Do you doctors require permission from personal dr.

[steelhead]

Do you doctors require permission from personal physician ?
As I would like to keep this hidden from all my family and friends.
But I'm 39 years old and reading some of the other posts some require
ones personal doctor to sign off on the surgery. This would be kind of
awkward to bring up on my next check up.

[DrBermant]

Do you doctors require permission from personal physician ?
As I would like to keep this hidden from all my family and friends.
But I'm 39 years old and reading some of the other posts some require
ones personal doctor to sign off on the surgery. This would be kind of
awkward to bring up on my next check up.

When one of my patients has a significant medical problem, understanding limitations for elective surgery can be quite important. If a medical doctor puts a patient on medication that needs to be stopped before surgery, having clearance to do that is critical for patient safety. In most cases the doctor does not need to know the type of surgery, just aspects that relate to the medical issues like use of adrenaline, sedation, and other medications that can interact with medical conditions they might be treating. For the vast majority of my patients, we do not need nor ask for clearance for the surgery. However, operating on a 65 year old on multiple heart medication, medical clearance should be required before considering any elective surgery, especially one where the tumescent solution contains adrenaline which can stimulate the heart.

Hope this helps,

Michael Bermant, M.D.
Board Certified
American Board of Plastic Surgery
Member: American Society of Plastic Surgeons and American Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons
Specializing in Gynecomastia and Surgical Sculpture of the Male Chest
(804) 748-7737

[Dr. Elliot Jacobs]

I do require pre-op blood and urine tests for all my patients -- just for safety.  These tests can be done by your doc or in a walk-in laboratory.

Not all my patients require medical clearance from their family doctor.  However, age, medications, prior medical conditions, etc, may mandate that a doctor provide written clearance for the surgery.  On the other hand, one need not be extremely specific about what procedure you are going to have done.

If indeed you do go to your family physician, however, he is bound by doctor-patient confidentiality not to discuss your medical history (or surgery) with anyone else.

Dr Jacobs

[Litlriki]

In most cases, gynecomastia patients are relatively young and healthy and require no pre-operative laboratory testing, unless they have endocrine issues that need to be handled before their surgery.  For older patients, or those with medical issues or other indications for testing, we follow established guidelines for pre-operative testing, including chest x-ray, EKG, and laboratory studies.  In most cases, I don't require notification of the primary care physician, but occasionally, it is appropriate to have a patients medical doctor involved in surgical planning. 

Rick Silverman