Gynecomastia is a disorder of the endocrine system. It is the result of the imbalances of hormones in males, mainly: testosterone and estrogen. Normally, estrogen produced by men is of very low value, but in this disorder, extremely high level of estrogen can be found.
In this case, there is an excessive enlargement of the male mammary glands, in either one of the breasts or both. Pain can also be felt but it is only seldom. Although this condition can be clearly seen more likely as the swelling of the breast tissues, it can sometimes be thought of similarly with chest fat, its imposter.
Chest fat which is called Pseudogynecomastia in the medical field is the accumulation of fats around, behind, or under the nipples. Unlike in gynecomastia in which the breast tissues are the main culprit to this enlargement, pseudogynecomastia’s major and only contributor to this scenario is the adipose tissue or most commonly known as fat. The more fat deposited in the chest area, the larger it gets.
In a physical examination, the patient needs to lie down on his back in a flat position, having his hands clasped beneath his head. The examiner then, using his thumb and forefinger, slowly brings them together from either side of the patient’s breast. The examiner will diagnose that the patient has gynecomastia if a round or disc-like tissue is felt. It is usually concentrated in the nipple-areolar complex. However, in chest fat, none of these can be felt. To best diagnose whether you are having either of the two is to seek the expertise of a surgeon.
If a man with enlarged chest is proven to be caused by breast tissues, certain drugs are prescribed. An example is the selective Estrogen receptor modulators such as, Tamoxifen or Raloxifene. Some say that it can be beneficial to the treatment even though it is not approved by the Food and Drug Administration. Other therapeutic regimens can also be given, for instance, compression shirts or vests.
Shirts and vests that compress the breasts can also be used by patients with fat chest. Aside from this, they should have proper workouts and fat burning pills that minimize the size of their chest. And of course, never forget the proper diet because its main culprit is fat. Pseudogynecomastia is easier to treat than the former. If initial exercise to burn adipose tissues help in decreasing the fat of the whole body excluding the chest, this enlargement of the breast is more likely to be caused by its own tissues.
If the aforementioned treatments are not effective, surgery would be the next option. The surgical procedure that is predominantly done in this disorder would be an excision, wherein some of the breast tissues are removed by a surgeon. The incision site is then commonly closed using an absorbable suture. Anesthetics depend on the grade of the breast’s enlargement, either local or under sedation. In the case of fatty chest, primarily, the surgery that can be done is liposuction.
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