Top surgery

It has become more common not to recognize ourselves in our usual binary perception of women and men. Feeling trans or non-binary, non-gender in English, has increased sharply in recent years. Both applications for investigation and diagnoses for transsexualism have increased, which has made already long waiting times in public healthcare even longer.

Performing gender reassignment surgery on the genitals requires changing one's legal gender, but far from everyone is interested in it. Many are very bothered by the female bust and want a flat or more masculine chest as the only surgical procedure. This may be partly to remove the female symbolic value but also because the breasts are perceived as more of a nuisance than a joy. Constantly locking yourself in breast-reducing compression garments is difficult. This type of procedure is often called top surgery.

operations

Depending on the size of your bust, we recommend different procedures. Small breasts without "sagging" can often be operated on through a small incision at the edge of the areola, possibly with the addition of liposuction to get better contours. Larger breasts with an areola and nipple below the breast fold are best suited for an operation that leaves a scar along the lower edge of the pectoral muscle and where the areolas are either transplanted as so-called free skin grafts or a smaller amount of tissue is preserved to provide blood circulation to the areola . If a smaller amount of tissue is preserved, you can usually retain sensation in the areolas, which is lost if you do a graft.

Risks and complications

There are no risk-free surgeries, complications can occur. Even with this surgery, certain complications sometimes occur, such as infection or wound dehiscence.

The most common complications are:

• Wound infection, which is treated with antibiotics.
• Wounds that take a few extra weeks to heal.
• The sensation in the areola worsens.

Unusual complications include:

• Transplanted areola heals poorly and turns into scars.

We know that complications increase with smoking. Therefore, quitting smoking is an absolute requirement.

This is how the operation works

In the morning you will meet with your surgeon who will go over the operation once again and answer any questions you may have. To get a good result from the operation, it is important to plan well. This means, among other things, that we draw on the breasts to see where the areola should be placed if it is to be moved and how we will cut away excess skin, glands and fat.

The operation is done under general anesthesia and takes about 1-2,5 hours depending on the size of the breasts, among other things. After the operation, you will stay in the recovery room for a few hours and will be given something to eat. We mainly use self-dissolving stitches, but if it is a skin graft, regular stitches are also used, which are removed after a week.

Follow-up

A week after the operation, you will come for your first follow-up visit. We will check the wound, change the tape and bandages. The tissue is swollen after the operation and sometimes one breast may be more swollen than the other. This will even out over time, but expect it to take at least six months before you can see the final result. Scars go through different maturation phases even if they look healed on the outside. It takes at least a year before all phases have passed and the scar begins to fade. We will then do a final check of the result and how you perceive your bust. We want you to be happy with the result.

Convalescence

You are back on your feet the day after the operation. In the first few days you will be given slightly stronger painkillers. After that, painkillers such as Panodil or Alvedon are usually enough. If you have a physically demanding job, we will put you on sick leave for about three weeks. During the first month, you should be careful with heavy lifting and strenuous physical exercise.

Book a consultation and talk to a specialist to find out what is best for you.