Gynecomastia : a surgical technique

The term gynecomastia refers to any type of enlargement of the male breast, caused by increase in ductal tissue and stroma. It occurs in relation to endocrine factors or exogenous causes. Gynecomastia is the most common breast problem in men, with a peak incidence in the adolescence, when it may be considered like a normal transiently phaenomenon. It usually disappears during the late teens, persisting in a low percentual of cases. The incidence rises again in the older age due to a glandular or fatty overgrowth. There is no evidence of increased incidence of malignancies in patients with idiopathic gynecomastia, although this relation seems to be much more probably in patients with Klinefelter syndrome, whose exhibited elevated amounts of estrogen and progesterone receptors; this provides a potential mechanism by which these patients may develop breast neoplasm. Gynecomastia itself does not require treatment unless is not an embarrassing source (such as high school students, which refuse to undress or have shower in public) when it must be necessary restore the male chest shape, or also in order to evaluate a diagnosis of suspected breast lesion, helped by laboratory tests and instrumental research. There are several approaches for surgical treatment of Gyneco-mastia, in our ten years experience we found that circumareolar skin excision and lipoplasty can grant satisfying aesthetic results, and minimize complications.