Aesthetic Labia Minora Reduction with Combined Wedge-edge Resection: A Modified Approach of Labiaplasty

Nowadays, the demand for female genital rejuvenation procedures especially for labiaplasty is surging. Labia minora reduction has been the most practiced esthetic procedure for the female genitalia in China. Gynecological plastic surgeons have proposed several methods for labia reduction, but there is no consensus on which one is the best choice. Patients often receive re-operations for inadequate resection and asymmetry with existing methods. Here we present a modified method of labiaplasty combined wedge and edge resection and to discuss the appropriate indications of this method.

From January 2009 to March 2014, we performed 524 labia esthetic surgeries. The methods we used mainly include simple edge resection, wedge resection, modified de-epithelialization, and the combined method discussed in this article. Forty-nine patients aged from 25 to 45 years were selected to receive combined wedge-edge labial resection and were retrospectively reviewed. Patients were required to come back for follow-up assessment at 1 and 6 months.

Twenty-one of forty-nine (42.9 %) patients underwent unilateral labial reduction. The average time for the procedures was 56 min. The mean follow-up was 4.5 months. All the surgeries were successfully performed and 47 patients experienced an uneventful postoperative period. A minor dehiscence occurred in two patients. One of the patients received a revision surgery correcting a postoperative asymmetry malformation. Finally, all the patients were satisfied with the esthetic appearance.

The combined wedge-edge reduction of the labia minora is a simple and safe method associated with high satisfaction and a low complication rate. Therefore, we propose this combined procedure for bi-dimensional and/or unilateral hypertrophied labia minora especially in those who require removal of the dark margin of the labia.