swelling and contour

[gettingrid]

hi, 

   I was wondering what happens as swelling subsides. Is the tissue likely to become looser and sag a little bit making the contour worse.  In general does the contour ever get worse than what one has at the 4 week post op stage. The posts suggest things only get better or stay the same.

   I am asking coz I am pretty ok with my state right now at 4 wks but some of the upper chest is still swollen/slightly hard...when this subsides will this area loosen and consequently sag or can I expect to end up with nothing worse than my current contour after 2 months.

  I think maywest mentioned he has some issue with an initally flat area going back to original size in 5 days? I guess such a thing cannot happen after 4 weeks right?

[GynO_DuDe]

It only gets better.

My surgeon told me my final results will appear after ONE YEAR.

[hope2recover]

It only gets better.

My surgeon told me my final results will appear after ONE YEAR.

one year???

[GynO_DuDe]

Sounds about right to me ... although i personally feel like im healing rather quick, by the time my skin stretches back on to my chest etc et c etc I think after a year I can say to myself, this is NOW my chest.

Dont get me wrong, the way it is even after 9 days post-op im still more than chuffed but it's only going to get better (hopefully).

[DrBermant]

hi, 

   I was wondering what happens as swelling subsides. Is the tissue likely to become looser and sag a little bit making the contour worse.  In general does the contour ever get worse than what one has at the 4 week post op stage. The posts suggest things only get better or stay the same.

   I am asking coz I am pretty ok with my state right now at 4 wks but some of the upper chest is still swollen/slightly hard...when this subsides will this area loosen and consequently sag or can I expect to end up with nothing worse than my current contour after 2 months.

  I think maywest mentioned he has some issue with an initally flat area going back to original size in 5 days? I guess such a thing cannot happen after 4 weeks right?

Swelling can obscure results.  4 weeks is very early after surgery for some techniques.

Posting Standardized Before and After Pictures can help others better understand your concerns.

How tissues evolve after surgery depends on the problem treated, surgical technique, skill of the surgeon, after care, scar care, and how a patient heals.  I prefer my Dynamic Technique in which there is minimal bruising and swelling.  The biggest change happens on the operating table.  That is how I am able to post images the day after surgery.  However, further refinement happens over time as sculpted tissues evolves as they soften with scar care, compression, and healing.  As with any cut, tissues need to heal and soften.

You can see other examples of early results:

in this competition body builder here.

This one sided (unilateral) gynecomastia shows the swelling after surgery typical swelling after my gynecomastia surgery compaired to the side that had No Surgery. 

Here is another example of early healing after unilateral surgery typically seen with my techniques. 

Here is another example of typical minimal swelling and bruising in a 14 year old patient with more images images of tissue evolution and swelling here.. 

You can find many more examples on my website of primary gynecomastia tissue evoluation.

I perform many Revision Gynecomastia Male Chest Sculpture Operations on patients done by other doctors around the world. Each patient has told me how different their tissues were after my Dynamic Technique compared to their previous surgery.  They all have commented how the swelling was much less, comfort better, and their expectation met, even at their first view of the tissues after surgery.  You can see typical tissue evolution after Revision Gynecomastia Surgery here.

However, even with these techniques, the tissue continue to evolve over time.  Here is another example of a patient revised after initial surgery done in Australia, early and 2 years after his operation.

This is real surgery and tissues do need to heal just like any other cut or injury.

Hope this helps,

Michael Bermant, MD
Learn More About Gynecomastia and Chest Sculpture