Gynecomastia Surgery with Liposuction of the Abdomen and Flanks. Los Angeles, CA

My consultation with Dr. Dadvand went extremely well. I was very much at ease within the first few minutes of talking with him. He told me what procedures he would preform on my chest (lipo and excision) and also showed me where he would make the incisions for lipo on my abs and flanks. He answered all my questions, and also showed me pictures of the many gyno surgeries he'd completed and also pointed out patients similar to my situation, so I could get an idea of my prognosis. His PS consultant, Deborah was also great. She too was easy talk to, and made me feel very relaxed. I never felt rushed with Dr. Dadvand or with Deborah even after spending almost 2 hours with them. I know I am in good hands and can't wait for my procedure.

I had my Pre-op yesterday and spent 1 1/2 hours with my doctor going over the procedures, asking questions, getting BEFORE pictures taken, and getting fitted for my compression garment. I definitely feel good about my doctor and the procedure. However I was somewhat surprised when he said that my surgery would last 4.5-5 hours. He says he likes to take his time and doesn't rush things. And I am okay with that, since a true artist would not rush a masterpiece.

It's been just over 24 hours since my surgery completed and I have to admit that I am not feeling as bad as I thought I would feel, so I will try to recap what I can remember from the last 32 hours. I eagerly arrived at the surgery center at 6:50 am for my 8:00 am surgery. In fact the office had not yet opened. The staff arrived promptly at 7:00 am and ushered me into the waiting room where I proceeded to complete the obligatory paperwork. Shortly thereafter I was taken to an examination room to don my surgical gown, cap and booties. It was finally happening. I felt like Cinderella getting ready for the Ball. Once I was dressed, the nurse brought in some additional paperwork for me to read and sign. You know the one that describes the procedure you are about to have and the other one that describes all the risks with general anesthesia. Up to that point I hadn’t been worried about something going wrong, but after reading and signing the papers, that is all I could think about.

But then my Prince Charm….err…I mean Dr. Dadvand walked in and all my worries immediately went away. Dr. Dadvand was very chipper for 7:30 am. He made a joke about the x-large paper boxers the nurse had me put on under my surgical gown. I think he called them “party pants”. I was glad he was in a good mood because it totally put me at ease.

Then it was time for him to mark me up. Watching him make the marks on my body was like watching a sculptor work. He would make a mark, then step back look at it from various angles and continue marking. He took at least 20-30 minutes until he felt satisfied that he marked me up enough to get the optimum results I wanted.

After my markup, I was led to the OR, and I climbed up on the operating table, where I met the Anesthesiologist for the first time. He asked me some questions as he set-up my IV, and that is the last thing I remember. I don’t even remember Dr. Dadvand coming into the OR.

Six hours later I woke up in recovery. I remember asking the nurse when my surgery was going to start and she said, “It’s already over, you’ve been in recovery for 45 minutes”.

There was one very little hiccup. I had expected my surgery to end at around 12:00, however it did not end until 1:30, and my ride had another commitment she could not get out of and now would not be able to pick me up until after 4:00, but that was not a big deal to me anyway since I didn’t have anywhere to go but home. However, since the nurse thought my ride was coming around 2:30, they had already taken out my IV, which also had my pain medication in it. Around 3:15, the pain became unbearable, but thankfully the nurse was able to give me a shot of Demerol to get me through “recovery”.

My ride arrived shortly after 4:00 and I was home in my bed by 5:30. I woke up shortly after 8:00 and really needed to go to the bathroom. I painfully got out of bed and went for what seemed like forever. (I later learned from Dr. Dadvand that I was dehydrated in the OR and they had given me extra fluids during surgery.) The Demerol was starting to wear off, so I thought I’d better take the Norco before the pain got too intense. However, I forgot that I hadn’t eaten anything in 24 hours, so within 10 minutes of me taking the Norco, I started feeling nauseous, and I started to perspire, and my legs started shaking to the point I thought I was going to pass out. At first I thought I was having some type of complication from the surgery and almost started to panic, but I was able to calm myself and that is when I realized I was supposed to eat something before taking the meds. So I promptly hobbled to the kitchen and gobbled down a huge tablespoon of Almond Butter, and within minutes I was feeling normal again.

After that experience, I looked down at my drain bulbs and realized that the left one was already completely filled and needed to be emptied, and I didn’t know how to properly do it. Thank goodness for YouTube.

My first night was not as uncomfortable as I thought it was going to be. I had no problem sleeping upright at a 20-30 degree angle. All the pain that I was experiencing the first night was due to the liposuction. And that was only when I got in or out of bed. But once settled, I was fine. I had no pain in my chest area and only a little discomfort where the drain tube went into my armpits.

My first morning after surgery, I felt about 20% better than the day before. I wasn’t in any major pain. I just felt achy like I’d done a thousand crunches and side planks. And I had just a minimum amount of discomfort in the chest area, most likely from the lipo. But the tape holding the gauze and foam on my chest started itching like crazy, but there was nothing I could do but lightly rub it through my compression vest.

I also noticed that my entire body was swollen. Not just the areas where lipo was performed, but also on my arms, hands, legs, feet and MY JUNK. It was huge. I later learned this additional swelling was due the extra fluids I was given during surgery and should be back to normal in 3-4 days.

My Day-1 Post Op with Dr. Dadvand went very well. He explained the swollen Junk before I had a chance to ask him, and said he was sorry he hadn’t warned me about it in advance. Seriously, that is one side effect I wouldn’t mind keeping. ?

The amount of fat taken out of my abdominal and flanks was about 1.5 liters, which is a fair amount. The amount taken out of each side of my chest was about 200 CC. But what was really shocking was the amount of breast tissue and fibrous fatty tissue that was removed. I don’t remember the dimensions but even Dr. Dadvand said it was more than he had expected based on his examination. (He’s going to send me the picture and I will post it once I receive it).

After recounting how the procedure went, Dr. Dadvand opened my vest and took off my binder to make sure everything was looking good, and I could tell in his eyes how pleased he was with his “work”. And when I looked in the mirror, I couldn’t believe how good it looked. I could even see my abdominal muscles that had been hidden for the last 10 years. And that was with a substantial amount of swelling. Unfortunately, I could not see my chest since it is still covered in bandages and foam padding. Those will come off next Thursday when I go in for my 1-week post op, and I expect my chest to look just as good. Dr. Dadvand is a true artist.

And those pesky drains may come out as early as Tuesday, if the amount of fluid that drains is less than 20 ml a day between now and Monday. He gave me a specimen cup to start measuring. But if they aren’t ready for Tuesday, then they will definitely come out next Thursday.

By the way, everyone at the surgery center was extremely nice and went out of their way to ensure I was comfortable and that all of my needs were taken care of, especially the recovery nurse.

I’ll check in again when I get my drains out or after my 1-week Post Op, whichever comes first.