Dr. Silverman - Ottawa

[Achilles]

So I had my first consult today with a PS regarding my gyne.  I went to see Dr. Howard Silverman in Ottawa.  I was fairly comfortable with him the whole time and my mom thought he seemed really good too.

So we started at his office and talked about my history with gyne.  I told him that I've had it since puberty, I told him about my history with Cancer and that losing weight and working out did not help.  He said that it was a common thing among boys going through puberty but that most cases are resolved on their own.  Some of the meds I was on while on treatment for my cancer could of had an effect on the gyne (i.e. some of the steroids and med. marijuana), but that it's pretty impossible to determine whether or not they had an effect.  I was pretty sure that working out my chest made it worse and he confirmed that it would (as the muscle would push the gyne out).

He talked about his technique.  Depending on the case he'll either do the excision through the nipple or the lipo through the side of the cest (about 2-3mm big), under the armpit.  He says that in most cases he'll do it on the side and if he sees/feels any gland that needs to be removed he'll then go through the nipple.  He said that he's done about over 100 gyne procedures and he had one before and after set of pictures from one client.

He looked and poked at my chest and he said that it is probably only/mostly fat.  After all the stuff I've read on here, and the others I compared myself to, I was sure there was fat and gland.  I forgot to ask about this and what the chances of it coming back were (this was my first consult of 3, so there were a few things I forgot to ask him about).

The price is 3000 for him and 1050 for hospital and anaesthetic fees + GST so the total cost would be 4333.5$ CAD.  While he would send the request to OHIP, he said he would most likely be declined.

He said that I would have a compression vest for a month after surgery and that I could return to regular activity, and working out whenever I felt ready.  And the bruising is at it's worst in the 2nd and 3rd week post-op.

Overall, Dr. Silverman was very nice to talk to and he seems like he would do a good job, but he doesn't seem to have as much experience with gyne as Fielding for example.  And I'm worried that if I go with lipo only that it has a chance of coming back.

Also, I'm 21, 5'10'' and weigh about 185, I'm working on getting my weight to 170-175 and being more muscular/toned.  He said that he wouldn't make me completely flat as it would look disproportionate to the rest of my body.  But I'm hoping to be at 170-175 and me more muscular by the time I have my surgery (I am hoping to do it at the end of December, right after exams.

I have my next consultation on Monday, August 29th with Fielding, I'll let you guys know how it went;  I'm really looking forward to it...