POSTED UNDER Gynecomastia Surgery REVIEWS
Recent Gynecomastia Surgery, 32 Years Old - Houston, TX
ORIGINAL POST
I had gynecomastia since puberty. Doctors...
AnonymousHoustonDecember 23, 2015
$6,200
I had gynecomastia since puberty. Doctors described it as "moderate". I wanted the surgery for years but had several concerns. 1. The cost - I had to wait until I had a good job so I could save up the money. Total cost was 6200 in Houston, TX. 2. Will the surgery actually fix the problem for good? 3. I was just nervous about surgery in general; the risks, the recovery, pain. I am about 4 weeks post op and I'm feeling a little disappointed. My biggest fear by far was that the operation would not correct my problem. I did not go in to the surgery with unrealistic expectations. I knew I had a lot of fat around my chest and just wanted at least an 80% improvement. I feel I have about a 25% improvement. There is still some fat and it looks similar to what it used to look like just a bit smaller. I am grateful that it has been reduced but for the amount of money and recovery time I expected more. I do feel like I chose a great doctor so I'm not sure if someone else could have done better. On to the other concerns. I would say don't wait to get the surgery. I had excision and lipo. The surgery was a breeze. Some swelling and pain for about a week after surgery but it goes away quickly. The only uncomfortable part is wearing the compression vest for 6 weeks. I would say if you made it as far as getting surgery the vest or any aspect of recovery shouldn't be a concern to you. I know it's early in the recovery process for me at 4 weeks so I am going to be patient and see what happens. At 4 weeks post op there is no more pain or soreness. I will post pics at a later date. Good luck to all that suffer with this problem.
Replies (2)
June 12, 2016
Anonymous. This is my biggest fear. My first consultation was a few days ago and the doctor said I'd be left with "excess skin". I'm not sure how this would look on me post-surgery and now I'm super hesitant. I hope you heal into the look you were going for. I noticed an improvement from your before and after photos, but I'd be lying if I said I'd be completely satisfied if I were you. Give it some time and hopefully the swelling subsides and the skin tightens a little more. I hate that this has to be more complicated for people like you and I.
UPDATED FROM AnonymousHouston
2 months post
6 Week Update - Disappointed
AnonymousHoustonJanuary 9, 2016
Went for my 6 week post opp visit yesterday with the doctor and he said that I should give it more time before being too disappointed. I don't want to put the doctors name on here because I really like him and I feel that he did the best that he could. As you can see from the pictures there is improvement from pre and post opp but not to the extent that I had hoped. I still have all of the same insecurities that I did before so for me, there really is no change. He said that my biology could have made the gyno come back and the fat cells be replaced. This was my worst fear going into surgery. I did gain some holiday weight and have only recently resumed my workout regimen since the surgery. I will devote myself to getting back in shape but my fear is that it will not rid me of the gyno. I have been down this road before, as many have, and I know that diet and exercise will only do so much. I currently weigh 210 and have gotten down to 185 before. Even at that weight, I still had boobs. I am starting to think that there is no solution for my problem. Even if I get the surgery again, what will prevent it from coming back? If anyone has any advice or similar stories please let me know.
Replies (21)
January 10, 2016
Sorry to hear that you are unhappy with the results. I've heard from several doctors that lipo suction alone will not fix the issue. The doctor will have to remove the excess breast tissue. Did you have lipo only or lipo with breast tissue removal?
January 10, 2016
I had both done. I had heard that too and made sure I picked a doctor that would do both. I feel I picked a good doctor but I'm not happy with results.
January 11, 2016
Hopefully your doctor will be willing to do a correction at no cost. I've interviewed a couple of plastic surgeons who are will to correct their mistake. I'm currently interviewing surgeons. I've had 3 consultation thus far with 2 more scheduled next week. I'm looking at doctors all over the country. Dr. Caridi in Austin is really good. He's on my short list.
January 11, 2016
I just had my procedure with Dr. Caridi, and he is awesome. Better results than I ever expected. He will tell it to you straight, but he is a very compassionate guy!
January 11, 2016
Glad to hear your surgery went well. If I end up getting another surgery I will look into him. The issue I have with getting surgery done out of town are the frequent follow up visits. How would those be conducted? I know you may not know the answer to that but it is something I am curious about.
January 11, 2016
I'm in Ohio and his patients are really happy. He using a quilting technique which cuts down on bleeding and fluid retention. He has a lot if education on his website and Skype or email consultation are free. He uses those to monitor his patients. I haven't heard of any complaints about follow up, yet.
January 11, 2016
Thanks for the response. That's good to know. The before pics are the ones where I am wearing a brown belt. The after pics are the ones where I am wearing a black belt.
January 11, 2016
My 20yr old son has "moderate" gynecomastia also. I had a mommy makeover in March 2015 so I made an appt with my PS for him. He & I have also done a ton of research. I'm not a doctor but in my opinion you should have had skin exscion (for women it would be a breast lift) as well. Did your PS talk to you about that? Lipo & removal of breast/glad tissue is sometimes not enough especially if you've experienced this for years. Your skin has been stretch from this difficult & unfair condition & the skin will not tighten after removal. Your nipples point down which is another indication that skin excision is needed. Please don't give up & think this is the best result that you can get go back to your PS & calmly talk about other options. Post a question to the doctors here on this site & ask what they think would be the next step & ask them about a "lift". I wish you luck & I hope you don't give up until you are happy.
January 11, 2016
Thank you for your suggestions and your encouragement. It has definitely been a struggle to get this issue taken care of. I do believe I chose a good doctor. I consulted 2 doctors before making my decision. They both more or less said the same thing: they would start with the lipo and excision and it that wasn't enough, they would possibly have to remove the nipple and remove excess skin and then replace the nipple. They both said to try the less invasive surgery first, which I did, and then see if more was necessary. I believe they had my best interest in mind and wanted to do as little surgery as possible to achieve the desired results. The problem with the second, more involved surgery of moving the nipple is that, from what was explained to me, there will be a much larger scar, the surgery is much more involved and lengthy and the recovery is longer. The scars I have now are basically non-existent and the recovery was pretty much a breeze. Ultimately I will do what I have to do to rid myself of this problem even if it involves more extensive surgery. I am not going to give up and will keep posting any significant updates.
January 11, 2016
One additional note: I did go in for my 6 week follow up and discussed my concern with my doc. He said to give it more time and see what happens. He did say that it appears that the fat cells had returned and that I should adjust my diet and exercise to alleviate some of the fat. He said that it is very rare that the more extensive surgery has to be done but it looks to me like I am one of the rare ones. In short he sounds like he is willing to help me achieve the results that I want.
January 12, 2016
That's great that he's willing to continue to help you. 6 weeks is very early especially with liposuction. It can take months to see results. So hopefully you won't have to have the scars but if you do a scar vs suffering with this condition might be a decent trade off. Good luck! Please keep updating so I can show my son. Thank you for being brave enough to share your journey!
January 11, 2016
Wow. For that kind of money I would have expected much more also. I have been looking at getting this procedure for some time. My case is a little less than yours. Please keep posting so we can all benefit from your experience. It seems like six weeks would be enough to see what a final outcome would be.
UPDATED FROM AnonymousHouston
2 months post
Before and After Pics
AnonymousHoustonJanuary 13, 2016
Just an FYI for anyone who is viewing this review. The before pictures are the ones where I am wearing a brown belt, in the after pics I am wearing a black belt.
Replies (2)
January 29, 2016
I have the same fears as you,( I'm in the research phase myself) looks like money down the drain- its starting to look like there is no real remedy for man boobs even with surgery.
January 29, 2016
Well don't get too discouraged. I have seen many successful surgeries. Check out username "daewoo". He had a similar case and came out looking great. I am not giving up on getting this corrected. A revision might be the answer or a new doctor. I will continue to post any new developments. Hang in there.
Thank you for sharing your experience with us. I hope that you find the support you need here in the community.