‘Shirtless’ is a sign of masculinity
Male Breast Reduction Surgery
The medical term for male breast enlargement is gynecomastia, commonly called as ‘Man Boobs’ or ‘Moobs’. This type of male breast enlargement usually causes embarrassment and may affect self-esteem. Our surgeon Dr Shailesh Vadodaria has found a recent increase in gynecomastia amongst male young population in his practice.
According to his study, some young males takes testosterone based supplements in order to increase their muscle mass. Once they stop these hormone supplements, the estrogen: testosterone ratio in their body gets disturbed which is often followed by a rise in estrogen levels which leads to such enlarged breast. On the other hand, there is no known cause for gynecomastia for majority of men. Very rarely, gynecomastia may develop due to intake of medicines for high blood pressure, heart disease and prostate cancer, certain drugs such as marijuana and anabolic steroids, some diseases causing liver failure, some cancer sand and rare congenital abnormalities. However, the good news is male breast enlargement is treatable by cosmetic surgery.
For men who feel self-conscious about their looks, male breast reduction surgery can be considered. This procedure involves removal of tissues from the breasts and in some extreme case, excess skin is also removed. The breast consists of two main parts, a firm and dense glandular tissue and a soft fatty tissue. There is a difference in the ratio of glandular to fatty tissue in any breast from individual to individual and in gynaecomastia there may be an excess of both. Liposuction is usually performed if there is predominantly a diffuse fatty enlargement of the breast. This process usually consists of sucking out the tissue through a small tube which is inserted via a 3-4mm incision. If an excess of glandular tissue is the prime cause of breast enlargement then it may be removed making an additional cut at the junction of nipple and surrounding skin. This will normally create a scar, usually around the nipple edge. This type excision can be carried out alone or may be combined with liposuction. Gynecomastia operation usually takes about 90 minutes to complete and this can be carried out under general anaesthesia, or in some cases under local anaesthesia with sedation.
After the surgery, the chest is slightly swollen and bruised for some time and very difficult to assess full effect the operation has caused. It is normally recommended that the patients should wear an elastic pressure garment continuously for a period of one to two weeks in order to reduce the swelling. The patients should not carry out any exercise for a period of about three weeks. Normal activities can be carried out by patients after about six weeks. The complications involved in this surgery are relatively rare. This normally includes an uneven contour to the chest, reduced nipple sensation and inadequate removal of the breast tissue and asymmetry. If an excision is performed rather than liposuction then a blood clot may form in less than 5 % of cases which may require an additional operation.
More questions about gynaecomastia surgery?
Low self esteem, Depression, Social embarrassment, Not able to enjoy beach holidays, Personal, marital and sex life
Pre-operatively no Aspirin or medicine containing Aspirin should be taken for three weeks. If you smoke you should cut down one week before surgery and stop completely three days before surgery to try and minimise postoperative complications which are more common in smokers.
The majority of cases of gynecomastia are treated only with liposuction. It involves 3 to 4 very small cuts (3mm in length) to insert the liposuction cannula (tube). This lives behind inconspicuous scarring.
There will be a scar within the nipple-areola if open excision is required. The scar could be more extensive if removal of excess skin is required for grade 4 gynecomastia, gender reassignment patients undergoing female to male as well as patients following massive weight loss.
The operation takes between 45 minutes to 2 hours.
The majority of gynecomastia is corrected with liposuction only. This procedure is done as a day case. Mr Vadodaria prefers to keep the patient overnight if he has performed an open excision for the correction of gynecomastia.
If your operation is in the morning you will be asked to have nothing to eat or drink from midnight the night before. If your operation is at any other time, then you are expected to keep yourself ‘nil by mouth’ – not to eat or drink anything for a period 6 hours before the operation.
Following surgery your chest will be covered with a dressing which will be covered with a pressure garment to give your chest gentle support. Nothing further should be required until you attend Mr Vadodaria’s clinic within the first ten days, when all the dressings will be removed and the wounds inspected. We use dissolving stitches and therefore their removal is not necessary.
In general the postoperative period is usually smooth and with surprising lack of pain. Mild painkillers such as Paracetamol are all that are usually required. Please be very careful to avoid Aspirin or any medications that contain Aspirin. If you should notice that one breast becomes swollen particularly if it is tender or red, inflamed and/or you feel hot and fluey, then you should immediately contact a member of staff at the hospital.
