How do you treat enlarged breasts in men?

If you are a man with enlarged breasts, you may be refraining from certain physical activities due to emotional distress from having the condition. The overdevelopment of men’s breasts is called gynecomastia, and it’s a condition that can affect men of all ages. Read on to learn more about gynecomastia and how to treat it.

What is gynecomastia?

Gynecomastia affects approximately one out of every two men at some point in their lives. Breasts are made up of fatty and glandular tissue. Gynecomastia consists of excess fatty and glandular tissue and can be present in one or both breasts. Sometimes men have excess breast skin as well.

Causes

Gynecomastia is often caused by an imbalance of the hormones estrogen and testosterone, and affects newborns, boys going through puberty and older men. Other causes include genetics, certain types of medication, certain health conditions and weight gain.

Treatment

Weight loss may help somewhat but will rarely alone result in the breast reduction men desire. Reduction mammaplasty is plastic surgery that reduces breast size, improves nipple anatomy and improves chest contours. Liposuction to remove the excess fatty and glandular tissue may be the only thing that’s needed for some patients. Others may need a procedure that involves making an incision around the areola, or the darkened part around the nipple, to remove the nubbin core of breast tissue, suction sculpt surrounding fatty tissue and remove excess skin to lift the areola for a more youthful appearance.

Male breast reduction is an outpatient procedure with local standby or general anesthesia. There is very little downtime required.

Candidates for surgery

If you’ve tried other non-surgical treatments to try to correct your enlarged breasts, you may need surgery. To be considered for surgery, you should be in good physical health, nonsmoking, have a positive outlook, specific goals and realistic expectations for surgical outcomes. It’s important that your breast development has stabilized to avoid future corrective surgery if breasts continue to develop.

If you’re interested in learning more about treatment for gynecomastia, schedule a consultation with Dr. Weinstein by calling (908) 879-2222.

Posted in Gynecomastia on March 15th, 2021

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