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Capital Gynecomastia Center East Coast Gynecomastia Specialist

Washington DC Region
Tysons Corner, Virginia | Columbia, Maryland

(202) 350-2273

Welcome to my gynecomastia website! My goal is to share what I’ve learned from treating thousands of men with gyno and from the medical literature regarding gynecomastia surgery. For an overview, simply keep scrolling down this page. To dive deeper into a specific topic, the interior pages are yours to explore.

Surgery remains the most effective treatment for longstanding gynecomastia, so when you are ready, I look forward to discussing your particular case and options in a private consultation.

– Dr. Khalifeh
Dr. Marwan Khalifeh

Dr. Khalifeh Featured in the Washington Post

Featured in

Screenshot of the article titled: Why some men are asking for breast-reduction surgery

When the nation’s top reporters researched gynecomastia for the Washington Post, their research naturally led them to Dr. Khalifeh, one of the nation’s leading experts on the matter. We invited them into our suite to first hand report on a live surgery. Read here the article about Gynecomastia and Dr. Khalifeh.

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Media Appearances

Dual Board Certified Plastic Surgeon

Why choose Dr. Khalifeh

Dr. Khalifeh is passionate about Gynecomastia Surgery, and passion is what drives his excellence. After treating over one thousand men with gynecomastia, he is now considered one of the top gynecomastia doctors on the east coast and has patients flying in to seek his expertise. Patients find Dr. Khalifeh to be an approachable, genuine, and straightforward communicator. A consummate perfectionist, Dr. Khalifeh combines over 20 years of experience and artistic touch to bring out the best results in his patients’ results. As a gynecomastia specialist, Dr. Khalifeh performs hundreds of gynecomastia cases every year Dr. Khalifeh cherishes the huge difference that he makes in each and every man’s life with this procedure.

Dr. Khalifeh came to the United States when he was eleven, settling in Baltimore. He graduated Summa Cum Laude and Phi Beta Kappa from the University of Pennsylvania, and earned his medical degree from the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, where he earned the top spear award in physiology and graduated Alpha Omega Alpha. He then completed his training in Plastic Surgery at the prestigious Johns Hopkins Hospital. He has been recognized as a top plastic surgeon by realself.com, Northern Virginia Magazine, Arlington Magazine, amongst other publications. In addition to his private practice, he serves in the Navy Reserves as a plastic surgeon, and was deployed in 2019 to help with the Navy’s Covid-19 efforts.

In his personal life, Dr. Khalifeh enjoys being a dad to his young daughters and outdoor activities including hiking and skiing.

Certified by The American Board of Plastic Surgery IncJohns Hopkins UniversityUniversity of Pennsylvania logo

Real Patient Results

  • A person with gynecomastia, presenting with enlarged breast tissue, stands wearing a medical gown. The image includes the logo and name of a gynecomastia specialist. A shirtless man stands facing forward against a light-colored background. Text above identifies "M.R. Khalifeh MD, Gynecomastia Specialist.
  • A person with an enlarged left breast and a normal right breast, displaying asymmetry in the chest area. A person with a bare torso showing excess chest and abdominal fat, standing against a blue background, wearing light brown pants.
  • A shirtless adult male with visible enlarged breast tissue, possibly gynecomastia, standing against a dark background. A shirtless male torso shown from the front against a blue background, displaying a flat chest with minimal body hair. Text at the bottom reads “M.R. Khalifeh MD, Gynecomastia Specialist.”.

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Why Choose Dr. Khalifeh for Gynecomastia Surgery

When national media outlets like The Washington Post sought expert insight on gynecomastia surgery, they turned to Dr. Khalifeh – inviting him to demonstrate his technique during a live procedure. This recognition reflects his standing among the nation’s foremost gynecomastia specialists and his commitment to advancing surgical excellence in male chest contouring.

Dual Board Certification
American Board of Plastic Surgery certified with active medical licenses in Virginia, Maryland, Washington DC, and New York
Johns Hopkins Training
Plastic surgery residency at one of the nation’s top-ranked medical institutions
Proven Results
Extensive before-and-after gallery demonstrating consistent, natural-looking outcomes across all gynecomastia grades
Patient-Centered Approach
Personalized consultations, transparent pricing, and compassionate care throughout your surgical journey

Your Gynecomastia Guide

What is Gynecomastia?

Males are born with some breast tissue, as a result of the common embryologic development in the womb that men and women share. In some men, hormonal or medicinal stimuli can then cause that preexisting native tissue to develop further than normal, and reach a shape or size that becomes psychologically disturbing to that person. In most, this occurs during the hormonal changes at puberty, however it is not uncommon to have other reasons later in life that lead to the same process. At that point, the patient is diagnosed with Gynecomastia, which is the presence of excess gland tissue in a male.

What Causes Gynecomastia?

Men and women share many common embryological features, and every man is born with breast tissue and nipples. The breast tissue, while present, typically does not develop significantly. When it does develop, causing gynecomastia, it is usually triggered by hormonal changes and imbalances. The major hormonal players, no surprise, are testosterone, which inhibits the breast from growing, and estrogen, which stimulates the breasts to grow. In reality the body’s hormonal milieu is more complicated than just these two hormones, but for simplicity’s sake, any condition that blocks or reduces the effect of testosterone or augments the amount or effect of estrogen can lead to breast growth.

In the vast majority of the cases that present, no single or identifying cause can be found. We then call this idiopathic gynecomastia.

Other times, the changes in hormones can be caused by some prescription medications such as finasteride (Propecia) and spironolactone, and of course, anabolic steroids, sometimes prescribed but often used by bodybuilders to enhance muscle build up. The list is long as many other agents can also trigger hormonal imbalances, but these are some of the main ones.

Illicit drugs, especially marajiuana is often blamed for gynecomastia development, although the amounts smoked have to be substantial. Medical conditions such as Klinefelter syndrome or pituitary insufficiency sometimes have too be also ruled out.

Whatever the root cause of gynecomastia is, the mainstay of treatment remains surgical. By the time the patient seeks treatment, the condition has been long enough that a medical treatment is no longer effective. Plus, many feel that the risk of surgery is less than the risk of lifelong medical treatment with hormones.

Gynecomastia vs. Pseudogynecomastia

A commonly asked question, but I personally feel that there is too much emphasis on this question. There is no absolutely true pseudogynecomastia as all men naturally have some breast glandular tissue. I want you to think of the breast as a container full of both fat and gland, but there is a continuum of the proportion between gland tissue and fat tissue. During surgery, I see that surgically when I bisect the specimen at the end of the removal. Before surgery, I can palpate the difference and notice that pseudogynecomastia is softer and more uniform in feeling, whereas truer gynecomastia is harder and the hardness varies, being greatest right under the nipple.

On one end of the continuum is a hard glandular blob of tissue that I feel gets close to being 100% glandular. When I divide it in half, all I see is white hard tissue, with very little fat interspersed. On the other hand is a chest area filled with fat and fibrous stroma much ackin to other areas of the body, except for a small collection of glandular tissue the areola, and we call that pseudogynecomastia.

Both spectrum of the conditions bother patients, and the treatment is still surgical but in terms of treatment and response to nonsurgical options, here are some observations, which may or may not be self-evident:

a) Pseudogynecomastia equals more fat, almost exclusively found in overweight men, and much more responsive to diet and exercise and weight loss since those target the fat cells all over the body

b) Pseudogynecomastia treated with a lot of lipo, but I do recommend a small incision to extract that small 10% of gland tissue

c) Pseudogynecomastia develops later in life with weight gain, or remains afte weight loss in someone that was previously obese

Either way, even in cases of “pseudogynecomastia” I still recommend both lipo and excision, since excision takes a few minutes only. Otherwise the 90% soft tissue is removed, and it will leave a small hard ball under the nipple that I could have removed with a 30 more minutes of work and only a slightly larger incision.

I hope this answers your question. If you are closer on the spectrum of true gynecomastia, then surgery is your best option. If you are overweight and your breast tissue is composed of a lot of fat, you can certainly get rid of that tissue if you lose weight, plus you will look great in other portions of your body too.

Grades Of Gynecomastia

How Severe Is My Gynecomastia?

As you do your research, you will note many classification systems for gynecomastia, and I will include one here that is commonly used. The grading system is “academic” in nature, and does not necessarily reflect how you feel about your chest. As a surgeon, I am not looking at grade, but at what aspects of the chest that I need to address. How much tissue is there? Is the tissue soft (fatty) or hard (glandular). Where are the nipples, and do they need reduction or lifting? What is the nature of the skin quality and excess, and do I need to resect any?

Illustration of a shirtless human torso from the side, displaying one breast and the curve of the waist against a white background.

Grade 1

Small hardnodule of tissue that is located right below the areola. I often refer to this as a “puffy nipple”. The nipple often “puffs” out in heat, and retracts in cold or when touched/pinched.

Medical illustration showing a side view of a woman's torso with a dotted line indicating the position of the nipple in relation to the lower breast contour.

Grade 2

Tissue is spread all over the chest, although not surpassing the chest borders. The skin tone is acceptable, although there may be some descent of the breast. The treatment consists of a combination of liposuction and gland excision.

Illustration of a person's torso from the side, showing a breast with the nipple below a dashed horizontal line.

Grade 3

Tissue exceeds the borders of the chest to also go into the axilla and lateral chest. There is increasing skin excess.

Illustration of a person's chest from the side, showing a drooping nipple and sagging breast tissue, with a dashed line indicating the nipple position.

Grade 4

There is enlargement of breast with significant excess of skin and increasing feminization. Skin excision via a double incision technique is often necessary.

Remember, the grading system is simplistic, and remember that not everyone falls into these categories.

Are There Any Gynecomastia Exercises That Work?

A well developed attractive chest is a hallmark of a man that works out regularly. So it’s not surprising that the reverse question is asked often: are there any exercises that reverse gynecomastia?

I always encourage working out. When it comes to physique, developing stamina and muscles always adds to attractiveness. However as far as gyno is concerned, the answer to this inquiry often depends on the fat content of the underlying tissue.

Exercise is an effective treatment option for many individuals with gynecomastia containing fat tissue (even those with a mixed fat-gland component). The fat will shrink. Pushups, bench press, swimming, etc. can all reduce fat in the breasts while augmenting and sharpening the pecs.

What is not treatable via exercise is the glandular component. That tissue, once solidified, is usually resistant to all treatment modalities except a surgeon’s scalpel.

Can Liposuction Alone Be Used To Treat Gynecomastia?

The short answer to the question above is no. Liposuction alone is not recommended. Remember every man (including pseudo gynecomastia) has glandular tissue form during embryology, which may develop further during puberty and complete regression is not likely. Now as I always say, if you have glandular tissue, it doesn’t mean you need it removed. However if you do choose to be flatter, I do recommend you get both excision and lipo. This is borne out of several observations over the years.

  • Patient satisfaction is much higher when you get glands excised compared to those that have glands removed.
  • Leaving the gland, which is normally cushioned by the fat, creates a harder lump underneath the nipple which you will feel and may be bothersome.
  • Finally, we’re already doing surgery if we are doing lipo! Yes The additional surgery time, risk, and small scar is definitely worth it for you to get an excision as well.

What Are My Gynecomastia Surgery Options?

In an ideal setting any gynecomastia surgery will be to get you a flat chest, avoid too much scarring, avoid skin overhang, and correct nipple position issues and sizes.

To get to a flat chest, direct gland excision is the mainstay, often combined with a certain amount of lipo. The amount of lipo correlated with the amount of excess fat both in the breast and in the lateral chest and axilla. For example in the subset we term “puffy nipple”, we rely almost exclusively on the gland excision, whereas in the subset we refer to as “pseudogynecomastia” we rely mostly on the liposuction part of the case.

The least visible scar is on the inferior aspect of the nipple-Areola. The vast majority of my surgical cases (80%) involve me working through the lower third of the nipple to extract the fat and gland, leaving very little scarring.

Once you have skin excess or enlarged/malpositioned nipples, I will have to discuss with you the option of doing additional maneuvers to address those issues. Those options include removing an ellipse of skin (downside is a chest scar) or removing some skin around the nipple and changing the size /position of the nipple (downside is a scar all round the nipple). These maneuvers become more needed as the grade in severity of gynecomastia progresses.

Finally, a word on anesthesia. I perform the vast majority of cases (90%) in an office setting using local anesthesia with mild oral sedation. In some cases, due to either extent of planned surgery or patient preference, the surgery is performed under general anesthesia in a hospital setting.

Breast Gland Excision With Liposuction via Inferior Areola Incision

This technique is used in approximately 80% of the cases. We open the lower third of the areola, insert numbing. If there is fat, use a variable amount of liposuction or laser lipo to remove the fat component, especially in the upper axillary bulge and sides of the chest. Finally, working under loupe magnification, we carefully separate the gland from the overlying skin and areola and underlying muscle, extracting it from the small incision.

Male Breast Reduction With Superior or Circumareolar Crescent Lift

With these techniques, which I employ in about 18% of the cases, we place the incision on the superior aspect of the areola, or all around the areola. This incision placement allows me to reposition the nipple upward and/or reduce the circumference of the areola. Again, If there is fat, use a variable amount of liposuction or laser lipo to remove the fat component. Before we separate the gland from the overlying skin and areola and underlying muscle to extract it.

Double Incision Mastectomy

This is the most extensive surgery, reserved for the most advanced breast drooping and skin excess cases. I find that approximately 2% of my cases need this technique. In this option the overhanging breast and skin is removed in an ellipse. The nipple itself is repositioned using either a free graft technique or a dermoglandular flap technique. The resultant incision line is across the chest and more visible/obvious than other techniques but allows men with significant breast overhang or skin overhang to get a flat chest and feel comfortable with their bodies.

Lateral Pull-Thru

This technique places the incision in the lateral chest, avoiding a periareolar scar. I don’t typically recommend this technique because most patients will be better served by the inferior areolar incision. But if you absolutely want to avoid the areolar scar, this is another option. You can read on my blog why I don’t typically recommend this.

Real Patient Results

  • A shirtless man stands sideways against a blue background, showing his chest and abdomen. Text overlay reads: "M.R. Khalifeh MD, Gynecomastia Specialist. A man’s bare chest and abdomen are shown from the side against a blue background. The photo includes the watermark "MR. KHALIFEH MD GYNECOMASTIA SPECIALIST.
  • A person with an enlarged left breast and a normal right breast, displaying asymmetry in the chest area. A person with a bare torso showing excess chest and abdominal fat, standing against a blue background, wearing light brown pants.
  • A shirtless person stands against a dark background, showing a bare chest and upper abdomen. The text "M.R. Khalifeh MD Gynecomastia Specialist" is visible at the bottom. Bare chest of an adult male against a dark background, with slight enlargement of breast tissue visible. Text at the bottom reads "M.R. Khalifeh MD Gynecomastia Specialist.

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What Is Recovery After Gynecomastia Surgery Like?

Healing varies between patients, of course, but a timeline of what to expect in your recovery is helpful in deciding whether to do the surgery or when to do surgery. Below is what a typical gynecomastia patient experiences day by day after surgery.

Day 1

The first few hours: Immediately after the procedure is finished, Dr. Khalifeh’s team will place a male compression vest to compress the procedure site. There may be minor fluid leaking, most of which is the original tumescent fluid that was placed for the numbing, but for the most part, the dressings will stay dry. For any discomfort, you will typically have a mild pain medication, and you will feel your chest muscles sore, as if you had a very intense workout. You will also take antibiotics. On very rare occasions, Dr. Khalifeh will use a drain to collect the fluid, but most cases are done drainless. You will leave the office 30-45 minutes after your procedure is complete. A ride home or ride service is needed.

Your diet will be your regular diet. You will be able to move about and take care of yourself at home. After surgery, you will have to limit the range of motion of the arms, with care not to lift arms upward and stretch the incisions too much.

Day 2

The day after: By day 2, your soreness and movement about the home will be more fluid. You may require a few pills of your pain medication. You will want to take the day off of work to help with the recovery. Dr. Khalifeh recommends leaving the garment on until 72 hours post-surgery, but you can sponge bathe and wash yourself around the garment to feel refreshed.

Day 3

Most people who do not have an intensely physical job return to work on day 3. You will still be wearing your compression garment, fitted under your work clothes. You will be off of narcotics at that point.

Day 5-7

By day 5-7, you will be able to do some minor non-impact aerobic exercises such as walking or stationary bicycle. Dr. Khalifeh will see you for follow up around that time to check out your recovery. You will start seeing some of the results, but you will also have some swelling and bruising still at this point.

Day 14

At this point, the garment becomes optional, and many people stop wearing it. Most people return to their usual exercise regimen for the lower body. Upper body exercise will take another week or so. Sexual activity can also be resumed at this point. You will start appreciating and seeing your results, although there will still be swelling. The small incisions will have been sealed by then.

Day 30

Your one month follow up with Dr. Khalifeh will ensure you are continuing to heal well. The incisions have healed, but may still be a little red. You may resume a full upper body workout.

Day 90

Your three month follow up with Dr. Khalifeh. At 90 days, you will see 90% of the results. Typically, we take pictures at 90 days. There is still some minor swelling that will continue to improve over the next several months.

Day 360

The incisions are fading and become harder to see. All the swelling is gone.

Will I Have Scars After Gynecomastia Surgery?

Any gynecomastia surgery will require an entry point. About 80 percent of cases can be performed thru an almost invisible, minimal incision on the lower aspect of the areolar-nipple circle. This incision allows excellent healing with a small scar that is very difficult to see or discern. The other 15% more severe gynecomastia cases (with a lot of redundant skin or very enlarged areolas ) require different surgical approaches. In those cases the scars are more visible and will be discussed thoroughly with the patient, but the more masculine chest obtained after the surgery makes the patients more confident despite the scar needed to achieve the results.

Example of almost invisible scar:

Close-up of a person's bare chest showing an enlarged, swollen, and reddish nipple with surrounding hair.

What Is The Cost Of Gynecomastia Surgery?

Whenever I get a teenager whose parents are bringing him in for his gynecomastia surgery, I make it a point to tell the kid how lucky he is to have parents that are taking his concerns seriously. This is because cost is the one of the impediments to gyno surgery for many young men. We attempt to make our fees accessible to many, while still maintaining our ability to specialize and excel at this procedure.We are happy to share our prices online, in one of two ways. The first way is to fill out a price request form, and we will send you our current pricing “menu” that describes pricing based on the generalized appearance of a patient.

The second and most accurate way to get your own quote is to submit a photo evaluation/quote request, where you will upload some photos and Dr. Khalifeh will evaluate and propose a treatment plan with your exact quote.

click here for photo evaluation click here for pricing menu

Testimonials

“Dr. Khalifeh and his staff were wonderful to work with throughout the gynecomastia surgery process and the results, even years later, have held up really well. He was very helpful and courteous throughout and I could tell he took a genuine interest in his clients. I highly recommend his practice.”
~ DC Guy | Actual Patient

ADDITIONAL FREQUENTLY ASKED GYNECOMASTIA QUESTIONS

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Latest News

Gynecomastia Surgery Cost

I specialize in male chest contouring and gynecomastia correction. The cost of gynecomastia surgery is an important consideration. This page breaks down what goes into the price of gynecomastia surgery, helping you make a confident, informed decision. I do appreciate that a big expense like that, especially early… Continue reading about Gynecomastia Surgery Cost

Contour Irregularities after Gynecomastia Surgery

In this site, I want to describe and discuss all aspects of Gynecomastia Surgery, not just the positive ones, so that you can make an informed decision. One of the risks (very common to a certain degree) of gynecomastia surgery is contour irregularities. Smooth natural looking results are… Continue reading about Contour Irregularities after Gynecomastia Surgery

Revision Case Example after patient tried Airsculpt ®

Note: Airsculpt® is a registered trademark of Airsculpt technologies, and I have no affiliation with that company and am expressing my medical opinion derived from treatment of my patients. Case Example: Revision Gynecomastia Patient who came to me after first trying Airsculpt® 6 months Prior This New York… Continue reading about Revision Case Example after patient tried Airsculpt ®

Massage after Gynecomastia Surgery

One of the most common questions I get is regarding need and timing of massage after gynecomastia surgery.  In this page, I will summarize my thoughts on what the goals should be, what I feel the mechanism of improvement is, and what things to avoid. One word, many… Continue reading about Massage after Gynecomastia Surgery

Crater Deformity Revision Surgery

One of the issues we seek to avoid in gynecomastia surgery is the crater deformity. This is when the gland is removed, and the resultant areola sinks below the surrounding skin since there is no underlying fat. Note that perfect contour is not always achievable, there are always… Continue reading about Crater Deformity Revision Surgery

Internal Suture Lift / Closure Technique

The process of becoming a world expert on a procedure involves constantly thinking about ways to improve patients’  surgical outcomes.  I would like to share here my latest iteration that I  feel has had a positive impact on my results. The gland has been removed, now what? A… Continue reading about Internal Suture Lift / Closure Technique

How Areola Size and Position Are Addressed

Gynecomastia surgery will obviously address the amount of tissue in the chest via gland removal. One of the remaining two issues to address, if needed, are the areola and the excess skin What is the areola? We commonly refer to this as the nipple, although the nipple is… Continue reading about How Areola Size and Position Are Addressed

Techniques I Do Not Recommend and Why

The incision (and scar) is one of the major concerns for patients undergoing gynecomastia Surgery. Surgeons like myself become accustomed to the minimal scars left by surgery, but we have to step back and think about it from the patient’s perspective. For many patients, that is one of… Continue reading about Techniques I Do Not Recommend and Why

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Gynecomastia Surgery Information

East Coast Gynecomastia Specialist

Washington DC Tyson’s Corner Location

7601 Lewinsville Rd, Suite #300
McLean, VA 22102

 (202) 350-2273

Baltimore / Columbia Maryland

9175 Guilford Road, Suite #216
Columbia, MD 21046

 (202) 350-2376
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