TY - JOUR PY - 2019// TI - What is "non-binary" and what do i need to know? A primer for surgeons providing chest surgery for transgender patients JO - Aesthetic surgery journal A1 - Esmonde, Nick A1 - Heston, Aaron A1 - Ramly, Elie A1 - Jedrezsweski, Breanna A1 - Annen, Alvin A1 - Guerriero, Jess A1 - Hansen, Juliana A1 - Berli, Jens SP - NP106 EP - NP112 VL - 39 IS - 5 N2 - BACKGROUND: The majority of transgender research focuses on patients who fall within the gender binary of either trans-male or trans-female. This largely omits understanding of the "non-binary" gender identity, as it pertains to surgical care.

OBJECTIVE: To describe a single-institution experience performing chest affirming procedures in non-binary patients, including patient characteristics, surgical techniques, practice pearls, and outcomes.

METHODS: This is an observational study of non-binary patients undergoing a "chest affirming surgery" from 2012 to 2017. Demographic and surgical data were collected. A postoperative questionnaire assessing quality of life and body image outcomes was administered.

RESULTS: A total of 458 patients with gender dysphoria underwent chest surgery; fifty-eight (13%) patients were non-binary. All non-binary patients indicated they had a female sex assigned at birth (100%). The most commonly performed procedure was the double incision technique with nipple grafts (72%), followed by the double incision technique without nipples grafts (19%). Patients reported improved quality of life (4.88, SD ± 0.34), comfort with exercise (4.07, SD ± 0.98), sex life (4.02, SD ± 0.92), and comfort in physical appearance with (4.97, SD ± 0.18) and without clothes (4.69, SD ± 0.47) on a Likert scale.

CONCLUSION: Chest surgery for non-binary patients comprises a significant proportion of our transgender surgery practice, and surgeons providing affirming care should be familiar with the unique characteristics and treatment options for this patient population.

Language: en

LA - en SN - 1090-820X UR - http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/asj/sjy166 ID - ref1 ER -