Breast-like enlargement of male chest tissue is a very common, often embarrassing condition that affects 40 to 60 percent of men of all ages, in one or both breasts.

The older traditional treatment for gynecomastia involved an unsightly painful incision along the lower edge of the nipple and areola (darker skin) to excise the protuberant glandular, fibrous, and fatty tissue from the under the skin. Since the nerves and blood supply to the nipple were cut, there was often loss of nipple sensation and occasional sloughing off of the nipple and the surrounding skin.

Advanced body sculpting technology referred to as Vaser LipoSelection allows us to selectively remove the fatty tissue that is the major culprit in protruding “man boobs”, while preserving the nerves and tiny blood vessels that go to the nipple. The procedure is done through two tiny incisions in the skin that are hidden in skin folds. The entire procedure is done with no dangerous general anesthesia. In fact we walk you to your car 20 minutes after the Vaser LipoSelection procedure.

Most patients require no narcotic pain medication afterwards and you can physically return to work the very next day. You will have to wear an elastic pressure vest for one to two weeks, under your clothes to help the skin heal as flat and smooth as possible. Most men resume normal exercise activity after one week.

Gynecomastia may be caused by abnormal liver function, excessive alcohol use, marijuana use, use of anabolic steroids, and use of medications that contain estrogen-like substances. Obesity, which may also contribute to higher estrogen levels in men, must also be addressed. These possible causes must be ruled out before your procedure with a thorough review of your medical history with the surgeon.

Therefore, the only way to absolutely determine if you are a good candidate for gynecomastia Vaser LipoSelection is to have a personal consultation with physical examination by a cosmetic surgeon with expertise in sculpting the male chest. Only then can an assessment be made of the density, composition, and distribution of the subcutaneous breast-like tissue. Your surgeon can give you a realistic idea of how flat your chest will be and how soon you could expect to see completion of the post-operative healing process.

Even normal weight individuals may have a curiously round volleyball-shaped fat deposit that does not respond to proper diet and exercise. Abdominal exercises may tone the underlying rectus abdominus (“six-pack”) muscles, but this will only flatten out the dome a bit.

By the way, contrary to popular belief, any type of “spot reduction” exercise can only tone the underlying muscles, but does virtually nothing for the overlying fat. Fatty stores reduce in size, whether they be around the waist or the big toe, when you burn more calories than what you put in your mouth. The body is then forced to go to what I call the “Calorie Store,” your adipose (fat) tissue, to get fuel there. Hormones and your genetics play a role in which “shelves” are depleted first and which “shelves” — like the Post-baby Pooch — are hard to reach and remain well stocked.

Many treatments are designed to specifically target localized fat. Abdominoplasty, commonly referred to as “tummy-tuck,” involves cutting away a new moon-shaped wedge of skin and fat from the lower abdomen. The resulting scar may extend from hip bone to hip bone, but it can usually be hidden below the panty line. Recovery can be painful, and the is strict limitation of certain physical activity, including lifting and exercise, for several weeks.

There are noninvasive laser and alternate energy devices that use specific laser wavelengths, infrared, or radiofrequency to shrink the size of the fat cells or to make the fatty tissue appear more compact by tightening the overlying skin. Some common ones are Thermage, Accent, VelaSmooth and VelaShape, Lipo-Ex, and Zerona. Usually multiple treatments are required over several weeks or months to see appreciable results, so you must have patience and realistic expectations.

Other noninvasive treatments include Mesotherapy for fat loss or the more simplified Lipodissolve injections that contain ingredients designed to make the fat cells in the injected area release some of the fat that they contain. Once outside the cells, the released fat is cleared from the area by the body’s lymphatic system. As with the noninvasive devices, multiple treatments (and patience) are usually required to see appreciable results.

Most folks nowadays want immediate results, if possible. Advanced Smartlipo laser and Vaser procedures can eliminate the “Post baby Pooch” in about one hour, with no general anesthesia, no large scar, no prolonged recovery, and no severe pain requiring narcotic pain killers. Most patients return to work in 3-4 days and to moderate exercise in about one week. In skilled hands, the results are also smoother and tighter than with traditional liposuction, due to additional skin tightening effects. This technology is also very useful to revise areas of previous liposuction, tummy- tuck (“dog-ears”), breast reduction (along the sides), or other procedures where the fat has healed irregularly or unevenly.

If you have any of these issues, a personal consultation and examination is the only way to determine which options are best for you.

The reduction in size occurs gradually over the 2-3 weeks during which the treatments are being performed about every other day. There is a generalized reduction of fat and inches in the area, but not the precise body sculpting that can be achieved with the surgical fat removal using Smartlipo or Vaser LipoSelection.

The most popular of theses types of lasers, often referred as diode lasers is Zerona by Erchonia. Lipo-Ex is also a non-contact, relatively painless, device to reduce subcutaneous fat that uses bipolar radiofrequency (RF) energy instead of light, to slightly heat up tissue under the skin very gradually. In theory, this increases the metabolic breakdown as the fat. As with the Zerona, the fat “melted” by Lipo-Ex is also removed by the body’s lymphatic system.

The best result are achieved when the person is exercising regularly, as this improves the lymphatic clearance of the fat released from the cells. Results are also enhanced, of course, when you are eating properly and not trying to plump up those fat cells again.

The best candidates for these non-surgical “lasers” are individuals who are within 20 to 30 pounds of their ideal body weight who desire a slimmer look in a general area of the body, such as thighs, buttocks, back or waistline. Since the fat cells are not physically removed as with Vaser Lipo or Smartlipo, repeat rounds of treatments or maintenance treatments are often recommended every few months.

“Fat melting lasers” can be broken down into two groups. The first group consists of lasers used for surgical laser lipolysis. With these lasers, a laser fiber is typically inserted under the skin into anesthesized fatty tissue to break down the fat cells with heat. Smartlipo by Cynosure was the first brand to hit the market in the United States, but now there are at least half a dozen of such lasers being commonly used for this purpose. Other more common lipolysis lasers include Coollipo by Cool Touch, Inc., Lipotherm by Osyris, Prolipo by Sciton, LipoLite from Syneron, SlimLipo by Palomar, Smooth Lipo by Elena Medical, and Lutronic Accusculpt.

The wavelengths (the particular part of the light spectrum for the laser beam) of these lasers are selected to break down fat cells with heat and stimulate some degree of tightening of the skin. When collagen is heated to about 42 degree Celsius, a shrink wrap effect is produced in the skin over the months that follow.

Once the fat is emulsified (broken down), it is then typically removed by gentle suction using thinner, more delicate instruments that cause much less trauma and pain to the body than traditional liposuction instruments. That is why the fat can be removed without potentially risky general anesthesia, using local anesthetic fluid that is spread into the fat that will be removed. Less trauma also translates into less post-operative pain, less need for narcotic pain medication, and faster recovery. Most patients are back to work in 3 to 4 days and exercising within one week.

The best candidates are those who are close to their ideal body weight with resistant areas that are not responding to proper diet and exercise. Most medical conditions such as diabetes, high blood pressure, thyroid abnormalities, and heart problems must be stabilized first. You should also cease smoking several weeks prior to the procedure date.

Medical Slim Shot is now available in Houston and Dallas for liposuction, tummy tuck, Smart lipo, Vaser lipo, and tumescent liposuction patients who want additional fat loss without more cosmetic surgery at Lipo Body Sculpture in Houston and Rejuvenex Medical in Dallas. This mixture consists of of B-vitamins, amino acids, and lipotropic agents. These injections are used, non-invasively, to help patients achieve generalized weight loss, even without liposuction, tummy tuck or other cosmetic surgery.

Medical Slim Slot injections can help you lose weight through fat loss in two ways: by boosting your energy and metabolism, and by increasing the natural removal of fat from the body. These “fat-burning” lipotropic injections are distinctly different from lipodissolve or mesotherapy injections. These fat loss injections can be done once a month, but can be done safely as frequently as once or twice a week for faster results. Medical Slim Shot can also be used to enhance the results of the new minimally invasive laser fat removal procedures.