looking for advise for my son

[alsmom]

my son is 14 he has had this gynecomastia problem for a year now. However it is only the left side. The docs keep saying it will go away. My son has turned from this self assured i think im hot kid to a kid who is very shy now. He hates it and wants it gone he is so imbarressed. I dont know what to do. Do I wait and see if it goes away or do I talk to surgan. Some guidence will help
thanks
alsmom

[anon90]

your son isn’t alone.
i also have unlateral gynecomastia (left side)and ive had it since i was thirteen, im now 18 and im having surgery next Tuesday. Like your son i was also the popular fun outgoing type of kid but when i hit my teens i became quiet and kinda antisocial. The advice i would give to you is to make sure that your son knows that he isnt the only one. When i first developed gynecomastia i was freaked out and i thought i was alone, i didn’t want to tell anyone about my condition and if it wasnt for these forums i would have lived my life ignorant and depressed. let your son browse the photos section of this site so he can see others with this condition also use the search bar and search "unlateral" you will see there are quite a few of us here.

support your son in whatever possible way you can. when i finally told my parents about gynecomastia i was so relieved. the ability to talk to others in private helps ease the emotional burden.

when it comes to doctors ive had my ups and downs. Doctors will 9/10 times tell you to "wait and see"
A phrase which i came to hate after being told to "wait and see" by two GPs and a breast specialist. But it is the right thing to do. i suggest that you wait a few years and see if your sons gynecomastia changes. While you are waiting save as much money as possible so that if you decide to go with the surgery you wont have to worry about money.( im not sure how much it costs in America but its not cheap). i would recommend speaking to a surgeon about your son but i wouldn’t let your son have surgery until he is a bit older surgery at a young age could make the problem worse. it wont be what your son wants to hear but he should be patient. i waited 5 years before i had the surgery and ive saved every bit of money i have to afford just to pay the surgery fee.

I hope this helps. if you have any questions feel free to ask them, myself and other members will gladly help you out.

[Dr. Elliot Jacobs]

We surgeons like to wait about two years to make sure that the gyne will not disappear by itself.  By then your son will be 15 and if it remains the same size, it would probably be a good idea to have it removed surgically.

Dr Jacobs

[moobius]

in my personal experience looking back... if i could have had surgery for this at 14 i would have jumped on it. this condition hampered my social development at a critical time in a person's life. having gynecomastia through those high school years really can affect a person negatively and cause them to miss out on a lot of the high school experiences (at least the positive ones -- there's plenty of being teased and called names when you've got gyne at that age)

[booty_frijoles]

I agree with moobius....I missed out with sooo much fun stuff. I was in with the more popular group in high school but was still more on the shy anti-social side because of gyne. It's horrible and now that i'm in college, I know i'm gonna miss out on a lot more.

I would talk to more professionals about it (Doctors on this site, and your own).  In my opinion for everyone suffering with gyne, their motto for surgery would have to be: "The sooner the better"

[DrBermant]

my son is 14 he has had this gynecomastia problem for a year now. However it is only the left side. The docs keep saying it will go away. My son has turned from this self assured i think im hot kid to a kid who is very shy now. He hates it and wants it gone he is so imbarressed. I dont know what to do. Do I wait and see if it goes away or do I talk to surgan. Some guidence will help
thanks
alsmom

Being patient helps, in most cases puberty gynecomastia goes away on its own. Gynecomastia that has not resolved by two years typically does not go away.

"How old should you be before considering Gynecomastia Surgery" are very common questions.  What age depends on many factors.  You can find many examples of Picture Gallery of Teenagers before and after Gynecomastia Surgery here.

We have many patients, family members, and parents who have raved how a compression garment can really help while waiting for surgery or until stabilization of a problem.

Body shaping garments are a good temporary contouring solution.  They do not help remove or treat gynecomastia.  When the garment is removed, the gynecomastia is still there.  They can provide an emotional band-aid for the stress of contour issues and bouncing tissues.

There is a theoretical advantage for the person losing weight.  Scars that evolve under pressure do better than scars without pressure.  These garments are designed to help with pressure and scar evolution.  With weight loss, there is the issue of skin shrinkage.  Pressure may help.  However, there are no studies to evaluate such issues.  Trying to design such a study is difficult if not impossible.

You can see actual examples of Compression Chest Contouring Without Surgery for different types of gynecomastia here:

Compression Contouring After Massive Weight Loss

Body Shaping for Puffy Nipples

Body Shaping Compression Contouring for Overweight Male - This one shows the Black Vest in use.

Body Shaper Compression Garment for Severly Obese Male

Check out the multiple views for each patient. Clink on the links to see other views of the garment and features of this design I prefer.  We have tried many other brands and none seem to come close to what this one offers.

After surgery compression garments do not do well in pool water or sea water.  The salt or chlorine can damage the fabric.  There are Sun Protection Clothing Options designed for water use. 

A wet suit can also help.  Using a thin neoprene like Microprene can flatten the chest in water like a compression garment can help on land.  The after surgery garments do not work well in water, the wet suits do.  Both can be hot to wear, that is why I prefer a very thin garment.

Hope this helps,

Michael Bermant, MD
Learn More About Gynecomastia Male Breast Reduction

[alsmom]

I first want to thank you all for your help. The good thing is me and my son are very close so I have known about the problem sence it started. We talk about it alot. Not only does this problem cause him mental pain but also physcial. It is a very hard lump in their. He had a mamogram done because it was so hard and it did confirm what the doc thought it was but it was very painfull for him. He is a football player and he says wearing the pads hurts. Even when he plays in the back yard with no pads he says catching the football and tucking it in hurts. Is their anything we can do for the pain while we wait and see. I have decided that if it does not go away on its own I will get him the surgery. You all helped me make that decision no cost is to great to make my son feel better. I will definaly look into compression garmets but my question with that is if the pads hurt will that hurt? Also he is a very small kid only 5 1 and 95 pounds. but yet very active and muscular. I think that is why it bugs him so much he has 6 pack abs and wants pecs as he calls them and his right side is so the left side really bugs him. At first he joked about it now all he says is he wants it gone and he will do anything for it to be gone.

[Dr. Elliot Jacobs]

I absolutely do not believe that there should be an arbitrary age (for example, 18 years old) at which time one would "qualify" for surgery.  There are many young men who have severe gyne since age 11 or 12!!  I will generally wait about two years to observe if it has disappeared or is in the process of disappearing.  But if it remains, I do not see any reason whatsoever not to operate on a 13 or 14 year old.

Many men with gyne developed it early and were patted on the shoulder and then told by their pediatrician "Just wait it out, son, it will disappear."  And it didn't!!  And so they spent their precious teen years, during which time their self esteem and ego are flimsy and tenuous at best, patiently waiting for their gyne to magically disappear.  During these years, the embarrassment can be devastating and can affect social life, social development, participation in sports, and on and on.  I have seen young men bind themselves tightly with ace bandages in a daily ritual.  I have seen them wear three layers of shirts to mask the problem. Some young men have even deliberately gained significant weight so that their abdomen is larger than their chest and hides it to some extent. And of course, these boys will never take their shirt off at the beach or pool and never play skins/shirts basketball.  I cannot imagine the immense psychological and emotional damage it does to these individuals -- but I think everyone on this Board sees it in the writing of the participants who voice their emotional distress.

The operation for gyne can be done successfully on young men.  Their skin is very elastic and shrinks considerably -- even on very large breasts!  Of course, the candidate for surgery must be capable of understanding that it is surgery, that there can be pain and discomfort, but that it will all be worthwhile after it has healed.  In essence, he must be emotionally mature enough to undergo the procedure.

To date, I have operated on over 100 young men, ranging in age from 12 to 18, and not one of them has re-grown his breasts.  Although there can never be a guarantee that this will not occur, the worst case (if re-growth occurred) would be a repeat of the surgery.  In the meanwhile, these young men have been given a real taste of freedom, of feeling "normal."

I may be a maverick among my colleagues in this regard, but I have 100 teenagers on my side who would disagree with the mainstream thought of waiting until you are 18 years old in order to have the operation.
 
Dr Jacobs

[Grandpa Bambu]

What an awesome post Dr. Jacobs!!! 

You had Gynecomastia at one time yourself, did you not?

I agree with you 110% that 'age' should not be a factor for Gynecomastic Reduction Surgery. I also agree with you, that one should wait a year or two after the initial onset, to see if the condition will clear up on its own. After a two year initial waiting period, then the sufferer should not be denied medical help any further. I suffered 31 years with 'D' cup G... That's 3+ decades of living a life that which you just described. My advice to anyone who is contemplating having corrective surgery, the sooner the better... At any age!

The operation for gyne can be done successfully on young men. Of course, the candidate for surgery must be capable of understanding that it is surgery, that there can be pain and discomfort, but that it will all be worthwhile after it has healed. In essence, he must be emotionally mature enough to undergo the procedure.

However... is that very young sufferer 'emotionally mature enough' to handle the rigors of Gynecomastia? Probably not! That young sufferer doesn't know what to think... "Am I turning into a girl?", "Do I need to loose weight", "Am I a FREAK?". Therefore, IMO... the young sufferer may not be 'emotionally mature enough' to handle either, surgery or the condition. Yet, recovery from surgery would be the lesser of two evils!!! No?

Once again doc.... great post!

GB



   

[Grandpa Bambu]

I wouldn’t let your son have surgery until he is a bit older surgery at a young age could make the problem worse.

How could having corrective surgery, at a young age, make his G 'worse'?

GB