Author Topic: Dr. Baker, South FL (Coral Gables)-any experiences?  (Read 6257 times)

Offline tunguska

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Has anyone had experiences with Dr. Stephan Baker in Coral Gables?

Despite a standing surgery date with Dr. Pope a few months down the road I still have yet to meet Dr. Pope and am still exploring local options.  Dr. Pope is a 4 hour drive away from me.

Yesterday I had a consult with Dr. Stephan Baker.  His office and his staff were nice enough.  He was surprisingly personable and very thorough.  He is the only surgeon of the four I've seen (apart from Dr. Pope) who immediately and independently recommended glandular excision combined with lipo.  My only concern was the volume estimate he provided as to how much tissue might be removed; it seemed low.  (I know, I know, it was just an estimate!)  Nevertheless, his explanation was precise and his coordinator was very nice and flexible.  I will naturally let things "marinate" for a few days.

This in no way is a reflection on Dr. Pope.  Quite the contrary, Dr. Pope has been tremendously gracious with his time and expertise.  It is simply a difficult geographic situation.

Any feedback would be great, especially if you've had experience with Dr. Baker!

-t
« Last Edit: November 06, 2008, 02:13:50 AM by tunguska »

Offline tunguska

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Dr. Baker is very confident and confidence-inspiring.  More importantly, he's local and the ambulatory center at which he performs the surgery is adjacent to a well regarded area hospital.  I've actually booked my surgery with him for November 25th!  I had been planning on January but he's unavailable.  It's so close now that it's almost all I think about.  I will post details after the operation!

-t

Offline george1977

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That's great to hear. Please keep us updated.

Offline ineedsurgery

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hey man congrats!!! keep us informed

Offline ineedsurgery

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Offline tunguska

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how much? excision n lipo?
Nearly $5,000.  He was the only one of the three surgeons I saw (not counting Dr. Pope who just checked out my pics) who agreed with Dr. Pope's finding that I need excision.  The others both said "If you're not happy with just lipo, you can come back."  That was wholly unacceptable, particularly because they would essentially charge me twice for doing what an experienced surgeon could do in one operation.

Surgery is on Tuesday!!  I can't wait!!

-t

Offline George Pope, M.D.

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Good luck with your surgery.  I'm sure you'll do well.  Be sure to keep the group posted, and post pics when you can.

Dr. Pope, M.D.
George H Pope, MD, FACS
Certified - American Board of Plastic Surgery
Orlando Plastic Surgery Center
www.georgepopemd.com
Phone: 407-857-6261

Offline tunguska

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I know this thread is very old but every now and then I still receive PMs asking about my progress and results from surgery with Dr. Baker of Coral Gables.

Overall I was extremely dissatisfied and cannot recommend Dr. Stephan Baker. The only positive results are the truly invisible scars, but overall I was back to feeling self-conscious about my chest within four weeks of surgery, despite following his instructions regarding compression garments to a T.

My consultations with him gave me confidence, but in hindsight I was probably blinded by the fact that Dr. Pope, the nearest expert at the time, was a 4 hour drive away, while Dr. Baker's office is practically in my backyard.

My consultations with Dr. Baker were very candid, even though he expressed that I had very minor gynecomastia. I intentionally did not mention tissue excision, to see if he mentioned it on his own--as I did with the other three local surgeons I visited. Of the locals, he was the only one who brought up excision on his own and he mentioned I probably needed some minor excision in addition to liposuction. As mentioned, however, he continued to comment that my condition was extremely minor. He even tried to dissuade me by showing me photos of his most severe cases.

Flash forward to the day before surgery and I was in his office to take my before photos with him. When I removed my outer shirt to expose my undershirt, he then said "wow, now I see what you mean, your condition is very pronounced when you're wearing just one shirt," despite having fully examined me with my shirt off twice by this time. This actually bolstered my confidence in him.

The day of surgery went very smoothly. Of course, I spent the night before glued to this site and began noticing that some people had photos of the excised tissue from their surgeries. When Dr. Baker visited me just prior to administering anesthesia, I asked if he would photograph the results. He said something like "I didn't bring a camera but I'll try."

Surgery was very smooth. The one thing I will say: he continually warned me that during post-op I would feel like my chest was on fire and someone was dancing on it. He may have been exaggerating or I may have a high pain threshold, but I literally just felt groggy from the anesthetic without any localized pain. That night, no pain. I never even touched the painkillers he prescribed.

The next day he removed the bandages and a weight I'd experienced for nearly a decade had been lifted. I was elated, but also very cautious. I'd read stories of people looking great immediately after surgery, only to return to their original state shortly thereafter. When I asked him if he took and photos during the surgery he either said "no" or "yes, but you don't want to see those!" I asked him if he kept specimens of the excised tissue and his only reply was that "they were very minor.'

My hopes of putting this embarrassing condition behind me slowly faded as time went on. I wore the compression undergarments all day every day and at night. I wore them at school, work, family functions, you name it. I had not just spent $3,000 to leave any possibility for anyone to point a finger at my post-op cooperation.

My follow up appointments with Dr. Baker literally brought me to tears. With each follow up I grew more and more frustrated and insulted. A huge problem is that Dr. Baker's office is kept extremely cold. Since I was never there at any time other than for my appointments, I cannot say whether this was done intentionally or not. Frankly, I'm finished giving him the benefit of the doubt.

So I sat in his arctic-cold office while he literally tried to convince me that I looked great so I should feel great. I told him about the cold and I told him that under normal circumstances nothing had changed. He simply said that if I was unhappy that he would gladly perform the operation again at a reduced cost of $1,000. But why would I ask someone who did a poor job on an operation to perform that operation again? "Excuse me sir, this milk is sour, may I have some more please?!"

I still feel embarrassed if I only wear one shirt without an undershirt because my nipples still look puffy through clothing, even though I'm tall and slender.

Dr. Baker would not accept the fact that there was any possible flaw in his performance. In my mind, there is reasonable doubt as to how thorough his performance was. He could have taken steps to assuage my doubts but he did not. His insensitive handling of the post-op situation was so degrading that I cancelled one of my last follow ups and never went back.

I want to be clear here, because Dr. Baker made this into a big deal: I was not expecting to recover looking like Arnold Schwarzenegger. I am naturally slender and simply wanted a flat chest like all the other slender guys I see walking around. In fact, about a year later I dropped down to very low body fat through diet and an exercise regimen and, despite seeing all six abs, my chest was still very embarrassing.

The best thing about Dr. Baker is that my chest looks like I never had the surgery. There are no scars and no irregularities. But I'm still embarrassed by my chest every single day.

Offline Dlink

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I know this thread is very old but every now and then I still receive PMs asking about my progress and results from surgery with Dr. Baker of Coral Gables.

Overall I was extremely dissatisfied and cannot recommend Dr. Stephan Baker. The only positive results are the truly invisible scars, but overall I was back to feeling self-conscious about my chest within four weeks of surgery, despite following his instructions regarding compression garments to a T.

My consultations with him gave me confidence, but in hindsight I was probably blinded by the fact that Dr. Pope, the nearest expert at the time, was a 4 hour drive away, while Dr. Baker's office is practically in my backyard.

My consultations with Dr. Baker were very candid, even though he expressed that I had very minor gynecomastia. I intentionally did not mention tissue excision, to see if he mentioned it on his own--as I did with the other three local surgeons I visited. Of the locals, he was the only one who brought up excision on his own and he mentioned I probably needed some minor excision in addition to liposuction. As mentioned, however, he continued to comment that my condition was extremely minor. He even tried to dissuade me by showing me photos of his most severe cases.

Flash forward to the day before surgery and I was in his office to take my before photos with him. When I removed my outer shirt to expose my undershirt, he then said "wow, now I see what you mean, your condition is very pronounced when you're wearing just one shirt," despite having fully examined me with my shirt off twice by this time. This actually bolstered my confidence in him.

The day of surgery went very smoothly. Of course, I spent the night before glued to this site and began noticing that some people had photos of the excised tissue from their surgeries. When Dr. Baker visited me just prior to administering anesthesia, I asked if he would photograph the results. He said something like "I didn't bring a camera but I'll try."

Surgery was very smooth. The one thing I will say: he continually warned me that during post-op I would feel like my chest was on fire and someone was dancing on it. He may have been exaggerating or I may have a high pain threshold, but I literally just felt groggy from the anesthetic without any localized pain. That night, no pain. I never even touched the painkillers he prescribed.

The next day he removed the bandages and a weight I'd experienced for nearly a decade had been lifted. I was elated, but also very cautious. I'd read stories of people looking great immediately after surgery, only to return to their original state shortly thereafter. When I asked him if he took and photos during the surgery he either said "no" or "yes, but you don't want to see those!" I asked him if he kept specimens of the excised tissue and his only reply was that "they were very minor.'

My hopes of putting this embarrassing condition behind me slowly faded as time went on. I wore the compression undergarments all day every day and at night. I wore them at school, work, family functions, you name it. I had not just spent $3,000 to leave any possibility for anyone to point a finger at my post-op cooperation.

My follow up appointments with Dr. Baker literally brought me to tears. With each follow up I grew more and more frustrated and insulted. A huge problem is that Dr. Baker's office is kept extremely cold. Since I was never there at any time other than for my appointments, I cannot say whether this was done intentionally or not. Frankly, I'm finished giving him the benefit of the doubt.

So I sat in his arctic-cold office while he literally tried to convince me that I looked great so I should feel great. I told him about the cold and I told him that under normal circumstances nothing had changed. He simply said that if I was unhappy that he would gladly perform the operation again at a reduced cost of $1,000. But why would I ask someone who did a poor job on an operation to perform that operation again? "Excuse me sir, this milk is sour, may I have some more please?!"

I still feel embarrassed if I only wear one shirt without an undershirt because my nipples still look puffy through clothing, even though I'm tall and slender.

Dr. Baker would not accept the fact that there was any possible flaw in his performance. In my mind, there is reasonable doubt as to how thorough his performance was. He could have taken steps to assuage my doubts but he did not. His insensitive handling of the post-op situation was so degrading that I cancelled one of my last follow ups and never went back.

I want to be clear here, because Dr. Baker made this into a big deal: I was not expecting to recover looking like Arnold Schwarzenegger. I am naturally slender and simply wanted a flat chest like all the other slender guys I see walking around. In fact, about a year later I dropped down to very low body fat through diet and an exercise regimen and, despite seeing all six abs, my chest was still very embarrassing.

The best thing about Dr. Baker is that my chest looks like I never had the surgery. There are no scars and no irregularities. But I'm still embarrassed by my chest every single day.

How did Dr. Baker manage to do surgery without looking like you had surgery? Where was the incision done, what type of devices were used? Ultrasonic? Even if there are no pictures, is there a post operation report or anything like that? Perhaps you could request that information for your records ?

Offline Gammy

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No offence intended to the OP, but this is a good lesson to other guys out there. Go to the best surgeon you can. Do not skimp on cost or be put off by distance to travel (within reason). It's your body, and you only really get one try at this.

Offline Dlink

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No offence intended to the OP, but this is a good lesson to other guys out there. Go to the best surgeon you can. Do not skimp on cost or be put off by distance to travel (within reason). It's your body, and you only really get one try at this.

Yeah, I know exactly what you mean but its not really possible to know who is the best surgeon. Its not like you can go to Amazon review system and sort a list by highest rated.

The information on these doctors are very hard to come by.

1. Websites which do rate doctors are often flawed. Majority of reviews are for non-gynecomastia procedures such as face lifts and women procedures. Many unhappy customers will write multiple negative reviews,etc.. Sometimes the doctor reviews himself incognito,etc..

2. The info on gynecomastia is hard to find on the website.
Some doctors will not even list the procedure or it will be listed as a bullet point under a lot of other things.

3. They cherry pick the before & after pictures(assuming that any pictures are available), many of low quality pictures or strange angles hard to see.

4. When contacting them, many doctors will have personal assistance which answer all their emails and ask like a shield while sending you marketing information when you are trying to get details on how a doctor operates with gynecomastia.

In the OP case, I don't think Dr. Baker even list gynecomastia on their website however it highly rated with various websites as well as has all the proper board membership and education requirements.

The problem is that everyone I'm looking at is board certified, medical school degrees, etc.... However the results are as different as night and day. The education seem to make little difference as the gynecomastia procedures are not learned in school but rather something the discover on their own apparently which varying methods and lack of any " text book" method of correcting it.

Its bit like the wild west. Some of the doctors on this forum may be here for marketing rather than expertise. For example, there was a Dr. from Texas who was use to be a featured doctor but later was actually banned form this forum.

I don't think the OP did anything stupid because Doctor he saw had like 5 out of 5 stars from some of these rating websites. How could he have known that he would not get good results. He had the board certification and the credentials and ratings showing him to be a good surgeon.

However apparently did not go a good job with Gynecomastia.


 

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