Suggestions for surgery

[GSOgymrat]

My partner wants to have surgery to remove the fat accumulation behind his neck, on his back and under his jaw. Does anyone have any experience with this type of surgery or have any recommendations?

[aztecan]

Hey Ford,

I think we must be on the same wave length or something. I was just thinking about this very subject today after being quizzed by a store clerk about the "growth" on the back of my neck.

I have no experience with this, but may if, as I believe, it is growing again.

Does your partner have lumps on the back of his neck/base of the skull? That and the front of my neck (below the jaw) seem to be on the increase again.

I know someone who did have this done, but it was done years ago.  I will do some research and see what I can come up with for your partner.

HUGS,

Mark

[Hellraiser]

Mark, so sorry to hear about all this.  Do you think this is strictly from the older meds that you once took?  I would think if that were the case discontinuing them would stop the growth but they seem to be recurrent, right?  Has your doctor said anything about them?

Sorry to derail a bit Ford.

[GSOgymrat]

Does your partner have lumps on the back of his neck/base of the skull?

He has a fat pad on the back on his neck, a hump across the top of his back, fat pads that run down the sides of his back and then a fat deposit below his jaw. He also has some abdominal fat.

[MitchMiller]

If you were on the west coast, I'd recommend Harvey Abrams.  He's experienced with both HIV patients and liposuction.  I've read that fat removal from under the neck is a very basic procedure that is done quite frequently to give one a youthful looking neckline.  Removal of abdominal fat (adipose) is also very common.  Don't think there would be any problems with any of these procedures.  However, if your bud is HIV+, might be difficult finding someone to do the surgery.  Abrams is gay and works with HIV+ patients so that's not a problem.
http://www.wilshireaesthetics.com/

NC can get really humid in the summer.  Might be a good excuse to buy a summer home in LA.

[GSOgymrat]

My partner is from Los Angeles and we are going to L.A. and Palm Springs in two weeks. We should see if Dr. Abrams is available for a consult so my partner can get an idea of what procedures are available, risks, benefits, cost, etc. Thanks for the info.

My partner is a flight attendant and we fly free so location is not an issue. I'm sure insurance is not going to pay for this so going to another country for treatment is a possibility.

[aztecan]

Mark, so sorry to hear about all this.  Do you think this is strictly from the older meds that you once took?  I would think if that were the case discontinuing them would stop the growth but they seem to be recurrent, right?  Has your doctor said anything about them?

Sorry to derail a bit Ford.

Yes, it's from more than a decade of Crixivan and AZT, most likely. I too thought switching might help, but no luck.

He has a fat pad on the back on his neck, a hump across the top of his back, fat pads that run down the sides of his back and then a fat deposit below his jaw. He also has some abdominal fat.

I also have the fat at the front of my neck and the fat pad at the top of my back. The lumps on the back of my head actually don't feel like the fat pads, so, as I mentioned in another thread, it is possible they are not the same thing.

I also have the abdominal fat. I was doing crunches on a machine at the gym with 100 extra pounds of weight added to try to lessen the gut, but to no avail. I did manage to tear a muscle in my chest, though.

If you don't mind Ford, wouild you let me know what Dr. Abrams says?

HUGS,

Mark

[Miss Philicia]

Trey, I would assume it's like the other lipo condition -atrophy vs. hypertrophy. It's a cellular dysfunction issue of mitochondrial toxicity, so once the mitochondria is damaged in significant numbers it's permanent, or so it seems. Mitochondria has it's own DNA so I would assume once that's damaged that's why it doesn't go away.

I guess the question with surgery for this is whether that's only a temporary fix. Will fat continue to accumulate over the years due to this mitochondria damage?

[GSOgymrat]

I guess the question with surgery for this is whether that's only a temporary fix. Will fat continue to accumulate over the years due to this mitochondria damage?

Dr. Abrams website says "Over 90% of HIV-positive patients treated by Dr. Abrams never regain their "Buffalo" Hump." Of course he is selling this service. My partner recently lost 20 lbs and it didn't seem to affect his hump very much.

[Miss Philicia]

My partner recently lost 20 lbs and it didn't seem to affect his hump very much.

Exactly -- I'm the reverse. If I gained 20 lbs. it wouldn't be distributed to my face and buttocks, it would only go to my belly.

If he's willing to go through the surgery then I think he should just try it.

You might try posting on PozHealth@yahoogroups.com about this -- it's a bunch of LTS'ers that are resourceful for things like this. Also email Nelson Vergel and he may be helpful. It's his name @gmail

[aztecan]

Dr. Abrams website says "Over 90% of HIV-positive patients treated by Dr. Abrams never regain their "Buffalo" Hump." Of course he is selling this service. My partner recently lost 20 lbs and it didn't seem to affect his hump very much.

I remember Alan (Alanbama) stating once he had a friend who had the surgery, and it lasted for a while, but then the hump returned.

I also have tried losing weight. It did nothing for the humps and lumps, or the belly. I was doing crunchers with 100 pounds of additional weidght added to the machine to try to reduce the belly. I got great abs, but the belly remains beneath them.

HUGS,

Mark

[denb45]

I was doing crunchers with 100 pounds of additional weidght added to the machine to try to reduce the belly. I got great abs, but the belly remains beneath them.

HUGS,

Mark

Same here Mark    however I can still wear size 34 waist tho, I tried on a pair of 36 waist, but, I had to wear my belt on the last loop hole 

 I don't know why I still wear belts ( old habit I guess) but I still wear them, I have given up worrying about the way I look @ 55+ I look that way, and and I cannot change it....

 so I accept it for what it is  besides I have far more health problems to worry about than my waist-line 

P.S. I do hope that little tid-bit I posted above will help to cheer you up some Mark 

[MitchMiller]

You'll have to let us know how it went if your partner goes to Dr Abrams.  Just a warning... this is LA and his office is on Wilshire Blvd, so he isn't the cheapest.  However, he seemed to charge me market rates on my silicone treatments.  Had three of them and they all turned out ok.  Charged me $600 each.  I believe he's raised that figure though more recently.