An Alternative Treatment of Pseudogynecomastia in Male Patients After Massive Weight Loss

There has been an increase in body contouring procedures following massive weight loss (MWL), including male breast reduction procedures. Treating male chest deformity after MWL using standard mastopexy techniques often leads to suboptimal results.

The authors describe a technique to treat pseudogynecomastia using a modified elliptical excision and nipple-areola complex (NAC) transposition on a thinned inferior dermal pedicle as an alternative to conventional techniques.

A retrospective chart review from January 2011 to January 2019 identified a total of 14 male patients who underwent excision of pseudogynecomastia using the described technique.

Patients were characterized by age, method of weight loss, pre-weight loss body mass index (BMI), post-weight loss BMI, total weight loss, grade of pseudogynecomastia, and concurrent procedures performed. Patients were followed for a period ranging from 3 months to 1.5 years (average, 8.1 months). Pre-weight loss BMI and post-weight loss BMI averaged 52.0 kg/m² and 29.6 kg/m², respectively. The average weight lost was 79.72 kg and the average total amount of tissue removed was 2615 g. All patients had concurrent procedures with an average operative time of 274 minutes. Four out of 14 patients (28.6%) experienced minor complications, which included asymmetry, delayed wound healing, seroma, and hyperpigmentation. There were no wound infections, hematomas, flap necrosis, or dysesthesia.

Due to several cosmetic advantages and low complication profile, our technique using a modified elliptical excision and NAC transfer on an inferior dermal pedicle is an attractive option for treating male chest deformity after MWL.