Denise
My son is 18 years old and just underwent plastic surgery for congential absence of the right pectoral muscle. He was diagnosed with Poland's Syndrome at birth. I thought he did well with it until he was around 14 or 15 yrs. old. He became self-conscious, walked with a stoop to try to hide it, and would only wear certain clothes. It all came to a head when he had to change high schools and he said he couldn't face a new set of kids asking questions (sometimes students would ask him to take his shirt off so they could see). He said he would not make the move unless we did something. We found an excellent plastic surgeon who perfomed a muscle flap procedure. That was this past July and he's doing better than I ever thought..lots of confidence and friends at his new school. I honestly know that he wouldn't have made it psychologically without this procedure. The absence of the pectoral never gave him physical problems, in fact, he played football and baseball in high school. However, the pyschological effects were apparent in his teens and only worsened as he got older. He has a pretty long scar across his back from the procedure, but he's so proud of his chest that he walks around without his shirt...something he's never done. I don't know what's ahead, but I know that he's extremely happy and self-confident. Let me know if you have any questions I can answer. Good luck