How long does scar tissue persist after gynecomastia gland excision? Can this cause puffiness? How long does scar tissue heal?

Following #Gynecomastia #surgery, your incisions will go through a maturation #process. For the first few months they will be red and possibly raised and/or firm. As the scar matures, after 6-12 months, it becomes soft, pale, flat, and much less noticeable. You may experience numbness, tingling, burning, “crawling”, or other peculiar sensations around the surgical area. This is a result of the #healing of tiny fibers which are trapped in the incision site. These symptoms will disappear. Some people are prone to keloids, which is an abnormal scar that becomes prominent. If you or a blood relative has a tendency to keloid formation, please inform the doctor.Bruising and #swelling are normal and usually increase slightly after the removal of any tape or foam. The bruising will decrease over 3-4 weeks, but may last as long as 6 weeks. The majority of the swelling will be gone within the first 3-4 weeks. However, it may take 6-9 weeks to disappear completely. In the future, if you are concerned with scars, with your surgeon's approval you may be able to use scar management treatments such as Biocornuem,  Scar Guard, Scar Fade,  IPL Laser,  Yag Laser,   5fu/Kenalog for thick scars, or silicone sheeting.Also, as you heal, the area may feel “lumpy” and irregular. This, too, decreases with time, and massaging these areas will help soften the scar tissue. The #compression garment helps reduce the swelling, and the longer it is worn, the more quickly you will #heal. It can also assist in the retraction of the skin. If you have any concerns about #healing, its best to ask questions of your surgeon or their nursing staff.

Following surgery, your incisions will go through a maturation process. For the first few months they will be red and possibly raised and/or firm. As the scar matures, after 6-12 months, it becomes soft, pale, flat, and much less noticeable. You may experience numbness, tingling, burning, “crawling”, or other peculiar sensations around the surgical area. This is a result of the healing of tiny fibers which are trapped in the incision site. These symptoms will disappear. Some people are prone to keloids, which is an abnormal scar that becomes prominent. If you or a blood relative has a tendency to keloid formation, please inform the doctor.#gynecomastiaremoval#malebreastreduction#gynecomastiaremovalpostop

Thank you for your question.  After gynecomastia surgery there will always be some amount of scar present that will remodel and soften for 12 months or more after your procedure.  This is clinically seen by the flattening and fading of scars with time.  Scar tissue usually does not cause puffiness like glandular tissue, but surgical swelling may cause the illusion of puffiness.  Hope this helps.

Swelling after gynecomastia surgery may take several months to resolve.  Factors that contribute to the healing would include the type of surgical procedure, ie. liposuction, ultrasonic or laser assisted liposuction, or direct removal alone or in combination.  Typically scar tissue will take up to 6 - 12 months to totally soften and resolve.  If you have any concerns about the healing following your surgery, I would recommend returning to your Plastic Surgeon for an assessment.

Scar tissue develops over time and often settles.  The swelling will persist for several months but everyone heals differently.

Thank you for your question and it takes a year for scars to fully mature but they never "disappear" but should also hardly be noticeable if placed along the areola borderDr. Corbin

Incision line used for gynecomastia is located under the areola and should heal very well. Please see appearance of gynecomastia results.

Dear foreveryoung908,

Thank you for your clinical post and
common question. Scar tissue for procedures
including the perioareolar region for gynecomastia can persist for many
months. Scar tissue is the body’s normal
way of healing and some patients have excessive wound healing and scar healing
responses and this can lead to a hypertrophic scar. A hypertrophic scar is red and raised and
itchy and generally responds to non-surgical treatments. Many scars do not heal with a hypertrophic
scar responds and are flat on the surface, but there can be thick and irregular
tissue underneath. This is again a
normal process of wound healing and it tends to soften or remodel over many
months. The perioareolar area has many
ducts and glands, which may lead to increased inflammation and subclinical
infection, which can delay wound healing.

You can expect to find a result in
9-12 months following the surgery. There
are many treatments that can help accelerate these topical laser treatments on
discolouration of the scar and then bulk heating radio frequency treatments to
facilitate softening of the glandular area and common devices include the Venus
Freeze, the Forma Plus and Exilis. These
bulk heating radio frequency devices help remove the swelling and edema which
contribute to firmness of the scar tissue as well as enhance tightness and
contour.

I think you have a high probability
of ending up with an excellent result and it’s very important to follow-up with
your operative plastic surgeon as they are in the best position for
recommendations for post-operative care.

I hope this information is of some
assistance and best of luck.

To find out more, please visit the
link below. Also visit the areas on the website about lasers and various lasers
that might be able to help you in your unique perioareolar scar environment.

R. Stephen Mulholland, M.D.

Certified Plastic Surgeon

Yorkville, Toronto