Gloria Duda, MD

Dr . Duda did my reconstruction after my mastectomy. She is very knoledgeable and listens to all my concerns, she had done a total of 3 surgeries on me and I am more and more satisfied with the results. Her staff is caring and organized.

I'm pretty sure I've never written an online review before. So the fact that I'm writing this should tell you my surgery went very well. I had a breast reduction and tummy tuck done by Dr Duda and am extremely happy with the results. I didn't really know what to expect, but the results exceeded my expectations.

Can I just start out and say "What a Release It is" as a Black woman of dark skin I'm so please with the procedure I can't tell you enough what it has done for me, my back, and my life. . Out of work time was 2 weeks and was very careful for the next 3 mths, nothing heavy. Having dark skin I kept Scar Away Banages as my daily routinue to miniumize keloid and scarring. It worked but it must be daily use. I love that now I can run (ran 3 5K's) Yoga is better. Now I can say anything is possible. Thank you for giving me my life back!!!

I went to Dr. Duda for reconstruction of my left breast after mastectomy. I got her name from the Castle Connolly list of top doctors. The office is pleasant and well organized. Dr. Duda was polite, though not particularly open or friendly. My disappointment came after surgery when I realized she had placed my expander in the wrong direction. This ultimately led to an additional, revision surgery. (Read on for details.)

When I got home from the outpatient center my breast had a very unusual shape. As Dr. Duda filled the expander it became more and more apparent that it had been placed incorrectly, rotated 90 degrees clockwise. At my six week appointment Dr. Duda asked me to open my compression bra so she could examine me. With a look of disgust she closed it quickly, instructing me to wear my compression bra for another six weeks. (I wonder now if perhaps she thought I hadn't noticed the very odd shape to begin with.) Of course I had immediately noticed the shape. But I know that doctors are human and everybody makes mistakes. I didn't want to make a big deal about it because I figured that once the expander was exchanged for an implant it would look alright in the end. That is where I was wrong. Since the implant was rotated, my breast was being expanded top to bottom rather than left to right.

By the second month my breast looked so deformed that I decided to find a new doctor for my next surgery. The surgeon I went to is highly regarded, one of the leading plastic surgeons in the field of breast reconstruction. When he did the exchange surgery he expanded me surgically from left to right and put in some internal stitches to prevent the implant from slipping into the space at the bottom of my breast pocket (which was now very long due to the rotated expander.) At first everything looked great. However those stitches didn't hold. About three weeks after the surgery I was lying in bed, propped up on my elbow, when I felt a series of pops. I knew exactly what had happened. Sure enough over the next few days the implant fell into that pocket and was sitting several inches below my right breast.

At first I was going to live with it. It's just a breast, right? But Six months later I couldn't stand it any longer. My breasts were so off balance that I decided to have a revision surgery to fix the problem. In the end, the surgeon had to put in a "sling" made of pig skin to hold the implant in place.
There are many excellent plastic surgeons in the Washington D.C. area. If I had to do it all over again, I would not have chosen Dr. Duda.

After giving birth in 2011 and breastfeeding for 11 months, my 34b jumped to a 36c then as fast as they came, they left. Now a sad, deflated 34a I was ready for boobs again. After 2 consultations oops I got pregnant again and have since finished breastfeeding again and these puppies are the saddest little A's you've ever seen. Luckily, I had chosen the doctor prior to becoming pregnant the second time and am scheduled for surgery on 2/17/17. Like I said, now a deflated A from being a B (C when breastfeeding) and am leaning toward 330/370cc transaxillary. My right is much smaller than my let so I'm hoping to even them out with the different cc's. Will post pics soon.

Updated on 12 Jan 2017:
My pre op is next week! I'm so excited and still unsure on which size to go with...

Updated on 20 Jan 2017:
So I saw my doctor yesterday to go over incision and sizing. I have a pretty substantial asymmetry in each breast, basically my left is a cup size larger than my right and sits lower. I wanted the transaxillary incision but she basically said that the best way to address the symmetry is to go through the crease and manipulate the pocket more toward the bottom. I totally agree now because with one being lower, she can work her magic to try and get them as even as possible.
Now to the size, we used the 3D imaging with the Ideal Implant and the look of 405cc right and 370cc left looked amazing although it sounded very large for my frame. After coming home and researching heavily, I've emailed my doctor to see if we can go down a bit to 385cc right and 350cc left as I don't want them to be noticeably big but fuller. Still waiting to hear back but have about 4 weeks until the actual surgery. Very excited!

Updated on 16 Feb 2017:
Super excited

Updated on 17 Feb 2017:
I had my surgery this morning! In at 6am surgery started at 7:30 and out by 9:15. I feel super sore in my chest muscles and upper arms. Pain isn't horrible just really tense and tight. I can't say how they look as I'm wrapped up pretty tight. With my shirt in they appear just like how they do when I have my super duper padded bra. Not allowed to shower or take bandages off until post op Monday morning. Will take a bath though because I need some form of a shower....won't get upper body wet.

Will update each day in pain levels.

Updated on 18 Feb 2017:
Slept intermittently last night, couldn't get comfortable and of course both kids were up several times. Today I'm still really sore near my chest/armpit area even though I had under bread incision. I'm able to do everything on my own (brushing teeth. Going the the bathroom, etc.).

I'm don't have any bloating and haven't pooped yet but I feel fine. Can't Shower until Monday so I'm planning on going to my local salon to have them wash and dry my hair. I must have clean hair!

Updated on 20 Feb 2017:
I had my first post op this morning. They said I look great, no bruising at all. I feel good, just the dreaded pain in the middle of the night, it's terrible. I've only taken 2 pain pills in the past 12 hours so I'm doing pretty good. I was told I can now wear any sports bra that I want so I found a zip front at JC penny's that fits really good. Don't want to buy any more than this one as I know my size will change in the coming weeks. Got the. At with my final sizing. So as you know, I went with the Ideal Implant. 335cc on the left filled to 365cc and 370cc on the right filled to 370.

Updated on 27 Feb 2017:
It's been over a week and I'm starting to get more energy. Crazy how the muscle aches can tire you out. Haven't taken anything for pain in a few days and even when I did it was just Tylenol. My right boob feels great, little bit of irritation where the incision is. My left on the other hand is still really sore and tender. Hoping it calms down soon.

Currently wearing a zip front sports bra since I can't pull a regular one over my head quite yet. I can lift my arms up but the twisting motion to wiggle it on and off would hurt.

Have my second post op on 3/9 to hopefully get my lifting restriction lifted since I have a 10 month old....that's been the hardest part.

Updated on 7 Mar 2017:
A little over 2 weeks post op and feeling better everyday. I discovered that when my left is hurting I was avoiding use and now that I'm doing stuff with it again the pain has actually decreased. I don't take any mess and haven't for a week or so. I'm still sore first thing in the morning and still sleep propped up.

Have my second post op Thursday to see if I can begin lifting again. Sorry I can't post pics, Maybe I'll do a bra pic but can't do nude.

Updated on 22 Mar 2017:
Can't believe it's been over a month already. I feel great, have resumed regular activities with no issues. Saw my doctor at 3 weeks and she said I look fantastic! Going back at 8 weeks for a final check up.

They're slowly dropping and feeling more natural. My before larger breast is still fuller at the bottom as it had decent breast tissue but when looking at them head on, they're symmetric...optical illusion I guess. As far as the ideal implant I'm so happy knowing I have the feel of silicone with the safety of saline.

Updated on 2 Apr 2017:
Just checking in. So my right is dropping and fluffing faster than my right. They used two different sized implants to correct symmetry but I'm feeling like my smaller breast is still notably smaller than my larger leftie. Have my next follow up on 4/20 where depending on how things have changed I'll address it as I'm not too thrilled with it this moment.

Updated on 23 Apr 2017:
Well I went to Victoria's Secret for a new bra as I'm in need of a decent bra. Yes I know they'll change but I had already bought a great balconette bra from HM in 34D which fits like a glove. So VS measured me as 32DD which is the same as my 34D but I really don't feel like they appear that large. Anyway, I went to see my surgeon for a follow up last Thursday and expressed my concern over the sizing of my right implant. Pre surgery we agreed to have a 40cc difference to even out asymmetry which she didn't not honor for whatever reason. She took new photos and I'll return in 4-6 weeks for another check up. Should they still appear different, I'm going to see about a possible revision on that side. I waited a long time and paid a lot of money to be satisfied. Will update soon.

I wish I could give them zero stars and that I could go back in time, and never have even driven by this place. To sum it up... they have an atrocious customer service, since day one I was told that they take my insurance, I gave them all my insurance information. Her surgery scheduler Raquel is a liar, she is never at the office I was constantly calling to talk to her about my pre-authorization, after a month I decided to call my insurance myself to check on the status, but they didn't have anything on file. At the end she came up that they don't take my insurance and that I have to pay up front and if I wanted to have the surgery and I can submit the claim myself after the surgery to see if Insurance will pay something. My question is why they made me waste my time, from the beginning they should have said we DO NOT take your insurance, are you willing to pay in cash? Their constant lying and how much money comes before customer satisfaction to them is unbelievable.