Gynecomastia Surgery: Avoiding Complications
Surgically closed incision
Complications are part and parcel of any cosmetic plastic surgery procedure – including gynecomastia surgery.
They can include, in order of severity: bleeding, irregular contours, cratering of the nipple, infections, and poor wound healing or scars.
But a couple of proven ways help decrease your odds of turning up with a pesky, time-consuming complication.
The first may not be obvious – but it involves the plastic surgeon. The secret is actually no secret at all: choose one who does a lot of gynecomastia surgery.
American medicine is very specialized today, so for example, even among heart surgeons, some specialize in surgery on heart valves while others concentrate on veins.
It’s no different in all of cosmetic plastic surgery: A surgeon who has performed a particular procedure many times over several decades disturbs less tissue and is more precise while doing his work.
It all actually starts before surgery.
For instance, it’s okay to ask a plastic surgeon during your first consult how many times he or she has done the procedure you want. Look for a doctor who performs that operation at least once weekly.
That translates into less bleeding, bruising and swelling because less tissue has been disturbed.
Even before you go see the surgeon for the first time, look at the before and after plastic surgery pictures on the doctor’s website. There should be many.
Much of complication avoidance is following – to the letter — the doctor’s pre-and-post surgery instructions. For instance, halting aspirin or other blood thinning medications several weeks before surgery is very important. As is wearing the compression garment after surgery precisely as recommended by the surgeon.
Depending on your particular circumstances, the surgeon may want clearance by your personal physician, a physical or certain blood checks.
Why? All surgical patients must be healthy enough to undergo surgery.
Just before surgery, your surgeon may prescribe some antibiotics. These are preventive because the first cause of concern after any surgery is infection.
Personally, I have not – thankfully! — had a case of post-surgical infection for years.
Much of that is because my office surgical suite, is JCHAO (Joint Commission on Health Accreditation Organizations) certified and is as sterile – if not more so – than any hospital operating room you’ll ever find.
You should be in frequent touch with your doctor for the week leading up to surgery and make sure you are not ill just prior to surgery.
And don’t be surprised if your surgery is put off if you show up on the day of surgery with a cold, sinusitis, a skin infection like active acne or even a pimple on your chest.
Going ahead could be courting a serious infection!