Archive for the ‘Reconstructive Surgery’ Category

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Despite Highly Publicized Deaths, Plastic Surgery Complications Rare

Tuesday, December 14th, 2010

While we all take safety precautions in performing various plastic surgery procedures at our clinic, the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) reminds people that any surgical procedure carries inherent risk.

They recommend 6 important recommendations when considering plastic surgery, including:

1. Research benefits and risks of any procedure as much as you can before going forward. Check out our resources on plastic surgery or visit the ASPS website for more.

2. Have realistic expectations and fully discuss risks and recovery time with your surgeon beforehand.

3. Talk to other patients who have undergone the procedure to learn of their experiences.

4. Discuss your full medical history with your surgeon before undergoing any procedure.

5. Only choose surgeons accredited by the ASPS. They have a certain level of experience, professionalism and have all proper certifications.

6. If your surgery is taking place at an outpatient center, verify the center’s accreditation

“The death of a patient is always tragic and devastating for all involved, particularly the patient’s family and the medical team,” said Richard D’Amico, MD, ASPS president. “However, we don’t want to unnecessarily frighten the public. While this situation is rare, the decision to have a plastic surgery procedure is serious. No-risk surgery doesn’t exist.”

Plastic surgery procedures are relatively safe, with serious complications only occurring in 1 in 298 or 0.34 percent. Death occurs in 1 in 51,459, or 0.0019 percent of cases according to a 2004 study from the ASPS that evaluated over 400,000 surgeries.

Any death or complication is tragic but these statistics show that despite any of these highly publicized things, death and complications from plastic surgery are very rare.

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Cosmetic Surgery Financing Options

Tuesday, November 30th, 2010

Especially these days, questions about cosmetic surgery and costs go hand in hand. While many of you long to revolutionize your look and feel, concerns about financial cost generally aren’t far behind.

Fortunately there are options to help women and families obtain much desired aesthetic or reconstructive procedures like breast implants, tummy tucks or liposuction and pay for it in a responsible manner. Reconstructive procedures may even be considered medically necessary and thus, covered by health insurance. It just depends on your particular situation.

Below are a few financing options besides paying cash or putting cosmetic surgery procedures on your credit card. We recognize most don’t have an extra few thousand dollars lying around. Flexible financing options though help ease the financial burden of undergoing a cosmetic surgery procedure.

Payment Plans

Many cosmetic surgeons across Florida offer flexible payment plans to their patients. Rather than having all of the money up front, pay in installments and better manage the cost of undergoing an aesthetic or reconstructive procedure.

Health Insurance

Many plastic surgery procedures are done for medical reasons. If a procedure like a breast reduction or rhinoplasty is needed to alleviate other medical conditions, your health insurance may cover part of the cost. Consult with your insurance company to learn more.

Tax Deductions (rare)

Another option, though rarely used, is a tax deduction. If your procedure has anything to do with your career, you may be able to take a sizeable tax deduction for it. However, this is generally considered the least reliable source of paying for a cosmetic surgery procedure.

These are just a few of the options you can consider for financing a cosmetic surgery procedure. Besides cost, you should also learn as much as you can about the procedure you’re interested in. Take a look at our cosmetic surgery before & after photos section and learn about what you can expect by reviewing our material on individual procedures.

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Surgeons Use Injectable Fillers after Nose Surgery

Wednesday, November 17th, 2010

Florida plastic surgeons at Accent in Gainesville employ a rhinoplasty procedure to help patients reshape and resize their noses. Rhinoplasty surgery in fact is among the top five cosmetic surgery procedures with over 152,000 “nose job” procedures being performed in 2008 alone.

While plastic surgery procedures have improved dramatically, there are still some imperfections.

To smooth out any minor irregularities and asymmetries remaining after any initial rhinoplasty procedure, surgeons have increasingly been turning to injectable fillers. The rise of injectable fillers to smooth wrinkles and other skin enhancements has naturally lead surgeons to consider their use to correct any imperfections following surgery according to an article in the Aesthetic Surgery Journal.

“Injectable fillers allow surgeons to correct post-surgical imperfections without the expense, anesthetic risk, or recovery downtime involved with additional surgery,” comments Dr. Steve Dayan, MD, one of three authors of the article and assistant clinical professor at the University of Illinois Medical Center in Chicago.

Injectable filler substances like Hyaluronic Acid (HA), calcium hydroxylapatite gel (CaHA) and off-label liquid silicone have all been used to varying degrees of success to treat post-surgical nasal deformities.

Authors of the paper though don’t suggest silicone since it carriers a higher risk of complication.

Surgeons also have to be careful on how they use these injectable fillers in the nose region. Placing filler at the nose’s tip, base and too deep can cause complications like bumpy appearance, soft tissue damage or even compromise blood vessels in the nose.

“The use of any soft tissue filler in the nose should always be approached with caution and with thorough consideration of a patient’s inpidual circumstances,” says Dr. Dayan.

And while these fillers offer an easy, less expensive way to revise your nose’s shape and appearance following a rhinoplasty, they’re not recommended as a primary option for altering your nose.

Innovative techniques like this though can make any post-surgical corrections quick and easy and not require you to undergo more surgery.

As with any plastic surgery procedure, only deal with board-certified plastic surgeons that have the requisite training and experience to safely work on your nose.

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New “Gummy Bear” Implants Signal Potential Revolution in Breast Reconstruction Technology

Wednesday, November 3rd, 2010

Although they’re still in clinical trials, new “gummy bear” implants could provide women with more breast reconstruction options.

Standard breast implants – while quite adequate for many – only address diameter and volume.

“Gummy Bear” implants, which are technically known as ‘form stable’ implants, provide more dimensional options that can be customized to each individual’s need more easily. These novel implants address width, height and projection and appeal to women who are looking for a more authentic look.

Form stable implants like the ‘gummy bear’ implant do maintain their shape while you’re lying down. Standard saline implants on the other hand flatten so that’s something to keep in mind when evaluating your options.

Also, the ‘gummy bear’ implant material consists of a much more cohesive gel, meaning that if there’s a tear, the greater the likelihood the material will stay together.

Learn more about this new and exciting breast reconstruction option in this Plastic Surgery Channel interview. Dr. Scott Spier, chief of plastic surgery at Georgetown University Hospital, explains in more detail how ‘gummy bear’ implants differ from traditional breast implants.

While these interesting new implants are still in clinical trials, we’re excited about the prospect they offer and look forward to making them available to Accent patients as soon as practically possible.

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Improve your Nose’s Proportion and Appearance with a Rhinoplasty

Wednesday, October 6th, 2010

Florida nose surgeons at Accent Plastic Surgery & Aesthetics expertly help men & women correct irregularities in their nose to improve proportion and even improve breathing.

If your nose is out of proportion with the rest of your face or structural problems are causing you to difficulty breathing, nose surgery at our Florida clinic can help correct your problems.

Nose shape is largely determined by familial traits but accidents or a prior surgery can dramatically alter its appearance. A rhinoplasty can change the nose’s size in relation to other facial features, change the width of the nose at the bridge and/or get rid of visible bumps and depressions on the bridge.

Nose surgery also corrects large or drooping nasal tips, nostrils that are too large, small or upturned and enhances nasal asymmetry and deviation.

Generally speaking, patients who are in good health and have realistic expectations are great candidates for nose surgery…it’s a very individualized procedure and it only can be done for you, not to satisfy others’ wishes.

If you think a rhinoplasty may be what’s needed to address your problems and accomplish your goals, you will first need to meet with a board-certified Florida nose surgeon to discuss your areas of concern, general health and your goals and expectations. During this interview, surgeons will want to snap a few pictures, measure your face and discuss surgical options.

Be completely honest with them during this session…doing so makes the procedure go along quicker with less chance of error.

From here, you can go ahead and schedule your nose surgery procedure. It’s an outpatient procedure so you will need to have a friend or family member come with you to the clinic to drive you home.

Recovery from the procedure itself takes a day or two but you should plan to have at least a week of reduced activity. As your new nasal contours form, you may feel a little soreness and see a little swelling for possibly up to a year. Once the recovery is complete though, you’re sure to love your new look…take a look at some of our rhinoplasty before & after photos to get an idea.

If you’re looking for options to address areas of concern in your nose or in other areas, learn more about nose surgery at our clinic or contact Florida nose surgeons at Accent Plastic Surgery & Aesthetics today to schedule an appointment.

Courtest of ClipArt

Courtest of ClipArt

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See Examples of Prior Plastic Surgery Procedures in our Before & After Photo Section

Tuesday, August 31st, 2010

Reading about plastic surgery procedures like a breast augmentation, facelift or liposuction at our Florida clinic will naturally get you wondering about how others look after undergoing one of many plastic surgery options we offer at our Gainesville clinic.

To help you get an idea of how a breast reduction can reduce overly large breasts or how a tummy tuck can rejuvenate your midsection, many prior patients have graciously agreed to take before & after photos to post on our site.

You can easily get a first-hand look at how a wide variety of plastic, cosmetic and reconstructive procedures have helped people of all ages and walks of life restore their appearance – either cosmetically or following a major accident or medical condition.

Take a moment and visit our Florida plastic surgery before & after photo center to see more. You can easily choose a procedure on the left side of the page and learn more about those procedures by visiting our plastic surgery learning center today.

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Correct Changes in your Breast Implants with a Breast Revision

Thursday, August 19th, 2010

One way Florida plastic surgeons at Gainesville’s Accent Plastic Surgery & Aesthetics expertly help women accomplish their goals of fuller breasts are to use implants. However, changes with the implants themselves or natural changes in the breast tissue after child-birth or weight loss can cause the breasts to lose their fullness.

Besides these changes in breast tissue, some women simply desire larger or smaller breasts and will require a breast revision to help them accomplish their goals.

Breast revision is in fact one of or a combination of other common cosmetic breast procedures we perform at our Gainesville clinic…perhaps it’s a breast lift after giving birth, or even a breast reduction in some cases.

Either way, everyone’s situation is unique so learn more about the procedure and if it’s the right course of action to help you accomplish your goals by reading our newest page on breast revisions or contact Florida breast revision surgeons at Accent Plastic Surgery & Aesthetics today.

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Correcting Abnormal Breast Development in Young Women

Tuesday, August 3rd, 2010

Abnormal breast development – known in the plastic surgery world as a congenital breast asymmetry – is an unfortunate reality for many young women. Most women do have slight differences in each of their breasts but these are unnoticeable in most cases.

However, some women have extreme differences in their breasts, which are caused by genetic tendencies or simply differences in the way paired organs like breasts grow.

Whatever the reason, breast asymmetry is a difficult situation for anyone to be in, destroying confidence and optimism.

Fortunately, Florida plastic surgeons at Accent Plastics have the ability to correct these differences.

Breast buds begin developing in young girls anywhere between the ages of 7 and 13 or whenever a girl’s biological clock makes her body create more estrogen. About two years after this event, the first menstrual period occurs while breasts continue developing for another 2-4 years, which is where noticeable differences in the breast size can occur.

By age 21 though, breasts are fully developed so if you still have noticeable differences at this point, a congenital breast asymmetry may be right for you. The only other events where breasts will change are pregnancy and menopause.

But what does a congenital breast asymmetry involve?

Well, it’s actually other common plastic surgery procedures except it’s done for a different purpose.

Since it’s a very personal thing, you cannot know what your breasts require without speaking with a qualified breast asymmetry surgeon.

To correct differences in the size of your breasts, surgeons can employ a breast augmentation, breast lift, breast reduction or a combination of these procedures.

Therefore, recovering from this procedure is exactly like other cosmetic breast procedures we offer at our Gainesville clinic.

Take a moment and see if a congenital breast asymmetry is right for you and what you can expect if you decide to go forward with the procedure.

And if you have any questions or want to schedule an appointment, contact Florida breast asymmetry surgeons at Accent Plastic Surgery & Aesthetics.

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ASPS and other Medical Organizations Offer 8 Lawnmower Safety Tips

Thursday, July 8th, 2010

Now that summer is in full swing, we’re all watching our lawns blossom and keeping a regular schedule for trimming them. Since kids are out of school, it’s a natural chore for them to keep them busy.

In 2009, approximately 247,000 people were treated for lawnmower accidents…18,000 of these incidents involved children under the age of 19 according the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. Since 2008, lawnmower related injuries have increased by 7%.

Since the summer mowing season is upon us, the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, American Society for Reconstructive Microsurgery, American Society of Maxillofacial Surgeons, American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons are teaming together to educate homeowners, especially those with kids, the importance of lawnmower safety.

Many lawnmower injuries require specialists from several areas including plastic surgery, microsurgery, pediatrics and orthopaedics to name a few.

“Lawn mower injuries often include deep cuts, loss of fingers and toes, limb amputations, broken and dislocated bones, burns, and eye injuries,” said ASPS President Michael McGuire, MD. “Most are caused by careless use and can be prevented by following a few simple safety tips.”

Continue reading for 8 tips on preventing lawnmower injuries at your home this summer.

  1. Only let kids 12 and older operate a push mower – 16 and up for a riding mower
  2. Never have children ride as passengers on a riding mower
  3. Wear sturdy shoes when mowing, not sandals
  4. Keep young children away from the area you’re mowing
  5. To prevent injuries from flying objects, pick up stones, toys and any other debris before mowing
  6. Wear eye and hearing protection when mowing
  7. Only use a mower that has a control that stops it from moving forward if the handle is released
  8. Only pull backward or mow in reverse if it’s absolutely necessary and make sure no one is behind you if you must do it

Following these tips when mowing your lawn will ensure your summer will be safe, happy and healthy. While helping accident victims regain their natural looks after an accident is very rewarding work in one respect, we’d rather not have to do it in the first place, saving people from the trauma and hassle of undergoing several surgeries.

If you’re looking for reconstructive surgery to help restore your pre-accident condition, consider contacting Florida reconstructive surgeons at Accent Plastic Surgery & Aesthetics today for a free evaluation.

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Study Shows Women’s Curves Mesmerize a Man like Drugs and Alcohol

Wednesday, April 7th, 2010

According to a new study from Georgia’s Gwinnett College in Lawrenceville, men prefer a woman with curves and that an hourglass figure acts as an intoxicant for the male brain.

Many women worry about their weight but results from this study showing that men simply prefer a curvier figure should make them rest easier.

Researchers at the college scanned the brains of 14 young men looking at nude before and after pictures of women who underwent a plastic surgery procedure that gave them more shapely hips. Their weight didn’t change, just redistributed through implanted fat taken from the hips and buttock.

The post-op photos excited the young male’s “reward centers” – or areas of the brain typically stimulated by drugs and alcohol. Proved to be particularly stimulating were women with high waist to hip ratios. Steven Palek, lead researcher on the project and an evolutionary cognitive neuroscientist, credits this to the reality that shapely hips in women are an indication of good health and the ability to carry children.

Results from the study also conclude that changes in a woman’s body mass index (BMI) only affected the parts of the brain linked to visual evaluation like size and shape but nothing else.  This may be proof that societal norms influence perception of female beauty more so than actual brain wiring.

“The media portrays women as wholly too skinny,” Platek told FoxNews.com. “It’s not just about body fat, or body mass index.”

If a woman’s natural curves are not optimal for this scenario, findings from this study demonstrate the benefits of a breast enlargement procedure or buttock augmentation. More curves are not only more appealing, they are downright intoxicating!

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