Gynecomastia (male breast enlargement)

Quick Facts

Although it's rarely talked about, gynecomastia, or male breast enlargement, affects an estimated 40-60 percent of men. The term, gynecomastia, comes from Greek words meaning "woman like breasts." For many, particularly during adolescence and early manhood, this condition may have caused pain and embarrassment. Men are often times too embarrassed to talk freely about gynecomastia but we all know someone, a friend or brother, who avoids any sporting or social event that requires a bare chest.  Certain drugs and medical conditions have been linked to male breast over development but there really is no known cause. Excessive use of alcohol, marijuana and anabolic steroids have been said to be associated with gynecomastia.

Gynecomastia can affect just one breast or both. It usually becomes apparent during puberty. Sometimes the breasts are tender but usually there isn't any significant physical discomfort. It's not uncommon to see boys with this problem let themselves get a little chubby, or keep their shoulders hunched forward, to offer distraction from the enlarged breast

If you are self-conscious about this condition, male breast reduction, or gynecomastia, surgery may be helpful to you.

  
       Before                          3 weeks after                   Before                          3 weeks after

Recovery time depends on your lifestyle and the physical requirements of your work. For the first 3-4 days I like you to just lay around and take it easy. After this you can start resuming normal activity at your pace and comfort. Most men are back to lighter work in a few days but if you do manual labor it may take 7-14 days. Weight training involving the chest muscles can be started or resumed gradually in about 3-4 weeks. Men are always pleased when they are comfortable going to the gym and they can actually see the effects of their weight training once the contour over the chest muscles has been improved.

Gynecomastia surgery won’t dramatically change your life, who you are or what you do but it does help many men feel more comfortable with their body image.

Gynecomastia surgery is typically done as a day surgery while you are asleep at an ambulatory surgery center. There are several methods that can be used depending on what your particular needs are. These methods involve liposuction or direct surgical excision or, more often, a combination of both. If the make up of the tissue is primarily soft and fatty feeling, the contour can usually be improved through a very small incision by first softening the fat using external ultrasound followed by liposuction. Most of the time; however, there is some component of actual excess breast gland, usually situated under the nipple, which is resistant to liposuction. In this case, an incision (about 2 inches) in the breast crease or around the areola (pink part) is necessary. I usually put a small drain in each side that is removed when fluid accumulation diminishes. The goal and expected result is a chest that is flatter, firmer and better contoured. You will need to wear a chest binder for about 3 weeks or so. Proper posture is very important. I can make the chest as flat as a pancake but if you stand with your shoulders hunched forward, you'll make the chest skin wrinkle which will give fullness to the chest. Sometimes there's some bad habits in posture to be broken.

The fact this is more of a want and not a need doesn't mean it doesn't have the same consequences of any surgery including postoperative pain and scarring. Pain and antibiotic prescriptions are called to your pharmacy a day or two before surgery so you're not stopping on the way home.

All surgery has some element of risk; however, when performed on appropriate patients by a qualified plastic surgeon, complications are infrequent and usually minor. Some of the risks to be considered include infection, skin injury, excessive bleeding, adverse reaction to anesthesia, fluid imbalance, scarring, pigment changes, asymmetry of the breast and/or nipples and need or desire for secondary procedures. I have been fortunate not to have seen any complications in my practice but I have gone back to take out a little more a time or two.

         Before                          2 weeks after                 Before                               2 weeks after

Recovery time depends on your lifestyle and the physical requirements of your work. For the first 3-4 days I like you to just lay around and take it easy. After this you can start resuming normal activity at your pace and comfort. Most men are back to lighter work in a few days but if you do manual labor it may take 7-14 days. Weight training involving the chest muscles can be started or resumed gradually in about 3-4 weeks. Men are always pleased when they are comfortable going to the gym and they can actually see the effects of their weight training once the contour over the chest muscles has been improved.

Gynecomastia surgery won’t dramatically change your life, who you are or what you do but it does help many men feel more comfortable with their body image.

         
   Before                                10 days after                          Before                         10 days after


                                 

5 weeks after surgery --  Maximum improvement in 6-9 months.