Facial Surgery – Dr. Lopa Gupta

Cosmetic Procedures: Supply & Demand

According to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, cosmetic plastic surgery includes surgical and nonsurgical procedures that reshape normal structures of the body in order to improve appearance and self-esteem. Healthy individuals with a positive outlook and realistic expectations are appropriate candidates for cosmetic procedures. Plastic surgery is a personal choice and should be done for yourself, not to fulfill someone else’s desires or to try to fit an ideal image. Because it is elective, cosmetic surgery is usually not covered by health insurance.

While any cosmetic surgery may seem vain, many people say these treatments have improved their lives. For example, South Korea has the highest ratio of procedures per capita. Surgeons in the Asian country perform around 20 procedures per 1,000 people. It has been estimated that between one-fifth and one-third of women in Seoul have gone under the knife, and one poll reported by the BBC puts the figure at fifty percent or higher for women in their twenties. The U.S. ranks second on a per capita basis, with 13 procedures per 1,000. Japan places third with 10 procedures per 1,000, according to numbers from the society.

Here are some of the top 8 cosmetic surgery procedures in high demand:

1. Breast augmentation surgery, also known as augmentation mammoplasty, is the surgical placement of breast implants to increase fullness and improve symmetry of the breasts, or to restore breast volume lost after weight reduction or pregnancy. Breast augmentation surgery involves using breast implants or fat, referred to as fat transfer breast augmentation, to increase the size of your breasts or restore breast volume that has been lost after weight reduction or pregnancy.

2. Surgical body contouring following major weight loss removes excess sagging fat and skin while improving the shape of the underlying support tissue. The result is a more normal appearance with smoother contours. Dramatic weight loss has many benefits. But after weight reduction surgery, or any substantial amount of weight loss, the skin and tissues often lack the elasticity to conform to the reduced body size. Body contouring procedures may include:

• Facelift: sagging of the mid-face, jowls, and neck, • Breast lift: sagging, flattened breasts; • Tummy tuck: apron of excess skin hanging over the abdomen, • Lower body lifts: sagging of the abdomen, buttocks, groin and outer thighs, • Medial thigh lift: sagging of the inner, outer and mid thigh, and • Arm lift: sagging of the upper arm

3. Rhinoplasty (“nose job”) can improve the appearance and proportion of your nose, or correct a breathing problem associated with the nose. Rhinoplasty surgery can change:

• Nose size in relation to facial balance, • Nose width at the bridge or in the size and position of the nostrils, • Nose profile with visible humps or depressions of the bridge, • Nasal tip that is enlarged or bulbous, drooping, upturned or hooked, • Nostrils that are large, wide, or upturned, • Nasal asymmetry

4. Dermal fillers: As we age, our faces naturally lose subcutaneous fat. The facial muscles are then working closer to the skin surface, so smile lines and crow’s feet become more apparent. The facial skin also stretches a bit, adding to this loss of facial volume. Other factors that affect the facial skin include sun exposure, heredity, and lifestyle. Injectable dermal fillers can plump thin lips, enhance shallow contours, soften facial creases, remove wrinkles and improve the appearance of recessed scars. Dermal fillers can also help to diminish facial lines and restore volume and fullness in the face.

5. Laser hair removal: is a non-invasive technique that uses highly concentrated light to penetrate hair follicles and inhibit future hair growth. Laser hair removal is effective for most parts of the body. But, because it only affects actively growing hair follicles, it may take several laser hair removal treatments to provide significant hair reduction. Additionally, while laser hair removal effectively slows hair growth, it doesn’t guarantee permanent hair removal. Periodic maintenance treatments may be needed.

6. Microdermabrasion treatments use a minimally abrasive instrument to gently sand your skin, removing the thicker, uneven outer layer. Collagen is a protein in your skin that’s abundant when you’re a child and makes skin appear taut and smooth. Collagen production declines as we age, resulting in looser, uneven skin. Microdermabrasion helps to thicken your collagen, which results in a younger looking complexion. This type of skin rejuvenation is used to:

• Improve age spots and blackheads, • Improve hyperpigmentation (patches of darkened skin, • Exfoliate your skin, Resulting in a refreshed appearance, • Lessen the appearance of stretch marks, • Reduce fine lines and wrinkles, • Reduce or eliminate enlarged pores, • Treat acne and the scars left by acne.

7. Surgical hair transplantation involves removing small pieces of hair-bearing scalp grafts from a donor site and relocating them to a bald or thinning area. Techniques include punch grafts, mini-grafts, micro-grafts, slit grafts and strip grafts for a more modest change in hair fullness. Flaps, tissue-expansion and scalp-reduction are procedures best for patients who desire a more dramatic change.Baldness is often blamed on poor circulation to the scalp, vitamin deficiencies, dandruff, and even excessive hat-wearing. All of these theories have been disproved. It’s also untrue that hair loss can be determined by looking at your maternal grandfather, or that 40-year-old men who haven’t lost their hair will never lose it. But, here’s the truth about hair loss: Hair loss is primarily caused by a combination of: • Age, • Change in hormones, • Family history of baldness.

If you and your doctor have determined that hair transplants are the best option for you, you can feel comfortable knowing that board-certified plastic surgeons have been successfully performing this type of procedure for more than thirty years.

8. Ear surgery – also known as otoplasty – can improve the shape, position or proportion of the ear. It can correct a defect in the ear structure that is present at birth, or it can treat misshapen ears caused by injury. Ear surgery creates a natural shape, while bringing balance and proportion to the ears and face. Correction of even minor deformities can have profound beneﬁts to appearance and self-esteem. Specifically, ear surgery can treat:

• Overly large ears– a rare condition called Macrotia, • Protruding ears occurring on one or both sides in varying degrees- not associated with hearing loss, and • Adult dissatisfaction with previous ear surgery.

New Technology Shaping Cosmetic Surgery Of The Future

Over the past decade the popularity of plastic surgery has increased rapidly. This is due to many factors. Negative attitudes toward certain procedures are softening and many more people are looking to plastic surgery as an option. Alongside this comes technological advances that have cosmetic surgeons taking different approaches to hinder the effects of aging.

Many of the new techniques are classified as, “minimally invasive procedures” and the results are better for three main reasons:

Faster patient recovery
Less chance of complication
Appears more natural

A lot of these new techniques utilize laser technology for both facial and body shaping. Laser technology is the newest technology and is already being used for procedures that used to be extensive surgeries with a large amount of recovery time. As the popularity of these alternative treatments increases the accessibility of the tools is increasing as well.

And it’s not just plastic surgery that is adopting these new techniques. Open heart surgeries and vasectomies are increasingly being performed with less-invasive means.

Minimally invasive surgery is performed without making a large incision like in traditional open surgery, but often with tiny openings which lessens scarring and allows for quicker recovery. For facelifts, chemical peeling and dermabrasions, which are both methods of removing the first layer of skin, were used in the past but have a higher risk of complication. One popular and quick laser treatment removes the outer layer of skin which results in the skin tightening, smoothing out and often rids of large pores and brown spots. Laser can be used to quickly and effectively improve many of the signs of aging like crow’s feet, and creasing.

On the eyelids and cheeks, laser skin resurfacing is particularly effective. These “eyelifts” have always been common procedure but has recently increased in popularity among women and men because the new technology offers quick recovery periods and a more natural look.

The Five Most Popular Cosmetic Surgery Procedures

As cosmetic surgery becomes increasingly mainstream and popular, the top procedures remain relatively constant. These are the top five plastic surgery procedures of last year.

Breast Augmentation – Almost always a the top of the list, the number of breast augmentations increased last year, albeit very slightly. A breast augmentation is clinically referred to as augmentation mammaplasty. It is done to increase fullness and projection of the patient’s breasts, improve the balance of the patient’s figure, and enhance the patient’s self-confidence.

Nose Reshaping – Down a significant 9% from last year, nose reshaping, or rhinoplasty, has decreased in popularity. Nose reshaping is popular if a patient is unhappy with the shape, size or angle of their nose, or if their nose is not in proportion to the rest of their face. Some patients also undergo the procedure if they are having trouble breathing.

Eyelid Surgery – A specialty of Dr. Gupta, eyelid surgery increased the most in popularity with the number of eyelid surgeries up 6%. Eyelid surgery is popular if a patient has loose or sagging skin that disturbs the natural contour of the upper eyelid, in some cases this impairs the patient’s vision. Correcting drooping lower eyelids or bags under the eyes are popular reasons to get procedures done as well.

Liposuction – A procedure to remove fat from a patient. The operation is most often done on the abdomen, thighs, and buttocks but can be performed on the arm, neck and various other places. Eyelid surgery surpassed liposuction in 2012.

Facelift – Joining the top five in 2011, facelifts continue to grow in popularity. The surgery is performed to improve the aesthetics of the face and neck and make the patient look younger. Patients with sagging anywhere on their face, loose skin and fatty deposits, or even loss of skin tone make great candidates.

A Successful Face Transplant at Cleveland Clinic

A full face transplant was conducted recently at The Cleveland Clinic. This is an extremely rare procedure and requires many things to be in place.

Full face transplants are a very risky procedure, and face transplants have resulted in complications before. Surgeries like this are very rare but have been possible for years. Patients must have exhausted all other options. Patients must also be healthy and have the mental health to understand the risk. Potential patients must also take immunosuppressing medications for the rest of their life, which is a risk in itself.

The patient in this face transplant had a serious auto accident, and sustained serious injuries to his face. He had very serious damage to his eyes and nose, and had lost his sense of smell. Doctors wanted to preserve the eyesight in his left eye and previous attempts at reconstructive surgery had failed eight times.

The patient was put at the top of the donor list, and the top doctors were called in.

Dr. Francis Papay is the chairman of the Dermatology and Plastic Surgeon Institute at the Cleveland Clinic and was meant to give a lecture on face transplants in Europe when he was called on to perform the surgery.

Dr. Maria Siemionow was also called in. She was in charge of the first ever full face transplant in the United States six years ago.

These two doctors, along with a team of just less than 30 doctors, took almost a full day to complete the procedure.

There was a lot of excitement in the medical community about the procedure performed late October but no details were released until last week. The surgery was a success, and according to reports, the man’s gregarious nature has returned, and his wife is very happy with how well the surgery worked.

There are, however, still a few unknowns. Due to HIPAA regulations, the name of the patient, his age and hometown will remain a secret for as long as the patient chooses to remain anonymous.