Breast Reduction- Male
Excess male breast tissue, also known as gynecomastia, is a condition that is quite common. It affects at least 40% of the male population and can occur in one or both breasts.
Abnormally large male breasts can be a side effect of certain medications or drugs. Other causes of gynecomastia include testicular tumors or hormone imbalance. In these situations, addressing the causes will typically also improve and potentially resolve the problem of gynecomastia. If these factors are not the cause, then male breast reduction may be a good solution.
This condition may be more common than we think. Men affected by this rarely discuss this issue as it may have lowered their self-confidence and changed their lifestyle. Men who have gynecomastia may feel limited to choose certain types of clothing to hide their body. Many of our patients have said that they avoided going to the beach, the pool and the gym for most of their lives because they felt uncomfortable with how their chests looked. Some have even avoided being physically intimate. Male breast reduction can help improve the appearance of the chest by reducing the amount of breast tissue.
*Individual results may vary.
What the Surgery Will Be Like
Male breast reduction is typically performed in an outpatient setting where you will go home the same day as your surgery. Since it mainly involves excision of breast skin and tissue, patients are not in extreme pain after surgery. On the day of surgery, Dr. Wong will meet with you in the preoperative area and draw reference markings and measurements on your chest and breasts. The surgery is performed under general anesthesia where an anesthesiologist monitors you closely and safely. The actual surgery is approximately 2 to 3 hours long.
Some men may have moderately more breast tissue while others may have a significant amount. Since the severity of this condition varies, Dr. Wong uses a combination of techniques to improve the contour of the chest. She uses liposuction to remove all the extra fat and breast tissue from the chest region through small incisions usually placed in the underarm (axillary) region. Excess skin may need to be surgically removed in some severe cases.
You will be placed in a compression garment with dressings after the surgery. Typically, you will not have any drains. You are then taken to the recovery room where a nurse monitors you until you have recovered from anesthesia (usually about an hour). You will then get to go home with your family that same day. It is important that you have a driver (not a taxi, Uber, or yourself!) because it can be dangerous to drive immediately after having general anesthesia.
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Recovery
Everyone’s pain perception is different, but we always try to work towards a speedy recovery for our patients. Some patients who have male breast reduction surgery say they are sore for about a week while others have said it was not much pain at all. Postoperatively, the discomfort is usually the worst the first few days and gets better every day.
Male breast reduction can be a life changing surgery. Men who have had male breast reduction are some of our happiest patients. Once they have had the surgery, male patients have told us they don’t know why they waited so long to have it done. Call and schedule an appointment with Dr. Wong today so she can optimize this surgery to your body contour and desired shape. She looks forward to meeting you!