Hello all,
This is my story, writing it still in hospital 1 day post op. I will post my before and after pictures when I get back home from the hospital. I'm 24 now, and have had gyno on and off for the better part of 10 years. It wasn't by any means a serious case of gyno - but it was bad enough to affect me on a day to day basis, and that's why it had to go.
Background:
I first got gyno when I was about 12 in my left breast, had it for a year or so and it went away on its own. Then around 14-15 it came back in both breasts, the left side again worse than the right side. I had always been very skinny (think 6ft 130lb) which made the situation rather worse.
I had some hormonal disbalances since birth, and these were most likely responsible for the gyno. I was offered surgery in Denmark (where I grew up) which would be covered by the national health insurance but turned it down as my family had no faith in the surgeon. The proposed surgeon kept repeating it's only stored fat (bear in mind the 130lb I was packing then) and they'd only do lipo. Combined with the fact they only do a handful of these surgeries each year, it didn't seem right.
Throughout the next few years, the situation slowly got worse. The gyno would get worse periodically, typically in the summer months, where it would grow a little, be sore and generally be rather inconvenient. I was put on Tamoxifen by an endocrinologist in the Czech Rep (where I moved earlier in the year), which practically made me forget about the gyno. It was no longer sore, and although still obvious, it wasn't really causing me any problems anymore. Unfortunately when I stopped taking the medication, the situation reverted back to its prior state, and taking estrogen blockers for the rest of my life just didn't seem like the right call.
I changed my doctor when I decided to go ahead with the surgery, as the endocrinologist I was seeing wasn't supportive of the idea. She kept referring to surgery horror stories and that I should just live with it.
Luckily my new endocrinologist was a lovely supportive lady, who after running the necessary tests referred me to the plastic surgery dept of the hospital FNKV (Fakultni Nemocnice Kralovske Vinohrady), more specifically the chief doctor Dr. Miroslav Tvrdek. His resume is impressive and my family friends who are doctors themselves told me to stop worrying and have it done asap, that he is one of the best plastic surgeons in the country. FNKV has the oldest plastic surgery dept in czech and is held in high regard, and this man was in charge of it. It seemed like the right choice.
It is worth noting that I looked into private options as well (the surgery here is relatively cheap 1-2k euros so money wasn't an issue) - however there are no dedicated gynecomastia surgeons. However comparing the doctors resumes, and having heard the opinions of other doctors, I thought it best to go with the opinion of the doctor who referred me (who I absolutely trusted) and family friends. We shall see if I made the right choice!
I would also like to note, that I told myself I would not get the surgery until I hit a decent weight and body shape. I thought it vain to get surgery for a largely cosmetic issue without putting in some hard work of my own first. Over the course of the year I worked hard in the gym, put on 30lb, and that was enough for me to prove it to myself that I was serious about this.
Surgery:
I was admitted to hospital the day before my surgery, went through all the necessary paperwork and got accustomed to the hospital regime. It was the second time in a relatively short time period that I was hospitalized so no big stress. The night before the surgery I was given a sleeping pill, and in the morning I was given a sedative as pre-medication. I assume it was a benzo of some kind. Shortly after I was wheeled into the operating room, chatted to the anesthesiologist and before I knew it was post-op. The last I remember was thinking "you're talking garbage now, make sense!" and the first thing I remember upon waking up was asking everybody who passed by my bed "how it went" and "did they take all of it". I'm sure I was popular that day among the nurses.
I wasn't given a compression vest or side drains as had been expected. I was heavily compressed with bandages, and I have small drains in the areola itself. The first night was bad, as the bandaging hunched my back over so ended up sleeping in an armchair, as the backpain lying in bed was unbearable. On the upside I'm not really in any pain related to the surgery itself worth mentioning.
Today is the first postop day. I'm quite glad I don't the large drains affixed to my side, as the small ones alone hurt like &%¤# when I had my bandages changed. I haven't seen the doctor who performed the surgery yet, I will see him on Monday when I hopefully should get discharged (Total of 5 days as an inpatient - it's a Czech thing really. The doctors and hospitals prefer to over treat than run the risk of any complications. For me this means boredom and bad food, but it's good to know medical staff is on hand 24/7 in case anything goes wrong). The doctor who was changing my bandages said the surgery went well, that the entire gland was removed, I presume she was the one assisting.
I had my first glance at my chest today (1 day postop) and it looked strange. Didn't look like I expected it to, though to be fair I don't know what a flat chest should look like from my perspective. It looked sunken and disfigured, however, I'm bearing in mind that I was badly hunched over all night and there had been less than 24hrs since the surgery, so I will refrain from any definitive judgements as to the relative success until a much later point in time. I should have the small drains in the areola removed tomorrow, and will speak to the doctor about getting a vest instead. I wasn't told by anybody that I'd have to buy it/order it upfront, that was a bit of a letdown, but as long as I'm bandaged up I figure it shouldn't matter. In any case as they would like me to wear it for 6 weeks, I need to get something I can put on and off myself and wear under a shirt to work.
As for the recovery time before I can do sports again, I've heard different things. 3 weeks, 4 weeks, 6 weeks... I've got a ski trip in a month's time I plan to go on, we shall see how the progress is and whether the doctor signs off on it.
Communication:
Here's where I suppose the difference between state and private becomes obvious. There wasn't one person I was communicating, but numerous people, and I saw the surgeon only once. For a lot of people this would be a deal breaker, but again, this is a typical czech thing. The doctor who operated me is a busy man, and one of the best in the country reportedly. I had to accept this and deal with the state system if I wanted him to perform the surgery. Other than the compression vest and being quoted different recovery times, I'm not too worried about it. First and foremost I want the doctor to do a good job. Revision in a private clinic, should I be dissatisfied, is always an option.
I will update the thread with pictures and updates as they come along. I realise this is quite different to what most people experience (state hospital, state funded, 5 days inpatient stay for minor gyno case, only one consultation with the doctor) so thought it'd be worth the input. This doctor also works in a private clinic, so should I be satisfied, you could look into this option too should the czech prices be more appealing that those quoted elsewhere in Europe.
Topic: surgery in czech rep, state hospital with Dr. Miroslav Tvrdek (Read 2235 times)
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