Men, Are You Uncomfortable with The Size of Your Breasts?
Many men with excess breast tissue (gynecomastia) do not realize that it is a relatively common condition in which men develop excess tissue in the breast. This condition can be addressed and corrected with breast reduction surgery. Most men are able to be fully corrected with laser-assisted liposuction. In a minority of the cases a small incision around the edge of the nipple/areola is needed to remove some breast tissue.
Commonly referred to as “man-boobs,” gynecomastia does not necessarily mean that a man is overweight and has excess fat deposits in their breasts. For men suffering with this condition, no matter how much weight they lose or exercise they do, it will NOT reduce the excess breast tissue.
What Causes Excess Breast Tissue in Men?
Board-certified plastic surgeon, Dr. Thomas Leach, explains that gynecomastia is a condition where there is excess fat or breast tissue within the male breast. Most of the time the cause is idiopathic – this simply means that there is no specific medical condition or hormone imbalance that can be identified or treated. Most of the patients present this breast enlargement as an isolated problem in an otherwise healthy, masculine patient.
There are some infrequent situations where a specific hormonal imbalance or a specific drug the patient is taking is causing the breast enlargement. These are typically things Dr. Leach will discern based on the patient’s history and physical examination. Patients in this category are referred to appropriate medical doctors to evaluate and try to correct the cause of the gynecomastia. If the medical treatment is not successful, then Dr. Leach will reconsider them as a surgical candidate.
Frequent marijuana use has also been implicated as a cause of gynecomastia. These patients are usually counselled to decrease their use prior to considering a surgical approach as otherwise their recurrence rate is unacceptably high.
How Is Gynecomastia Treated?
Male breast enlargement is due to an excess of some combination of breast tissue and fat tissue. In the past, plastic surgeons were only able to address the fat component with liposuction and the increased breast tissue required larger incisions to remove. The addition of laser energy to break up the fat tissue and more aggressive liposuction cannulas has allowed Dr. Leach to treat most of his gynecomastia patients using liposuction alone. This has also allowed him to eliminate difficult scars and has produced significantly better results. The tumescent anesthesia technique has also allowed Dr. Leach to safely perform most of these procedure in an office setting, removing the costs and logistics involved with a hospital setting.
There are some patients that Dr. Leach feels would be more comfortable having surgery in a setting where general anesthesia is used. This is something that is discussed at length during the patient’s consultation. These patients are scheduled in a hospital or outpatient surgical setting.
Male breast reduction patients will wear a compressive vest that inconspicuously fits under normal clothing for about 3 weeks after the surgery. This helps with post operative swelling as well as with shaping the chest for best overall results.
During your consultation, Dr. Leach will discuss the best surgical procedure(s) to achieve your male breast reduction goal.
If you are tired of hiding your enlarged male breasts and want to get your chest back, contact the Princeton Center for Plastic Surgery, located in Princeton, NJ and request a consultation with Dr. Thomas A. Leach.