Post-Surgery and still puffy

[Machinist]

I had surgery about 9 months ago and my nipples feel and look like there is gland still under my skin. I was assured by my surgeon that it would get better but at 9 months I'm not really sure. I'm just wondering if anyone else has experienced anything similar to this or did he just not remove enough gland? It's extremely depressing considering I thought I'd be done with gynecomastia but its still here.

[Jake]

Unfortunately this happens to a handful of guys.  Some surgeons (usually ones who aren't experienced enough with gyne) like to leave a little bit of breast tissue behind.  While this is standard procedure, some surgeons will leave a little too much gland behind and the result is still having some excess glandular breast tissue.  Most surgeons will reduce it to a point where it becomes a minor problem.  The best surgeons will reduce the problem enough to where your chest looks great even after a year.

My surgeon did this to me and I wasn't happy with how much he left behind.  My nipples aren't puffy and swollen anymore, but the areolas still stick out abnormally.  It's just not a big enough problem for me to warrant going back to him.  However, I did go back to him and discuss my concerns.  He wasn't happy but stated that I needed to think about it and when I come back he would consider a revision.

But he wasn't thinking of a REVISION.  I e-mailed his office back two weeks later telling them what happened and asked how much a revision would cost me.  They consulted the surgeon and he basically told them to tell me to wait a full year and I could come back and have liposuction done for another 3,500 dollars.  I got screwed out of the damn wazoo.  He reduced it enough to where he could deem there was no gynecomastia and not perform a revision.  He just wasn't experienced enough to do a great job the first time around.  But I can live with where I'm at now.  Will I revise in the future?  Probably, with a much better surgeon.

You can go back to your PS and tell him and see what he says.  He may perform a revision based on how bad it is.  He may not.
Just be calm, cool and tell him that it still really bothers you.

[DrBermant]

I had surgery about 9 months ago and my nipples feel and look like there is gland still under my skin. I was assured by my surgeon that it would get better but at 9 months I'm not really sure. I'm just wondering if anyone else has experienced anything similar to this or did he just not remove enough gland? It's extremely depressing considering I thought I'd be done with gynecomastia but its still here.

Posting Standard After Gynecomastia Surgery Pictures can help others better understand your concerns.

I see many patients who complain of residual Puffy Nipple Gynecomastia after another doctor's operation.  There are many possible problems causing such a deformity.  The most common is remaining gland behind the areola as seen in these Anatomy of Puffy Nipple Drawings.  Check out the images with the link for remaining gland after surgery to see what I mean. 

Healing tissues, and scars can be other causes of this problem.   

Sometimes revision surgery is an option.  Options depend on the problem to be treated which is best discussed with your doctor or someone you see for a second opinion evaluation.

Hope this helps,

Michael Bermant, MD
Learn More About Revision Gynecomastia Surgery

[glandular]

I had surgery about 9 months ago and my nipples feel and look like there is gland still under my skin. I was assured by my surgeon that it would get better but at 9 months I'm not really sure. I'm just wondering if anyone else has experienced anything similar to this or did he just not remove enough gland? It's extremely depressing considering I thought I'd be done with gynecomastia but its still here.

At 9 months, it's unlikely to go away. I think you may need revision surgery to excise any excess glandular tissue under the areolas. I'm in a similar situation, yes it's annoying, but have hope. Perhaps you'll need to find another surgeon if yours denies that there's an issue.