Is it possible to diet/exercise away fat after gynecomastia surgery? Will pigmentation come back? (Photo)

Question

I couldnt afford the lipo, so i just got the gland removed. Im almost 5 weeks post op and just started exercising again, but there is some fat on my lower chest. Will diet and exercise get rid of it, or was lipo needed? And there has been pigment loss, will that come back by itself? Also my areola is still puffy, does it look like swelling/fat/or gland left over? My right side looks ok, its my left side im worried about (it had the most tissue before surgery) Thanks.

Scott W. Vann, MD, FACS · Answer

You are only 5 weeks post op so  you may have some swelling yet to go away.. Also the pigmentation usually takes several weeks to come back, so hopefully that will improve with time. It is hard to tell for sure with photos but I would have probably recommended lipo to get rid of the rest of your volume. You nipple is much flatter but if the rest of the volume remains after all swelling is gone, then you might want to reconsider liposuction. Good luck.

R. Stephen Mulholland, MD (retired) · Answer

Dear Bossbrah,

Thank you for posting your early
postoperative photos.  At five weeks
postoperatively, it is very common to have swelling and edema and some
asymmetry.  At this point, I still
recommend the use of external compression garmenting plus perhaps the edition
of some foam on the more swollen side. 
The incision is often quite discoloured at this point
and there  can be some loss of
pigmentation in the skin surrounding.

I allow patients generally to begin
light exercise of the pectoralis major and the abdominal and upper chest
muscles at six weeks.  It is possible
that there may be some reduction of chest glandular fat with diet and exercise
and there may still be some swelling that accounts for the asymmetry.

At this point, I would seek the
advice of your operative surgeon for reassurance to make sure there is no
under-the-skin fluid collections and reinstitute your physical exercise
routines and programs.

There is always a risk of some
enhancement advanced liposuction techniques being required, but you never visit
this option until you were nine to twelve months postoperatively.

I trust this information has been
of some help and best of luck.

Sincerely,

R. Stephen Mulholland, MD

Certified Plastic Surgeon

Yorkville, Toronto

Is it possible to diet/exercise away fat after gynecomastia surgery? Will pigmentation come back? (Photo)

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Is it possible to diet/exercise away fat after gynecomastia surgery? Will pigmentation come back? (Photo)

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Everything you need to know about Gynecomastia Surgery

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