Male breasts, or gynecomastia, is a condition that occurs in many men. Gynecomastia leads to swelling in the breast tissues. The condition can be embarrassing and can cause self-esteem issues but can be resolved.
What Is Gynecomastia?
Gynecomastia is the appearance of male breasts. It can impact the size of breasts, can increase the size of areolae, and can even be asymmetrically spread across the chest.
Gynecomastia is not painful. It is benign most of the time, unless you note the dimpling of the skin around the areolae or any secretion of milk.
Who Can Get Male Breasts?
All men are born with small amounts of breast tissue that can increase in size if certain conditions are met. Many men are at risk for getting male breasts:
• Unfortunately, 60% to 90% of infants can get this condition while the placenta converts DHEA and DHEA-SO4 into estrone and estradiol, which affects both mother and baby.
• About 4% to 69% of teenagers have pubertal gynecomastia that triggers chaotic hormone imbalances and fatty tissue around the breast area.
• Approximately 24% to 65% of elderly men can get senile gynecomastia as the aging process naturally diminishes testosterone with age. Elderly men also experience reduced lean body mass, throwing off the estrogen-to-testosterone ratio even further.
• Obese men are likely to develop excess skin around the entire body. The increased fatty tissue leads to higher aromatase activity. This increases estrogen in ratio to testosterone, which causes swelling of the breast tissue.
• Obese men that lose weight might have leftover excess skin that sags. This is known as chest ptosis and does not resolve with simple weight loss.
• Gynecomastia in infants and teenagers is easily resolved. This can take place within weeks for infants and within two years at the very most for young adults.
How Did I Get Gynecomastia?
Your natural testosterone and estrogen levels had to have been affected to cause this condition. Even if the levels are within normal ranges, a higher ratio of estrogen to testosterone can be triggered by several different conditions.
Having liver conditions can cause gynecomastia. Increased stress to the adrenal glands, along with aromatization, causes less testosterone.
Cirrhosis leads to higher androstenedione, which is converted into estrogen. Ethanol or alcohol disturbs testosterone production in general, and the phytoestrogens in alcoholic drinks disrupt hormonal ratios.
Having hypogonadism also leads to gynecomastia. Along with increasing chances for breast cancer, hypogonadism directly affects the genitals to produce less testosterone.
About 10% to 25% of men also suffer from medication-related gynecomastia or pseudogynecomastia. These medications/therapies are well-known culprits in aggravating hormones:
• HIV medication
• Chemotherapy
• Hormone treatments
• Ulcer and heartburn treatments
• Calcium channel blockers
• Aldosterone antagonists
What Is the Solution for Male Breasts?
Gynecomastia is a treatable condition. Surgery for gynecomastia involves liposuction of fatty tissue and excision of glandular breast tissue. More than 90% of those who underwent gynecomastia surgery are satisfied with the results.
Fixing Your Gynecomastia Issue
Dr. Foued Hamza, a skilled cosmetic surgeon, can address your gynecomastia using male breast reduction. During your initial consultation, Dr. Hamza will carefully analyze various factors of your chest to ensure your procedure will produce the results you’re looking for.
Dr. Hamza personally attends to his patients during follow-up visits to ensure that all questions and concerns are addressed. Set up your consultation – contact our office today.
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