast reconstruction
• A patient who has had a mastectomy with an implant-based reconstruction and wants to revise the breasts with flap-based breast reconstruction

In your consultation process, we will discuss the risks and benefits of having breast resensation surgery if you qualify.

Whether you are having a breast resensation surgery during your initial flap-based breast reconstruction or as additional surgery, you will be in a surgical setting under general anesthesia. In the procedures, the transferred, healthy nerve tissue will be reconnected to existing nerve fibers in your breasts using microsurgical techniques. Once the procedures are complete, your incisions will be closed. You will likely have an inpatient stay so that we can monitor you and the health of the flap.

If performed during your mastectomy, the breast resensation procedure does not add any additional time to your recovery process. Breast, nipple, and areola sensations may take a few weeks to return as the new nerve tissues fuse together. During this time, you may feel numbness in the area. Specific wound care and post-surgical instructions will be provided to you following your procedure for healing to be as smooth as possible. Follow-up visits will be scheduled, and our team will monitor your progress for optimal healing.

Recovery time for breast resensation surgery performed after the initial flap-based breast reconstruction will vary. We will give you post-op instructions on how to care for yourself, and we will be available to answer questions and concerns you have at any time.

To have a breast resensation surgery after breast reconstruction, did Dr. Chevray have to perform my original flap-based breast reconstruction?
No. Dr. Chevray would be happy to have a consultation with you, even if he did not originally perform your breast reconstruction. He will make the determination if you would be a great candidate for breast resensation surgery by getting to know you and your surgical history.

How long do I have to wait to start to feel something?
Because the new nerves and the existing nerves have to fuse together, it may take months for the surgery to produce a feeling. Dr. Chevray will regularly meet with you in follow-up appointments to track your progress on what you are and/or are not feeling.

I had breast reconstruction with breast implants years ago. Do I qualify?
Yes and no. If you have breast implants, you would need to have them removed and have your breast reconstruction revised to an autologous flap. The nerves, blood vessels, and tissues from the flap will be reconnected to the existing ones in your chest right now. Then, over time, the donor nerves will regenerate new nerves that can produce sensation or feeling.

If you are in the planning phase of your breast reconstruction surgery and have decided that you want to look and feel natural afterward, contact us to learn more about breast resensation. Dr. Chevray is highly specialized in this type of breast reconstructive surgery. Meet with him one-on-one to see if breast resensation surgery can be a part of your treatment at Chevray Plastic Surgery in Houston, TX.