Gynecomastia Surgery - Male Breast Reduction

Linia understands the appearance of ‘man boobs’ can really cause embarrassment and affect your confidence. We offer gynecomastia surgery for male breast reduction which could help to give you a flatter, firmer and more masculine chest. Male chest reduction is becoming a popular procedure.

What is gynecomastia surgery?

Gynaecomastia is a common condition in men and relates to large or over-sized breasts. Male breast surgery can remove excess breast tissue, fat and sagging skin from the chest to give a smoother, more masculine appearance.

Our surgeon will make a small incision at the edge of the areola. Excess skin and fat will be excised; in some cases liposuction is used. In either case scarring is minimal and barely noticeable. Results create a smoother masculine appearance to the chest.

Who is Gynaecomastia surgery suitable for?

Gynaecomastia can be caused by many different factors including:-

• A hereditary condition
• Illness or drugs
• Weight gain or weight loss
• Hormonal issues

Will my consultation be with a surgeon?

All consultations take place with a surgeon. We believe that only a surgeon can help and advise you on the best procedure to achieve the results you would like.

During your initial consultation, we will ask you about the results you are looking for and explain the procedure so that you understand every stage of the process. The most important thing is that you feel completely at ease in our care and fully aware of the procedure and the resulting enhancement.

Are your consultations free?

All of our consultations are free with no obligation. You will be provided with advice and information relevant to achieve the results you desire with gynecomastia surgery.

What will happen after the Gynecomastia surgery?

Your surgeon will see you when you have recovered to check that all is well, and will discharge you providing you are fit to return home. You will be given medication and full post-operative instructions along with appropriate telephone numbers in case you need to contact us at any time. A special elasticated garment will have been applied to your chest wall after Gynaecomastia surgery and this must be left in place for the next 4 weeks. Some pinkish discharge may be experienced for 48 hours.

Week 1-2

During the first week after surgery, you should not remove the garment at all. You should try to resume normal daily activities as soon as possible: general mobility will help speed up the healing process. You should NOT, however, undertake any strenuous activity or exercise. You will see the nurse after 7-10 days so that she can check your progress and remove your dressing and stitches. Bruising and swelling will continue to diminish.

Weeks 6 -10

By this stage you should be able to see good results but full results will take 6 months to appear. Bruising and swelling will have disappeared. You may find that there is still some irregularity or lumpiness in the chest wall, but this will settle down after a couple of months, aided by regular massage. You will see your surgeon once more at between 8 and 10 weeks after your operation for a full post-operative consultation.

Preventative measures you can take after gynecomastia surgery

• Ask your doctor for a review of your medications.
  If you find you’re taking prescription medications that increase risk of gynecomastia, see if your doctor can prescribe alternatives.
• Don’t use non-prescribed/recreational/illegal drugs
  i.e. steroids, amphetamines, heroin, and marijuana
• Moderate or stop alcohol consumption

What Causes Male Breast Enlargement?

Gynecomastia is generally caused by a hormone imbalance between testosterone and estrogen. Testosterone increases often cause an increase of estrogen too which can trigger gyno. The opposite is also true if testosterone decreases and the ratio of estrogen becomes higher. There are a variety of reasons why this can happen including:

– health conditions that reduce or block the effects of testosterone
– health condition that increase estrogen levels
– medication that can change hormone balance

The sex hormones estrogen and testosterone are responsible for gender traits in females and males. Estrogen mainly is responsible for female traits, such as breast growth. Male characteristics, such as muscle mass and body hair growth are controlled by testosterone.

However, estrogen isn’t exclusive to women and men still have this hormone (and vice versa) — though normally in much smaller quantity. The problem comes when those hormone levels become imbalanced. A change of ratio in these hormones may cause gynecomastia – male breast tissue growth.

Digging deeper into the causes of male breast tissue growth, we can also link it to the following demographic:

Gynecomastia in babies

Gynecomastia can start as early as inside the womb. It’s estimated over 50% of males have enlarged breast tissue from birth because their mother’s estrogen has affected them.

However, this swelling in a newborn’s chest tissue dissipates as quickly as a couple of weeks and is rarely permanent.

Teens going through puberty

As you can imagine, puberty is when Gynecomastia is most common due to vast changes in hormone levels within the body.

Again, this is rarely permanent or requires treatment and settles down within months up to a few years.

Gynecomastia in older adult males

The prevalence of enlarged breasts becomes more common again as older males hit the age of 50-70 years old. It’s estimated this affects a quarter of this age group. This could be caused by lowered testosterone in advanced age.

Medications that cause male breast enlargement

Many medications might cause gynecomastia. These include but aren’t limited to:

– Anti-androgens
used to treat prostate enlargement, prostate cancer and some other conditions. Examples include flutamide, finasteride (Proscar, Propecia) and spironolactone (Aldactone).

– Anabolic steroids and androgens.
The most common cause of gynecomastia in young men. Steroids are a supraphysiological dose of testosterone which shuts down natural testosterone production and increases estorgen in men. When steroid use is stopped, the male has almost no testosterone while natural testosterone production starts again. However, high levels of estrogen remain and it is in this period that males are at high risk of developing gynecomastia.

– AIDS medications

HIV-positive men are at risk of developing enlarged breast tissue, especially those who are receiving specific treatments. HAART therapies and medications are most at risk. The medication Efavirenz (Sustiva) is most commonly associated with this than other medications.

• Anti-anxiety medications
  Such as Valium (diazepam).
• Tricyclic antidepressants.
• Some antibiotics.
• Ulcer medications, such as cimetidine (Tagamet HB).
• Chemotherapy
• Heart medications such as digoxin (Lanoxin) and calcium channel blockers
• Gastric motility medications such as Reglan
• Alcohol and recreational drugs

Gynecomastia causing substances include:

Methadone
Alcohol
Marijuana
Heroin

Health conditions that increase risk of enlarged breast tissue

Hormone imbalances can be cause by many health conditions too. These include:

– Kidney failure
– Cirrhosis and Liver failure
– Tumors
– Hyperthyroidism
– Hypogonadism
– Klinefelter’s syndrome

* Every patient is a unique individual and every surgery has unique aspects. Therefore, results may vary. To read our full disclaimer please click here.