nipple/areola size

[Luecifer]

i've had severe gyno since i was a kid. my areola is pretty large. so my question is, if i go and have the surgery done, is there a chance that my areola will shrink to a more "normal" size on its own afterwards? also, the doctor i am hoping to use in tucson said that skin will most likely have to be removed, can it be done all in one procedure? thanks.

[George Pope, M.D.]

If your surgeon said your skin will most likely have to be removed, then you have a very large skin envelope and he feels that it won't shrink down sufficiently after the breast tissue is removed.  You may need the larger procedure that involves removing all of the breast tissue AND all overlying skin.  The nipple areola is replaced as a skin graft.  The good news here is that the areola can be diminished in size to as small a diameter as you want.  The surgeon has complete control of the new areola diameter. And yes, this can all be done at the same time.

Dr. Pope, MD

[Miguel Delgado MD]

This is a very difficult question to answer without a front photo.  You may need skin excision or maybe not.  In the past 10 years i have done 2 or 3 skin excisions.  My patient population may be very different but i believe that the goal of male breast reduction surgery is for you to be able to remove you shirt and enjoy life.  A scar on the chest may inhibit this.  I have seen many cases where skin excision is advised by some of the most successful plastic surgeons  and i am not in agreement. A photo is worth posting to get better feed back from the Gynecomastia.org panel who are by fair some of the most experienced in the world.  Good luck.  P.S. please add your age and weight.

[Dr. Elliot Jacobs]

Totally agree with Dr Delgado.  Most patients will experience a spontaneous decrease in the diameter of their areolas simply by removing the excess tissue beneath -- it happens automatically!. And for most guys, this is sufficient. It is analogous to drawing a circle on a blown up balloon.  When you release some of the air in the balloon, the circle will diminish in diameter.  For most of my patients, the average decrease in diameter will be between 15 - 20% -- but this will vary with each patient.

I am very reluctant to perform a circular areolar reduction.  First, at best, you will have a scar totally around the areola.  Often when this procedure is performed, it may look good initially, but then the forces of Mother Nature act to stretch things out again, so that the areola will expand in diameter.  Also, those same forces can stretch the scar itself so that becomes widened.  All in all, not worth the effort, additional scarring, etc.

Dr Jacobs

[DrPensler]

Every patient in my experience has a decrease in areolar size after surgery.In some patients its rather small say 5% while in others it can approach 50%.A photo would be useful to help estimate what you might expect. I do not typically remove areolar tissue at the time of surgery. I prefer to see what degree of contraction results and tailor the results from there if necessary.