"It Felt Like a Small Clinic"

Gynecomastia surgery removes glandular tissue, and the tissue removed does not grow back. So people feel that a single decision lasts a long time. What actually matters in that decision is not how much is removed but how thick a layer is left beneath the areola. Take away too much and that spot looks sunken; take away too little and the change is not large.

To decide that thickness, before surgery we look at the amount and distribution of tissue with ultrasound and check its firmness by palpation. We also consider the Simon grade and how much the skin has stretched. The reason I draw diagrams while explaining in consultation is less to ease worry than to separate out what is already decided and what is a judgment made during surgery.

About when they first came to the clinic, they wrote this.

"The atmosphere felt like a small clinic, and it was good that the doctor explained things kindly and well during the consultation"

People who come for gynecomastia prefer quiet over size. They say fewer people and shorter paths through the clinic are more comfortable. Keeping a separate waiting area and having all-male staff came about because that request kept coming up.

The reason for spending time on explanations is the same. Gynecomastia is often a concern being raised for the first time, and what you could not ask in the consultation room you will not be able to ask once you are home either.

As something that stayed with them during the surgery, they wrote this.

"I was a little nervous when I got onto the operating table"

The stretch from lying on the operating table until the anesthesia begins is the most tense. During this time, it is the anesthesiologist and the surgical team who stay at your side, check your condition, and talk with you. Once sedation takes effect you stay asleep until the surgery is over, and I, as the operating surgeon, come in after the anesthesia has taken effect.

In the box left for those who will come after, they wrote this.

"I think having the surgery will help a lot in living from here on"

This is what this person said about their own experience. Whether you are in a condition that needs surgery, and whether now is the right time, is something to decide after checking at an examination.

As large as their worry was, the decision must have taken them a long time as well.