42 yr. old Gyne man in London, Ontario, Canada......

[VariLex]

42 yr. old Gyne man in London, Ontario, Canada......

         Hello All, I am a 42 year old man in London Ontario, Canada. I  have lived with "the boys" (Gyne) for 30 years all the time through school and after it progressively worsened. As the years have come to this, I now wonder where can I get some treatment in my area. Also, not only surgical ( I have OHIP coverage, but will have to pay for extras, Lipo I believe ) and of course some pre-op and post op Compression and shaping garments.
       
          To start, where is a good place and brand of Compression/Shaping shirts in the London Ontario, Canada area
- or would I do better to order on-line, etc?

Thanks to Everyone on this site,
I only found about this forum.
I feel stronger already!

V-Lex

       

[Grandpa Bambu]

V-Lex...

Welcome to the site Broh! 

If you are wanting to go the OHIP route, Dr. Fielding is your man...

Any sports store will sell good compression shirts. UnderArmour is a good brand.

GB

[VariLex]

Well Hello GB,
 Pleased to make Your acquaintance and have your reply and info, I was not aware that a sporting goods store was an option. Never would have thought that. Thanks.
 Now I am curious to You saying "going the OHIP route"..... forgive me I am very new to this , so.... What are my options as to treatment, as opposed to OHIP. Are there private clinics in this area that would be a better and more qualified for "the boys"?
 I have read your writings in this forum, and appreciate your sincerity and honesty!

V-Lex

[confused_satisfaction]

Hey VeriLex

I recently had surgery done at st. joes.. i started out with my family doctor and they referred me to a few different doctors. Eventually I ended up with Dr. Richards at the hand and upper limb clinic at st joes. (He doesnt seem to be well known or anything, but he seemed to know what he was talking about and I am very impressed with my results at this point [I can post my pics if you would like to see]). I am still only 2 days post op and am taped up a bit but there is definitely improvement. From my understanding, I only recieved the excision and no lipo. I didn't really get a chance to talk with him after, but my parents did and they didn't say anything about having lipo done or anything. I will find out this wednesday when I have a follow up.

If you have any questions, let me know and I will be checking back here on a regular basis.

[monsterclean]

Hey confused_satisfaction,

Could you post some pictures?

I'm also in London, ON and looking to get this problem correction.  What other specialists were you referred to and why did you pick Dr. Richards?

[confused_satisfaction]

hey.. i wish i had more pictures to offer pre-op but i only have the one

pre op


post op

[confused_satisfaction]

oh yea. i was referred to dr van uum first. and then i was sent to dr richards. i was a little nervous about the whole thing at first, not thinking he had much experience with this type of surgery, but after talkign to him I was more comfortable.

I am more then happy with the results this far and I cant wait to get these tubes out!

[monsterclean]

Wow, that looks great.  Congrats to you.

What are the drains for and how long are they expected to be in there?  What are they attached to?

Also, if you dont mind, what was your total cost with Dr. Richards?

Did anyone else have tubes post-op?

[confused_satisfaction]

well first off, i didnt get a chance to talk with the dr after. my parents did however and he didnt say that he did lipo. so right now everything is covered by ohip. when i first met him he talked about possibly doing lipo but he didnt say anything right before the operation. the lipo will cost you because it is considered cosmetic, but if you only get the excision, then you'd be covered by ohip.

one of the doctors on here will have a better idea of what the drains are hooked up to. i am expected to have them in till monday now, depending on how much gets drained from now and tomorrow (i have someone coming to my house each day changing my dressings ans such). on wednesday i will have a better idea of things when i go to see the dr for a followup.

let me know if you have any more questions

[Grandpa Bambu]

What are the drains for?

Most PS's use Tumescent Liposuction(Tumescent liposculpture was developed by the dermatologist Dr. Jeffrey A. Klein, M.D.,in 1985). The tumescent technique , which involves injecting a large volume of saline solution containing lidocaine (a local anesthetic) and a drug called Epinephrine. Epinephrine shrinks capillaries to minimize blood loss. This fluid, once the surgery is over, needs to be drained off. Some PS's use drains consisting of a long tube leading to a drain bottle to collect the residual saline solution. However, some PS's don't use drains. It's not a necessity...

How long are they expected to be in there?

No longer than a few weeks at most. 

What are they attached to?

More than likely, the tube is placed just inside the lipo incision.
 

Did anyone else have tubes post-op?

Some do, some don't ... I didn't have drains. The dressing soaked up the fluid. No biggie there! 

Also, if you dont mind, what was your total cost with Dr. Richards?

x2... what was your cost. IYDM.


GB

[Grandpa Bambu]

Now I am curious to You saying "going the OHIP route"..... forgive me I am very new to this , so.... What are my options as to treatment, as opposed to OHIP. Are there private clinics in this area that would be a better and more qualified for "the boys"?

Yes, a private clinic is an option. Would be much more 'personal' than a hospital. If you contact a few PC's ask if could claim a portion of the procedure through OHIP.

I don't know of any private clinics in London. Sorry dude...  Search the Net, I'm sure you could find a few. 

Don't be fooled into thinking that a surgeon who operates out of a 'Private Clinic', is more qualified. This just isn't so!

Also, make sure you do your 'homework' on the doc that you are considering. Any GP can take a weekend crash course on 'Cosmetic Surgery' and give him/herself the title of 'Cosmetic Surgeon'. Be very careful!!! Check out the perspective PS's credentials. Ensure they are certified and are fully experienced in Gynecomastic Reduction Surgery. 75 to 150 procedures a year is what you should be aiming for. You know the old saying... 'Practice Makes Perfect'.

GB

[VariLex]

Wow - Great advice from You all.

I will have to do my homework, and go on from here

Thanks again

[VariLex]

Hey confused_satisfaction

 Your Surgery looks very Good. - now You say that Dr Richards preformed that, very nice! I will talk to my Dr. and find out what the steps are for that . Thank You for Your true honesty and openness in this matter . I like I said am new to this whole idea of correction and this forum for support in this damn 30 year situation that i have found myself in.
 
  Thank You "GB", and "confused_satisfaction", and everyone that private messaged me - I do feel much Stronger now already!

  Say "confused_satisfaction", where did you get your compression vests? as they are needed for after surgical care are they not? I looked for them in the Sports (specialty and regular) shops "GB", and couldn't find any in London here - would I have to go to Toronto for the Compression Vests?

[Grandpa Bambu]

VariLex...

If you are talking about the vest supplied by a PS, you would have to get one from him/her or go to a specialty health care store. The garment that I was referring to is a 'sports' compression shrit/vest that can be easily found at sports stores... As I mentioned, UnderArmour is a good brand.

GB

[mc88]

I'm new here, and started reading this forum because I am also from London. I'm only 20 years old, and have been affected by this problem for 8 or 9 years probably. I didnt know it was fixable until I did a little research. I am interested in getting this problem fixed within the next 3 or 4 years.
I like wearing tighter fitting clothing, but feel I cant as much as i'd like because my nipples are very visible, so I have ot hunch over a bit.

I'm not from London, I just go to school here, but will likely be living here for the rest of my life. I was just wondering what the first steps were to getting this problem fixed? And what costs are involved?