Generally speaking, chest binding will not cause problems with your surgical plan. Binding over a long period of time (many years) can alter your skin’s natural elasticity, which may have some minor effects on your final aesthetic outcome. Your surgeon will be able to help you formulate realistic surgical expectations following a consultation.

Chest binding is an effective alternative to invasive surgery for some people. For others, breast binding is only a moderately successful, short-term alternative to chest reconstruction top surgery. Binding may result in pain, discomfort, or other physical restrictions. If you are binding, please do so safely. Chest binding is a method used by many trans, non-binary, and gender expansive folks to achieve a flat chest appearance.

Losing weight may result in a decreased chest size; however, you cannot eliminate all chest tissue in this manner. Some people feel more comfortable once they reduce their chest size, while others opt for surgery regardless. Large amounts of weight loss are generally unsustainable and thus should not be counted on for a way to reduce chest-related discomfort or gender incongruence; surgery is often necessary for a drastic change in chest size.

It is certainly possible. If you have not had a breast reduction yet but are on the fence between chest reconstruction top surgery and a breast reduction, it can be good to consider whether or not you will ultimately want a completely flat chest in the future. It is not recommended to have both due to increased scarring. However, if you have previously had a breast reduction and now want chest reconstruction, you will likely have more scars than an initial chest reconstruction top surgery, but it is still absolutely possible to have this surgery. Also important to note is that, a breast reduction is effective at improving back and …

The biggest difference between the two procedures is the amount of skin and tissue removed. Breast reduction can be used to minimize, but not completely eliminate the breasts.  After a breast reduction there will still be ‘cone shaped’ tissue that looks like breast-shaped tissue, even if they are smaller. Chest reconstruction removes nearly all underlying fat and tissue (including milk producing ducts and glands) to give the appearance of what some would consider a conventionally masculine-looking chest. In some cases, chest reconstruction surgery also entails nipple resizing and relocation.

In a mastectomy due to breast cancer, nearly 100% of the tissue is removed. This is not the case with chest reconstruction top surgery in which more like 93-95% is removed. Moreover, in chest reconstruction top surgery, the surgeon is careful to ensure scar placement follows the natural pectoral lines to create an aesthetically natural look, and you get to keep your nipples and customize their placement if you choose.

No. A little tissue is always left over to retain the contour of the chest – otherwise your chest would look concave. This is one big difference between gender confirming chest reconstruction and a mastectomy due to breast cancer.

Going on testosterone after surgery will generally not affect the results of your chest surgery. Gaining significant muscle in the pectoral area might hide the scar, but it should not adversely impact your outcome. Chest reconstruction surgery will give you a permanent outcome. However, significant fluctuations in your weight may impact the appearance of your chest. Gaining weight very quickly or soon after surgery could affect your skin or scarring. In most cases, you would need to gain (or lose) a great deal of weight for the chest contour to change substantially. It is always best to discuss any plans for body changes with your surgeon before surgery.

For the most part, there is no difference. People who have been on testosterone for several years may have more chest hair to hide their scars, or it may be easier for them to be able to gain significant chest muscles, which may result in a more stereotypically male-looking chest.

Less common techniques include fishmouth, lollipop, buttonhole, and inverted t-anchor. In some ways, these are a variation of the standard DI or peri or both. There are several advantages and disadvantages to each, depending on your body type, chest size, skin elasticity, and other needs regarding scar size, scar placement, areola size, nipple sensation, remaining tissue, etc.