Reconstructive Plastic Surgeon Archives - Page 3 of 3

Are you a candidate for plastic surgery?

Before undergoing any procedures, plastic surgery candidates must have realistic expectations and an understanding of the limitations set by medicine, technology, and their own body. Even with how fast technology is evolving, there are still things that simply cannot be done… yet! We never like to use absolutes when it comes to plastic surgery.

Good candidates have a strong self-image and a well-developed reason for wanting a plastic surgery procedure. They know that while this will be a positive change to their own self-image, it will not change people’s perception of them. Unrealistic expectations or dangerous motivations for plastic surgery such as purely doing it to gain popularity, or attempting to reverse recent life crises, are not reasons to persue a plastic surgery procedure.

If you feel you are a candidate for plastic surgery or if you would like to schedule a consultation to go over your possible options, give us a call at 615-624-8914 and we’ll be glad to help.

How young is too young? How old is too old?

There really is no set in stone rule as to the appropriate ages for plastic surgery. The appropriateness of plastic surgery procedures should be examined more on a case by case basis. Certain criteria need to be looked at such as the individual’s unique body type and aging process.

Of course, there are age tendencies for certain procedures. For example, facelifts are generally not performed on patients under the age of 30. In such cases, mini-lifts or laser procedures would be suggested in place of a facelift. Otoplasty (correcting the deformities and defects of the external ear), however, is appropriate for adults of any age or patients as young as 5 years old.

Furthermore, reconstructive surgical procedures allow for patients of almost any age to be performed on. Reconstructive surgery is the use of surgery to restore the form and function of the body to allow for normal functioning. For example, otolaryngologists do reconstructive surgery on faces after trauma and to reconstruct the head and neck after cancer.

We will address reconstructive surgery more in later blog posts.

Do’s and Don’ts for Plastic Surgery

Do’s:

1. Research your doctor

Does your doctor perform a lot of these procedures?
Is your doctor a board certified plastic surgeon?
Ask to see your doctors results from previous procedures they’ve done.
Meet with your doctors patients
Confirm that your doctors facility is accredited

2. Have realistic goals

Realize that this is a serious decision and as with any surgery, there could be potential complications

Don’ts:

1. DO NOT rush into any procedure

Make sure the procedure you’re wanting is right for you
Clarify your surgery goals
Ask all of your questions PRIOR to getting your surgery
Make sure you know exactly what you’re getting into

2. Don’t undergo surgery for the wrong reasons

Do the surgery for yourself, not for any other person or any other reason. Make sure it’s what YOU want and not your significant other, friends or family want.
Don’t expect surgery to change your entire life; do it to make you feel better about yourself

3. Avoid requesting unnatural results/procedures

Many doctors may be willing to perform a procedure that should not be done on your body simply to make money, or to give you a look that THEY think is right
Be realistic about your natural body type, the one you were born with. If you are a petite, five-foot tall woman, be wary of a doctor who believes you should be getting size D implants

4. Don’t let cost determine which surgeon you choose

It’s been said that you get what you pay for with aesthetic surgery. Don’t learn that lesson the hard way!

How to Avoid a Plastic Surgery Nightmare

Thanks to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons for this article on how to avoid a plastic surgery nightmare.

On the daytime talk show “Katie,” Katie Couric discusses the importance of selecting a board-certified plastic surgeon and how to avoid dangerous and disastrous results. Katie has a series called “Dying to be Beautiful: Beauty Trends That Can Prove Lethal” where she examines what happens when so called beauty bargains go wrong.

Dr. Roth, along with ASPS Member Surgeon Dr. Anthony Youn and a few patients who have suffered disfigurements from plastic surgeons who were not board certified help to educate the public on what to know about your doctor before you commit to a surgery from any plastic surgeon.

Click here for the full video

Personality Factors Affect Quality of Life after Breast Reconstruction

Women Who Want ‘Revenge on Cancer’ May Have Better Psychological Responses

Certain personality traits are linked to higher quality of life scores in breast cancer patients who undergo breast reconstruction after mastectomy, reports a study in the January issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery®, the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS).

Silvio Bellino, MD, and colleagues at the University of Turin, Italy, gave a battery of psychological tests to 57 women with breast cancer who underwent mastectomy and immediate breast reconstruction. The goal was to look at how various personality dimensions and patterns of interpersonal functioning affected quality of life after surgery.

Personalities Affect Women’s Outlook after Breast Loss and Reconstruction

After adjustment for other factors, two personality types were linked to higher quality of life scores. This included women with high scores for the temperamental characteristic of “harm avoidance” – a group that Dr. Bellino and coauthors characterize as “apprehensive and doubtful.” For these patients, they write, “Restoration of body image could help…to reduce social anxiety and insecurity.”

Patients rated as “vindictive/self-centered” on a scale of interpersonal problems also had higher quality of life scores. “Vindictive/self-centered patients are resentful and aggressive,” according to Dr. Bellino and colleagues. “Breast reconstruction could symbolize the conclusion of a reparative process and fulfill the desire of revenge on cancer.”

None of the other psychological or other factors evaluated – including the characteristics of the cancer and its treatment – were significantly related to quality of life scores. Overall, mastectomy followed by breast reconstruction yielded significant improvement in quality of life.

As survival rates improve, there is increased attention to the quality of life in breast cancer survivors. More women are undergoing breast reconstruction immediately after mastectomy, which seems to reduce the psychological impact of treatment. The new study is one of the first to look at how personality factors might affect patient satisfaction and quality of life after mastectomy and breast reconstruction.

The results suggest that some personality characteristics have an important impact on psychological recovery after breast cancer treatment. Based on their findings, “A preoperative personality assessment of patients requiring breast reconstruction will be useful to identify predictive factors of better subjective quality of life after surgery,” Dr. Bellino and colleagues believe. Such an assessment could help to identify women who could benefit from a brief course of psychotherapy during the period after reconstruction, with the goals of “preventing depressive symptoms and improving interpersonal relations.”