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So you have decided to schedule your gynecomastia, male breast reduction surgery, and you are curious what to expect after gynecomastia surgery.
After you have undergone your gynecomastia surgery to manage your overdeveloped male chest, your expected recovery time might be your main concern. Depending on the personalized surgical plan designated and discussed with you by your board-certified plastic surgeon, your recovery time may vary.
During your gynecomastia surgery, the anesthesiologist gives a customized cocktail of medications to help with post-surgical pain and nausea from anesthesia so patients are comfortable when waking from surgery.
What to Expect After Gynecomastia Surgery
Immediately following your surgery, you will be placed in a compression garment and customized foam inlay to help minimize swelling and keep the contour of your new chest. So what can you expect after gynecomastia surgery?
Patients awake from surgery in a recovery room suite with a trained registered nurse to assist in any of your post-surgical needs and monitor your vital signs.
Most of our patients go home to recover with a friend or family member. If a patient is from out of town, they have the option to spend their first 24 hours at a local recovery care center where they are monitored around the clock.
Prior to the patient’s surgery, they receive prescriptions for Percocet, used for pain management, as well as Zofran, used for nausea, to be taken every four to six hours as needed. Patients after gynecomastia surgery are usually groggy and prefer to sleep for the rest of the day.
About 12-24 hours after surgery most patients feel mild to moderate tenderness at the incision sites and chest region. The majority of the pain can be controlled with the pain medications prescribed and most patients describe the pain as mild and tolerable.
During the first week after gynecomastia surgery, the patients are instructed no to get the surgical area wet, meaning no shower, and should bathe using no-rinse bathing wipes.
The compression garments are to be left in place at all times, even while sleeping. At one week post-op, patients return to our office for a follow-up visit. The patient is examined to make sure they appear to be healing well and there is no sign of infection.
During the surgery, absorbable sutures are used along with external stereo-strips, sutures are not removed, and the steri-strips fall off on their own. After week one, the patient may remove the compression garments to shower, but then must be replaced immediately after.
Week two post-op, the patient returns again to our office for another follow-up visit. The patient is examined to ensure proper healing.
One month after gynecomastia surgery, the patient returns for a third post-op where compression garments can be removed and the patient can start slowing resuming normal physical activity, including light weight lifting. The final post-op visit is performed at three months, where the optimal contour of the chest is seen and post-op photos are taken.
If you are interested in gynecomastia surgery, we encourage you to view Our Surgical Team’s gynecomastia surgery results to appreciate the changes that are possible. You are welcome to contact Our Surgical Team and his team, located in Laguna Beach, California at the Cosmetic Plastic Surgery Institute. Our Surgical Team is internationally regarded for his gynecomastia surgery outcomes.
Please see this 37-year-old male, high definition liposuction for the removal of extra fat in the breast area.
