Male Breast Reduction is also referred to as Gynecomastia Getting rid of man boobs (slang).
Gynecomastia is a condition where males develop abnormally large breasts. Besides making one uncomfortable and self conscious about one’s condition, symptoms can even include milk secretion.
What causes gynecomastia is still uncertain, but it is generally linked to an imbalance in hormones or the tissues related to them.
Gynecomastia is not physically harmful to the patient, but it’s an embarrassment that male patients don’t have to live with. Gynecomastia can be cured.
Gynecomastia surgery, or male breast reduction, reduces breasts that are femininely over sized and sagging. There are those who choose to live with gynecomastia by hiding behind compression garments, but there are real solutions to end gynecomastia. Natural or medical weight loss and hormone therapy are great options to help stop the root cause, but they can leave you with sagging breast tissue and a drooping chest.
The best gynecomastia treatment to eliminate male breasts is surgery.
Through liposuction or more invasive surgical methods, excess tissue, fat, and skin are removed to create a more attractive and masculine chest contour.
Time Required for Male Breast Reduction (Gynecomastia):
It usually takes about 1-2 hours to perform gynecomastia surgery. Time requirements do vary depending on the extent of surgery.
Is Male Breast Reduction (Gynecomastia) an In Patient or Out Patient Procedure?
Outpatient.
What are the Side Effects of Male Breast Reduction (Gynecomastia)?
Gynecomastia surgery side effects can include temporary swelling, bruising, and tenderness.
How Long do Male Breast Reduction (Gynecomastia) results last?
Gynecomastia surgical results are permanent, but subject to changes in appearance as the patients weight fluctuates.
What is the recovery time for Male Breast Reduction
Day 1-14 After gynecomastia surgery, recovery from swelling usually takes at least 1-2 weeks.
The patient usually wears a compression wrapping around the chest for those first couple of weeks to help the swelling go down.
Day 2 Many patients return to work as quickly as 1-2 days after surgery.
Day 7 Sutures can usually be removed about 7-10 days into gynecomastia recovery.
Note It is usually required that at least 3 weeks be given before patients pursue exercise or other more strenuous activity.
Will my insurance company cover Male Breast Reduction (Gynecomastia)?
Because of the normally cosmetic nature of gynecomastia surgery, insurance is usually not involved.
However, in some circumstances, it may be deemed necessary to have male breast reduction surgery.
Insurance would then cover a portion or possibly all of the cost, depending on your provider.
Is there much discomfort for Male Breast Reduction (Gynecomastia)?
Gynecomastia pain and discomfort is very minimal, and very easily controlled with oral pain medication.
What happens during gynecomastia correction surgery?
Plastic surgery to correct gynecomastia is technically called reduction mammoplasty, and reduces breast size, flattening and enhancing the chest contours.
In severe cases of gynecomastia, the weight of excess breast tissue may cause the breasts to sag and stretch the areola (the dark skin surrounding the nipple).
In these cases the position and size of the areola can be surgically improved and excess skin may be reduced.
Anesthesia
Medications are administered for your comfort during the surgical procedure. The choices include intravenous sedation and general anesthesia. Dr. Alexander Sinclair, your surgeon will recommend the best choice for you.
Liposuction
In cases where gynecomastia is primarily the result of excess fatty tissue, liposuction techniques alone may be used.
This requires insertion of a cannula, a thin hollow tube, through several small incisions. The cannula is moved back and forth in a controlled motion to loosen the excess fat, which is then removed from the body by vacuum suction.
There are various liposuction techniques that may be used; the technique most appropriate in your case will be defined prior to your procedure.
Excision
Excision techniques are recommended where glandular breast tissue or excess skin must be removed to correct gynecomastia.
Excision also is necessary if the areola will be reduced, or the nipple repositioned to a more natural male contour. Incision patterns vary depending on the specific conditions and surgical preference.
Sometimes gynecomastia is treated with both liposuction and excision.
Will there be scars?
Any surgical treatment to correct gynecomastia will require incisions. While most incision lines are concealed within natural contours, some may be visible and are a necessary result of breast reduction surgery.