Consultations with both Dr. Delgado and Bermant

[curious]

To begin, I currently go to school in Southern California. I happen to live bi-coastally, so I was fortunate enough to visit with both Dr. Delgado in Novato and Dr. Bermant in Virginia for consultations. I'd like to share some of my observations in comparing their practices.

My first consultation was with Dr. Bermant around 18 months ago. As is fairly obvious from this website and my visit with him at his office, he is extremely thorough, almost to the point of being obsessive compulsive, which is a comfort. I've found the office staff at plastic surgeons' offices to be quite friendly and patient-oriented, and Dr. Bermant's practice was no exception. Dr. Bermant himself can be a bit difficult to deal with as he is in many ways the classic "surgical personality" -- ie. he was a bit stiff in communication, and became a bit irritated at certain questions I had--specifically with regard to recovery time and with how aggressive his technique was. This was not because he did not know the answers or was trying to hide anything from me--I think we just communicated on different wavelengths. A specific subject that he was sensitive about was in regard to another poster on this forum by the nickname Toaster who was unhappy about his surgery with Dr. Bermant because Toaster felt Bermant's surgery was not aggressive enough.

Ultimately after reviewing many of Dr. Bermant's before & after pictures on his extremely informative website, I felt his approach to surgery was not aggressive enough for me, and I decided to visit with Dr. Delgado near my home in California.

Dr. Delgado's staff, like Dr. Bermant's is extremely patient oriented. Dr. Delgado himself is a relaxed and easy-going personality, a bit of a contrast to Dr. Bermant. However, beneath his easy-going nature it is apparent that he is also quite confident with his craft, likely because of the hundreds of gynecomastia procedures he does per year (Dr. Bermant also has a high volume of mastectomies, albeit in a more rural area). By the time I met with Dr. Delgado, I was a bit more sophisticated about the procedure, so perhaps I was not as annoying. However, he was very attentive with my questions and when I had to reschedule my procedure because of some outside difficulties, Dr. Delgado actually came out from inside the operating room where he was preparing for a surgery to say hello and convey his apologies for the need to reschedule.

Ultimately, I decided to go with Dr. Delgado for my surgery, which is scheduled for this coming Friday on 12/1/05. While I felt Dr. Delgado was more of a 'people person' this is not the reason I decided to choose him for as my plastic surgeon. Nor is it the cost of the procedure, as he is a tad more expensive than Dr. Bermant. Rather, it is because while looking through their respective before & after portfolios I felt more confident that I would be less likely to require a "touch-up" procedure with Dr. Delgado due to the more aggressive/natural appearance of his 'after' photos (ie. there was significantly more breast tissue taken out while his patients still retained a natural and masculine chest contour). After all, who wants to cut their breasts off twice?

This is not to besmirch Dr. Bermant. His obsessive attention to detail is comforting for our relatively neurotic population. However, I was not convinced that he would be aggressive enough with his technique. There are pros and cons to the styles of both surgeons--I just happened to like Dr. Delgado's a bit more. Anyways, just thought I'd share my 2 cents.

Also, a last question for anyone who's had surgery with Dr. Delgado--I'm currently scheduling my return flight home for after I have my drains removed. Were you able to move around (ie. enough to board a plane) after you had the drains out, or did you need a day to rest before you were able to walk anywhere comfortably? Please let me know!

I will be posting pics from my Delgado experience immediately before and after, as well as at 6 weeks, 3 months, and 6 months, if anyone is interested. Please wish me luck and faith--hopefully I can follow so many others on this site to a normal appearance with masculine contours. My chest has been one of the most psychologically difficult aspects of my life for me to handle for so long now, I can't really remember what it was like to wear a normal t-shirt without some childish logo across the chest.

Lastly, my deepest thanks to the members of this board who have shared their advice, surgical experiences, and often startlingly personal stories. Your posts have meant more than you might realize. If there is anything I can do to help anyone in a similar situation, please let me know. My gratitude.

[HEG]

Thank you very much for the insightful post. I too am looking at Delgado so I would much appreciate you keeping us updated. Best of luck to you!!

[RottonDane]

Could you tell us what both perspective price quotes were?

[curious]

Dr. Delgado is booked about 8-12 months in advance. I don't recall Bermant's specific quote but it was about 2k less than Delgado's.

[HEG]

Dr. Delgado is booked about 8-12 months in advance. I don't recall Bermant's specific quote but it was about 2k less than Delgado's.

Holy cow 8-12 months in advance!!  

[curious]

just got back from my surgery. abdomen flank lipo done at same time. lipo hurts more. chest looks flat feels great during the brief peek i had right after. gonna take some vicodin for my stomch. dr. gaynor and delgado were great. will update later.

[curious]

1 day post-op from surgery. The amount of edema in my groin/testicles from the surgery was pretty significant despite me wearing tight underwear. (banana hammock anyone?) In any case things are going well. I had lipo of my abdomen and flanks as well and that's a bit more uncomfortable. My groin swelling is probably the most remarkable aspect as I can't walk around without duck waddling, and it looks pretty lame. Otherwise my chest feels great. I've had a quick peak at my chest while Dr. Delgado was checking my drains to make sure they had no kinking, and it looks so flat I can't even express in words how happy I am. The vicodin, melanin and benadryl are doing well to keep me fairly sedate. Melanin's great for fast healing as it lets me sleep. I'll show everyone the after pics once i have my drains out. My before pics are not with me but i'll bring them out too. I am really just sitting tight and keeping faith that everything will work out ok.

Dr. Delgado is a savant. He does 3-6 of these procedures a week according to his circulation nurse. That means he does 150-300 a year, which is phenomenal. Because I knew that if my surgeon screwed up it might not be correctable, I decided to go with the guy who had the best track record. Imagine the almost complete lack of complaints from patients after literally thousands of procedures. On e-bay that would make him a true 'power-seller'. He was more expensive than others, but I'd guess the reason is because he's in more demand.

Hopefully once the healing is complete I can be proud of walking around in a white wifebeater, or god forbid--topless. Screw androstene for putting my in this position in the first place, but thank god for my parents giving me a loan and for Dr. Delgado going to medical school so he could reverse what these sports "supplement" a$$holes have done to me. Not that I'm bitter or anything. : )

Take care all.

[ausguy]

good on ya mate!

Hope the results turn out great, and am looking forward to seeing your pre/post pics.

When you said that you wanted someone more surgically agressive, did you mean one that gets you the most flat you can be?

later!

[HEG]

1 day post-op from surgery. The amount of edema in my groin/testicles from the surgery was pretty significant despite me wearing tight underwear. (banana hammock anyoine?) In any case things are going well. I had lipo of my abdomen and flanks as well and that's a bit more uncomfortable. My groin swelling is probably the most remarkable aspect as I can't walk around without duck waddling, and it looks pretty lame. Otherwise my chest feels great. I've had a quick peak at my chest while Dr. Delgado was checking my drains to make sure they had no kinking, and it looks so flat I can't even express in words how happy I am. The vicodin, melanin and benadryl are doing well to keep me fairly sedate. Melanin's great for fast healing as it lets me sleep. I'll show everyone the after pics once i have my drains out. My before pics are not with me but i'll bring them out too. I am really just sitting tight and keeping faith that everything will work out ok.

Dr. Delgado is a savant. He does 3-6 of these procedures a week according to his circulation nurse. That means he does 150-300 a year, which is phenomenal. Because I knew that if my surgeon screwed up it might not be correctable, I decided to go with the guy who had the best track record. Imagine the almost complete lack of complaints from patients after literally thousands of procedures. On e-bay that would make him a true 'power-seller'. He was more expensive than others, but the reason is because he's in more demand. If his costs went down, he'd be overbooked even more than 12 months in advance. From a young physician's perspective, trust me--this guy is the real McCoy.

Hopefully once the healing is complete I can be proud of walking around in a white wifebeater, or god forbid--topless. Screw androstene for putting my in this position in the first place, but thank god for my parents giving me a loan and for Dr. Delgado going to medical school so he could reverse what these sports "supplement" a$$holes have done to me. Not that I'm bitter or anything. : )

Take care all.

Thanks for the update! And wow can I empathize with you in regard to the andro induced gynecomastia. I did a lot of 19nor my freshmen year of college and knew absolutely nothing about it at the time (including proper PCT obviously). Well now I'm paying the price. Delgados before/after pics looked amazing and it sounds like you are another success story. Due to a job change in the distant future I just don't know if I can waith 12 months though damn.  :-/

[tatatoothy]

I had surgery with Dr. Delgado on 11/3 in Novato.  I am very pleased with how the procedure went.  He is a true master of his craft and is very personable.  His staff is great, and his facilities top notch.  I booked him 3 months in advance.  

I am now four weeks post op.  After 5 days of discomfort I had my drains removed, and to answer your question you should be able to board a plane after drain removal as long as you don't have to carry anything.  You won't be able to put anything in the overhead compartment, or lift your arms over your head for that matter.  I didn't regain full range of motion in my arms until day 10 or so.   I flew home to So-Cal on day 10 and I was able to lift my bag in and out of the car and for baggage check.

After you get the drains removed you will be a lot more comfortable.  I had no pain, and had my stitches removed on the same day.  For me, taking a shower after coming home from Delgado's office was heavenly. I applied the provided zinc ointment to my scars and drains sites twice daily until the scabbing was gone.  

I would recommend getting the $100 wear-with-all compression vest that he sells, as well as the $65 silicone sheeting when you get your drains out.  The vest is very comfortable and has a front zipper.  The silicone sheeting is working well so far to lighten the appearance of my scars.  I started using the silicone once all scabbing had fallen off, around the 2-2.5 week mark.

I have begun massaging the surgery area in hopes of speeding up the reduction in swelling as well as to break up the scar tissue.  Dr. Delgado specifically mentioned massaging the drain sites, so I'm giving them extra attention.

I am two weeks away from losing the vest and I can't wait!    Things are looking better every day and I'm excited to see where I'll be in a few months.

Good luck w/ your recovery!

[curious]

Thanks for the insight! I will most definitely take your advise on the zinc ointment, silicone sheeting, etc. I am currently two days post-op with Delgado. The vest itches terribly in back, but the swelling my groin has begun to go down a bit (I recall when Dr. Delgado took a look at me yesterday he said "Geez man, look at  your yanker.") Still, wonder what it would be like to have a 4 inch in girth hog. Oh well, perhaps another life.

Drains have slowed considerably, and not sure if they're going to drain much more over the next day or so. So other than the remnant swelling in my groin and the itchiness of the vest, I'm doing well. I look forward to that heavenly shower. And as I said before, the pre and post-op pics will be up once I get a hold of em.

[curious]

Oh and about the 12 months in advance thing, I think my situation was a bit odd, so 3-5 months is more realistic for Delgado as I understand it these days. Just give his office a call or go to his website at dr-delgado.com to make sure.

[curious]

Yesterday I became a bit tense about the amount of edema in my groin from the lipo, but I called Dr. Delgado and he assauged my neurosis.

Today I had my drains out. Sum total I drained about 250 cc from each side. Unfortunately there was a kink in the left side so there was some blood stasis in it when the drains were removed today.

Let me be frank--taking out these drains was the most painful experience of my life, aside from the time that I severed my finger in the weight room a few years ago in college. The drain removal itself was not too difficulty--they were stitched into place, and it tugged a bit at my skin as the stitches broke. However, I thought that this would be the end of it. No such luck. Because there was a kink in the left sided drain, Dr. Delgado had to manually express the coagulated blood from my chest till it looked roughly the same as my left side. When you "express" clotted blood, you basically work your fingers/knuckles over it in a kneading fashion till it squeezes out the opening in the skin, kind of like working the last bits of toothpaste out of an old fashion tube of crest. The feeling as it came out was not 'odd' or 'quirky' as one might think, but rather like that of acid being excreted from your skin. I have never in my life become light headed from pure pain. However, I broke out into a sweat and spots of white were dancing in front of my eyes. From what I understand, I think this means I was nearing what is known as the "pain threshold" -- that is, the physiologic limit of pain, beyond which you will lose consciousness. I suspect that if Dr. Delgado had pressed any harder I would have passed out.

Looking at my chest, it was a bit startling to see how bruised it was even before he expressed it--I suppose in large part from the stasis of the blood that was unable to leave the kinked drain. However, once this terrible process was complete and I looked at myself in the mirrior, it was like some sort of ethereal dream. My suspicion is that Dr. Delgado's usage of drains allows him to be far more precise and aggressive in terms of the amount of tissue he is able to remove as compared to other surgeons. I went from the sheer horror of having the clots expressed from my wound to an odd sort of disbelief.

Even now looking down at my chest on some level I fear that if I fall asleep and reawaken my old t*ts will be back again. It is so hard for me to finally accept that my old life of embarrassment and shame with my awkwardly folded arms and t-shirts with logos across the front and taping down those stupid pink puffy nipples with paper tape till the skin around my nipples blisters and weeps with inflammation and buying those f*cking Underarmour shirts that pushed my chest down so hard I had difficulty breathing--all of that is gone. This terrible feminizing sickness, that seemed so inescapable before this, staring at me everytime I stepped into the shower, poking out every time I've thought about being intimate with a girl,  mocking me with tiny jiggles everytime I thought about jogging without a shirt or going to the beach with friends. Suddenly it is history and it makes me almost hysterical with disbelief to try and accept that.

Dr. Delgado changed in my mind in that moment of disappearance from a butcher to a saint. I keep thinking of that scene at the end of Shawshank Redemption where Morgan Freeman is narrating what joy he might imagine when he hopes to find Andy Dufrene in Mexico, and as he is narrating it you see him walking on the beach to meet his lifelong friend. The sense of relief is profound.

I know you guys understand. It is just so unfathomable to me the amount of bull$hit i put up with for this chest. And I am so so so greatful to the many kind and brave souls on this bored who have shared their struggles and advice and insight so that I could find Dr. Delgado and not choose a physician that would have done an incomplete job. It was worth the money. Actually, it was worth far more than what he charged. I signed onto this forum a few years ago with the name 'curious' because that's all I was at the time. I didn't realize this problem was going to become such a deep part of my psyche--I didn't realize it was going to make me depressed and anxious and neurotic to a degree that would ultimately show up in nearly every aspect of my life. But it did, I went from curious to anxious to depressed. To all those idiots who say you can 'accept' yourself as you are and that surgery is unnatural, I say stop shoving your crackhead opinions down my throat. Surgery isn't fun, it's not easy and it's not cheap. To add some crap philosophy to it that really is based on nothing but an arbritrary set point and shows an inability to accept yourself is both condescending and unnecessary. It's like telling a person having a heart attack that having open-bypass surgery is 'cheating'. Or telling someone whose child has cancer that chemotherapy is the devil's work. All because you don't understand it does not mean that it is bad.

Ok, the wood on my soap box is starting to wear a little thin so let me step down for a second. In addition to the forums here, I want to thank Janice, Dr. Gaynor, Elisa, and Dr. Delgado of course for being such essential parts of a practice so commmitted to excellence in the art of medicine. It reminds you that plastic surgery isn't just about the shallow Nip Tuck Hollywood crap, but that there's so much more these artists can do. It's a shame that a few bad seeds have created such a cynicism about what is truly such a noble art.

I don't know if that really made much sense, and my thanks if you are still reading. Even if no one makes it to this point in the post, that alright--I had to say it to someone, even if it's just an empty blue box on gynecomastia.org. It's been such a long path to this, and I still have so much more healing and exercise to go before I am through, I just needed to get this off my chest -- through all of the ridicule and shame and quiet embarrassment I've finally found a moment of peace, and for that I am truly grateful.

[Houstonian]

is the draining process you mentioned always that painful or was it just for you because of some kind of complication?

is the draining process something that everyone who has the surgery goes through or only for certian cases? like for someone with a mild case and low body fat % would they have to do that?

btw i read your entire post, good luck with your new life.

[jc71]

Curious - did you have general or local with sedation?  If local, were you actually awake during the surgery.  On his website, it says something about the possibility of being awake during the surgery.  Were you knocked out or awake?