Look for a Board Certified Plastic Surgeon

When searching for a local gynecomastia expert, your first move should be to visit the website of the American Board of Plastic Surgery to learn why board certification is such an important credential. Then, check out the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, whose members are all board certified, and locate plastic surgeons near you.

Visit the websites of all the plastic surgeons in your area to find out which ones offer male breast reduction. See if you can get a feel for those who specialize in the procedure as opposed to plastic surgeons who simply include it as part of their repertoire.

Evaluate Skills and Experience

Before and after gynecomastia photo galleries are good places to browse. These web pages can tell you two things: whether the results a prospective surgeon achieves appeal to you and how much emphasis he or she places on gynecomastia surgery. Ideally, the website should offer several sets of before and after gynecomastia pictures, including many body types.

Similarly, the plastic surgeon’s website should have a separate page devoted to gynecomastia, not mention it as an afterthought on another page.

If you find plastic surgeons who appeal to you, arrange consultations. Ask probing questions about their male breast reduction experience, techniques and more. Request the names of a few patients you might contact as referrals.

Keep your Options Open

Finally, as you consider local plastic surgeons, take a step back and look at the big picture. For instance, don’t let differences in fees be the deciding factor. There are many good reasons why one plastic surgeon may charge more than another—including a higher level of experience, more depth and skill in the surgical team, higher facility costs and so on. Since your results will last a lifetime, consider the cost of gynecomastia surgery as an investment.

Finally, if you find a plastic surgeon with plenty of experience near you, and he or she is someone you feel very comfortable with—that’s great. If not, or if you would like a second or third option, we would be very pleased to consult with you. We can work with you over the Internet and via a phone consultation, or you can arrange to see us during a visit to New York. Gynecomastia is one of our top specialties, and we work with many patients who do not live near Manhattan.

Want to find out more? Contact our Park Avenue office at 212-570-6080.

Photo by the U.S. Navy, available under a Creative Commons attribution license.

But before you make your reservations, there are a few things to think over.

Research: When you first start your researching gynecomastia in the U.S., it can be challenging to understand the nuances of important details like board certification for surgeons. It also takes time browsing the Web, talking to others who’ve had surgery and going to consultations before you know you’ve found a highly qualified gynecomastia specialist you “click” with.

The research process is that much more difficult when varying certification standards, different customs and other languages are thrown into the mix. There are medical tourism companies that may be helpful, but if you contact one remember they are there to sell you on the idea of going abroad.

Complications: As discussed in our last article, complications from male breast reduction are relatively rare. Should you experience a problem during or shortly after surgery, however, you’ll be far from home. It could add anxiety to an already stressful time to be in the hands of medical staff in another country.

If you discover a complication after you return home, you’ll need to find a local plastic surgeon experienced in gynecomastia and start a new relationship. If you need fine-tuning or revision, your savings could dwindle quickly.

Recovery: In the hands of a skilled gynecomastia surgeon, recovery should be relatively straightforward and fairly comfortable. However, you will need to rest for at least a couple of days and take it easier than usual for a few weeks. Why? The truth is, any activity that raises your blood pressure can contribute to excess swelling and even post-op bleeding. This means curbing even moderate exercise like hiking, biking and so on.

In addition, you will need to treat your arms gently during recovery. This means you won’t be able engage in activities like swimming, or carry luggage, shopping bags and other items as you would on a normal vacation.

We don’t mean to imply that qualified gynecomastia surgeons don’t exist anywhere but the United States. There are certainly many talented plastic surgeons in most countries throughout the world. And it’s no secret that health care is increasingly expensive in our country. But when you consider every detail and add all the travel-related costs to the price of surgery—especially if you bring a loved one to help, which is a must—you may find that going to India, Bolivia or Poland is not really a better choice than electing surgery for gynecomastia in New York.

Photo by Christopher John SSF, available under a Creative Commons attribution license.

In fact, you should probably consider yourself lucky if arranging for insurance coverage for gynecomastia surgery is difficult. Some insurance companies refuse to cover the procedure at all. As one poster put it on the gynecomastia.org forum, “My insurance company specifically excludes gyne surgery.”

Companies that will consider coverage for male breast reduction often present many hurdles. It’s not unusual for patients to give up pursuing the issue. Men who are up for the challenge usually have to demonstrate at least the following:

• They have had gynecomastia for a certain period of time
• There’s no indication of an underlying condition
• There’s no history of drug use that could contribute
• The extra tissue is glandular, not fat, and the patient is not overweight
• The condition is painful, physically and psychologically

If you have insurance that does not automatically refuse coverage for gynecomastia surgery, it is possible to be successful with a claim. Having worked with nearly 2,000 New York gynecomastia patients over many years, our recommendations are as follows:

• Take good photos of your chest from a variety of angles
• Make sure you understand your insurance carrier’s requirements
• Call a representative at the company to discuss anything that’s not clear
• Review the requirements point by point and determine how to satisfy them
• Make an appointment with your primary care physician to strategize
• See an experienced gynecomastia surgeon for additional ammunition

Even when you prepare your case strategically and complete all the steps, your insurance company may deny your request for coverage. Sadly, this isn’t unusual. Don’t be discouraged if this happens—instead, appeal the decision.

Like most plastic surgeons, we don’t accept insurance coverage as payment. But we will gladly advise you and help you plan to make a claim for reimbursement. This is one topic we can cover when you schedule your consultation.

Photo by David Hilowitz, available under a Creative Commons attribution license.

Fortunately, when men are willing to share their experiences on websites like this, they can help others avoid being taken by “cures” that can only shrink the wallet. One gynecomastia.org member recommends that others refrain from trying a so-called easy fix and save for male breast reduction surgery instead.

Is it realistic to save for plastic surgery? How do people go about it?

We’ve heard some great ideas on the subject from our New York gynecomastia patients, as well as from men and women planning a face lift, tummy tucks and other procedures. Here are some tips we can pass along.

One of our favorite strategies patients use to save for plastic surgery is to jump start the campaign with a tax return, a bonus or even a travel reimbursement check. It can be very encouraging to move your effort forward with a few hundred dollars or more when you’re just getting started.

You can use your bank as a tool to help you save. One way is to create a separate account for the sole purpose of paying for your procedure, then make sure money flows in and not out. One woman set $20 aside for cosmetic surgery every time she went to the ATM.

Some patients commit to modifying their routines for a while to save money every week. Brewing your own coffee at home and making lunch to take to work can save a surprising amount if you’re consistent. For patients who have already tightened their belts in this economy, a second job for a short period of time may be the answer. Some get busy selling things they no longer need on auction websites.

One way to make the process of saving more rewarding is to download a “savings ticker” from a site like tickerfactory.com and use it to chart your progress.

Another option many patients use is to finance plastic surgery through a company that specializes in this type of loan. We partner with two different surgical loan companies to give our New York gynecomastia patients a variety of options.

We don’t want to give the impression that we encourage patients to have gynecomastia surgery, or any other procedure for that matter. We are always very careful to supply complete, objective information and we support our patients to make the decisions that are right for them.

But we know the anguish and embarrassment man boobs can cause—we hear about it from our patients weekly. If you know that frustration firsthand, don’t compound the situation by wasting money on pills or potions. Saving or a combination of saving and financing plastic surgery may be a better choice.

Photo by Ken Teegardin, available under a Creative Commons attribution license.

“Travel to beautiful Thailand (or Costa Rica, Mexico, Morocco, Romania, India, Turkey, Panama, etc. etc.) and have plastic cosmetic surgery for a fraction of the U.S. cost.”

But remember our blog about costs of gynecomastia surgery? Going overseas for low cost rejuvenation surgery could be the most expensive trip you ever made. Why? It can cost anywhere from two to five times what you originally paid to repair damage from bad plastic surgery.

Here’s what you face:

• Foreign plastic surgeons rarely have the extra training of U.S. surgeons.
• There are, of course, many fine surgeons in distant lands. But do you know how to check on a doctor’s credentials and training written in a foreign tongue? (In the U.S., all you need do is bring up the website www.abms.org, register and type in your surgeon’s name.)  You could query the International Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (www.isaps.org) but they only list a few qualified surgeons in most nations.
• Will an anesthesiologist attend your operation? What are his or her credentials and training?
• You usually won’t know the laws of a foreign nation. In some nations, you can’t sue a surgeon if you have any problems during or after surgery.
• If you do return with a common complication, like an infection or something worse, your U.S. doctor will have a hard time knowing where to start without medical records from overseas.  And sometimes U.S. surgeons will not take on the care of another doctor’s problems.
• Many plastic surgery patients require additional medical testing if their medical histories reveal chronic health woes. U.S. plastic surgeons need to know if you are healthy enough for surgery. Does the foreign clinic do the same?
• Some overseas hospitals and clinics are not up to the high standards of U.S. hospitals.

In 2004, cut-rate plastic surgery clinics in the Dominican Republic created so many infection problems for patients returning to the United States, the situation was turned over to the Center for Disease Control (CDC).

Medical sleuths at the CDC traced the problem to infected liposuction wands at the offshore clinics. One plastic surgery clinic alone was responsible for half the U.S. cases. Note: first year U.S. medical students know appropriate sterilization procedures.

If you’re seriously considering overseas plastic surgery, we know of only one reasonable offer.

One plastic surgery tour organizer is so sure of its Thai hospital and U.S-trained surgeon, it puts the following offer in writing: if anything goes wrong with the procedure, they fly the patient back to Thailand, provide lodging and revision surgery and then fly him back home again.

When the reporter said he was shocked about the amount, Red replied: “What’s really expensive is hiring somebody who doesn’t know what he’s doing.”

The situation is fairly close to the cost of gynecomastia plastic surgery: bargain basement surgery can end up costing two to four times more than the original procedure .

One way to make sure you’re headed for a good outcome is to select a board certified plastic surgeon who has, typically, four to six years of additional surgical training beyond medical school.

Then, try and find a specialist who performs the procedure you want many times monthly. He or she  should also have a long selection of  before and after plastic surgery pictures, too.

(HINT: A specialist will also usually bring about faster healing times because he or she disturbs fewer tissues while operating.)

The American Society of Plastic Surgeons, (ASPS) lists the U.S. average surgeon fee for gynecomastia surgery at $3282 during 2008.

(HINT: Always ask for a total cost which usually includes a separate fee ($600 to $1200) for the operating room and a fee ($500 to $1000) for a board-certified anesthesiologist.

You will probably also have to pony up for:

• Pre surgery medical tests
• Post-op medications
• Perhaps a night at a recovery center if you’re from out of town and
• After-surgery vests or garments to help healing.

The actual cost you will pay depends greatly on your geographic location, with both the East and West coasts being more expensive, and the nation’s interior being somewhat less expensive.
These surgical costs reflect the general higher or lower costs of living compared with where you live.

The surgeon’s fee can vary, depending on the physical condition of your chest and if you need:

• Liposuction
• Excision
• Both

Surgery may be even more complicated if you have loose, hanging skin and if the areola, the brown areas surrounding the nipples, must be moved.

Thus, a more realistic total range of costs for gynecomastia plastic surgery is about $3000 to $9000.

If you’re thinking about going to Mexico or Thailand for a cheap procedure, remember Red Adair’s wise, wise words about what is really expensive.

NEXT: Going Offshore to Save?