color of nipples

[strato]

I notice from the pre-post pictures that after the surgery nipples usually darken in color. Do you know the reason of this color change and is it permanent? Thank you!!

[DrBermant]

I notice from the pre-post pictures that after the surgery nipples usually darken in color. Do you know the reason of this color change and is it permanent? Thank you!!

The areola usually expands with bigger breasts.  Like a balloon, with deflation (surgery) there is a reduction in diameter unless there is a layer of remaining gland after gynecomastia surgery.  Roll your cursor over that text or image and you can see a drawing of gland that can be left behind after surgery.  I have seen many examples of gland adherent to the muscle areola complex that keeps the areola puffy and larger diameter.  That is why I prefer to target the gland first with my Dynamic Technique for Gynecomastia.

Check out the many before after pictures of this  Areola / Nipple Reduction Gallery, Areola Reduction Picture Gallery, and Pictures of Areola Reduced with Gynecomastia Surgery.  These results are typical for my sculpture of my patients.

Hope this helps,

Michael Bermant, MD
Learn More About Gynecomastia and Male Chest Surgery
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Bruising can darken tissue, but with my techniques the bruising for my patients is negligible.  The most common cause is that the areola / nipple complex shrinks with surgery.  The same number of pigmentation cells in a smaller area darkens the tissue.

Here is a balloon demonstration of nipple / areola shrinkage typically seen with my gynecomastia surgery.  When a breast gets bigger, so does the diameter of the areola nipple complex.  Remove tissue from the breast and it is like this balloon deflation.  However, not all tissues shrink the same.  Tissue over stretched, older patients, scars, and gland remaining after gynecomastia surgery can limit this decrease.  Here is a demonstration of deflation with areola staying the same size.  That is why I prefer to target this gland first with my surgery.

Take your time to browse through the galleries of nipple areola pictures before and after gynecomastia surgery to see actual results for my patients.

Hope this helps,

Michael Bermant, MD
Learn More About Gynecomastia and Male Breast Reduction

[Dr. Elliot Jacobs]

Yes, the color of the areolas (the pigmented skin surrounding the actual nipple) will always darken somewhat after gyne surgery.  And the diameter of the areola diminishes as well.  Reason:  areolas are skin structures and will stretch or tighten depending on how much tissue is underneath them.  Remove the tissue and the tissues tighten naturally.  And when they do, the diameter of the areola reduces naturally and the color of the skin of the areola will darken as well.  Why?  There are a fixed number of pigment cells in the areolar skin.  When this skin shrinks, the pigment cells are cramped closer together, thereby giving a darker appearance.  By the way, it is this natural tendency to shrink that makes actual surgical reduction of nipple diameter a very rare event (and it eliminates the scarring as well).

Check out these photos and look at the changes in color and diameter of the nipple/areolas:  http://www.gynecomastiasurgery.com/photo.asp

Dr Jacobs

[strato]

very well understood. thank you very much!

[Dave_8]

Like a balloon.