Gynecomastia Surgery Gallery Plastic Surgery in Austin | Patient 134

Patient Details

This is a 27 year old male who is 5’6″ and 200 pounds who complained of gynecomastia. He is overweight. He has breast tissue present and excess fat under his arms. His gyno bothers him as a 9/10. I rate it as a 5-6 in terms of the appearance. I told him his gynecomastia is easily treated in my hands. I also told him he MUST lose weight for life – not just for my surgery. He is seen here only FOUR weeks out from his gynecomastia surgery procedure. I removed 1000cc of fat and about 5 grams of breast tissue from each side. He has a lot of edema or swelling of the tissues that needs to go. It takes about six weeks for 75% of the swelling to go and the remaining 25% will take up to eight months. He will roll and massage for the next several months and use compression garments.

Lessons to learn:

1. His big issue is weight. This is not uncommon with my gynecomastia patients. Losing weight generally will not improve the appearance of gyno, but proper weight for general health reasons is why overweight patients must lose their weight. I try to remove the burden of gynecomastia with the hope that it will “jump start” a patient’s ability to lose weight. It works, but I have to work these people hard to increase the chance of success. I am happier about their weight loss than the results of my surgery. Obesity leads to major health problems down the line.
2. There is gynecomastia that just sits up front on the chest and there are those who have it up front and under the arms. This is what I have been calling SS or “side stuff”. It must be treated at the same time as the front area or it won’t look good. Ironically, I can spend more time and effort in the underarm area than the actual chest! It’s nice to swing your arms back and forth without feeling the rubbing of the skin. This is upper body/chest contouring rather than just gynecomastia treatment.
3. My gynecomastia rating system works like this: You tell me how had things are on a scale of 1-10. One means minor and 10 means really bad (think about it every day, almost every minute and it has affected your life in a bad way). My rating is to help you understand how bad your gynecomastia is compared to what I see in a very busy gynecomastia practice. It too is on a scale of 1 to 10. One meaning very minor and why are you here, and 10 meaning I am seeing one of the most advanced, prolific gynecomastia cases. Patients like to know how I rank their gynecomastia as it help them put their case into some perspective. Obviously this is all subjective, but it works. It helps both you and I.
4. What is it like to see your new chest for the first time? Think about it. You know it’s there, you feel it quite a bit, it bothers you to no end and SUDDENLY, it’s gone! I can tell you that it’s interesting to watch and observe this encounter, and that it takes some time for many guys to make the adjustment. For many men who suffer from gynecomastia, what is NORMAL anyway?
5. Losing weight is not easy. I don’t pretend to have the answer to this vexing problem. Weight watchers works well. You must change your lifestyle. Think about this again, YOU MUST CHANGE YOUR LIFESTYLE. This is not easy. This is monumental and you must have the mental toughness to make this decision and to follow it through. I wish you the best of luck.