What to ask pre-surgery?

[papillon]

Hey All

first I must say I hate YaBB... it has so many quirks and bugs it's just absolutely frustrating to use it. It just cost me a post that it took me 10 mins to write ... so I have to retype.. I'll be short this time

I just want to know what sort of questions I should ask surgeons when I go and talk to them and the procedure before I decide on which surgeon to go for.

eg. which lipo method they use, what sort of tools, do they excise gland etc etc Those type of questions .. What else should I ask ?? Thanks

[mumoft]

Are the before/after pictures they are showing you patients they performed surgery on, can they put you in contact with patients who have had the surgery in the past year or two that you can talk to.  How many gyne procedures do they do a year, are they a board certified plastic surgeon, do they used board certified anesthesiologists (no one worries about him/her until something goes wrong), how long have they been in practice, what is their specialty.

[usernameX]

Those are all great questions to start with. But about contacting patients, I believe its illegal to give out past patients information.

Aside from asking, TELL the surgeon what YOU want from this operation. Every chest is very different especially when gyno plays a part in it. If your overweight by quite a bit, that may damage the appearance of the chest still having a fatty type look which he cannot mold any better then you actually working out. This is just assuming you are overweight. Its alot better being somewhat thin when getting the operation because from there you can ask what you would like to see in terms and of muscle and such.  When your overweight, the picture isnt very clear at all to what would look better. Again, if you arent overweight, just ignore all of this:)

[mumoft]

My son's ps's office contacted his former patients who in turn contacted us.  We have now given the doctor permission to use us as a reference. It was really important for my son to talk to other patients of the doctor.

[Mr_Nip]

My son's ps's office contacted his former patients who in turn contacted us.  We have now given the doctor permission to use us as a reference. It was really important for my son to talk to other patients of the doctor.

That is very important.  Upon talking to my P.S., I found that a lot of men are very reluctant to give permission to show others their before/after photos or to use any  information for reference.   We should all be proactive in offering to let others see our results so they can make informed decisions.  

[Grandpa Bambu]

We should all be proactive in offering to let others see our results so they can make informed decisions.

Agreed!

John.

[Give me Life]

Absolutly !!!

I don't mind giving my reference if it helps someone with this terrible "Gyne" thing. Most of here suffered for almost 20 years. If our experience helps someone, what's our loss

[Grandpa Bambu]

Ask your Doc what his/her policy on 'revisions' is. Would a revision be included with the initial fee.

John.

[papillon]

Thanks guys, keep em coming though ;-)

Should I ask what type of lipo method they use? does it really matter?

Does it matter how they do the excisions?

Anything else that might be important... Thanks again

[lafilip]

Thanks guys, keep em coming though ;-)

Should I ask what type of lipo method they use? does it really matter?

Does it matter how they do the excisions?

Anything else that might be important... Thanks again

You should ask both of these.  Ask everything even the most basic questions. You should have a clear picture of what you will be going through from beginning to end even before your on the operating table.  

A couple that I asked my PS.
 What methods of excision do you use, is it combined with lipo?
 What is the most serious side effect a paitent has had under your      
 care?
 How many of these operations do you do a year?
 How do you treat post operation concerns?
 What garment do you use for post operation: Ace bandage or    
 compression vest?
 What is your revision policy?

Good luck!