Archive for the ‘Body’ Category

Liposuction is not about the fat!

Wednesday, August 11th, 2010

Each day in my Maryland and Virginia offices I see people in consultation for Liposuction. While Liposuction is one of the most popular procedures that I perform I find that often it is the most misunderstood.

Liposuction is not only about the fat—it’s about the overlying skin. Liposuction can be used to remove fat from just about any area of the body but the key to a nice looking result is having good skin tone. When I evaluate my Clientele in Maryland and Virginia for Liposuction, with their permission, I pinch them to assess the skin tone.

If the skin tone is good (good elasticity) and I remove fat from under the skin, the skin will shrink up and that person will have a nice result. If the skin tone is loose, I can still remove fat, but the skin may wind up looser, wavier or more irregular. In order to be happy a patient with a skin tone that is loose will need a different set of expectations then a patient with good skin tone.

The paradox of liposuction is the people who do the best are often the people who need it the least. Young people with good skin tone often get the best results from liposuction. This is not true with all procedures of cosmetic surgery.

The best candidates for cosmetic liposuction have good skin tone and specific diet resistant areas. It is much easier and safer to satisfy a patient with a specific goal than someone who says “make me skinny”.

I used to think the term “body contouring” was just an attempt to call liposuction something sexier. Twenty years later body contouring describes exactly what I do. I can’t make a heavy person skinny, but I can make them more streamlined. I can’t erase all fat but I can make it fit the body better.

Liposuction can be performed alone or in combination with a procedure such as abdominoplasty. The treatment option depends on a patient’s goal, healthy, amount of fat, and location of area or areas that need treatment. If you live in the Maryland, D.C. or Virginia area and have been considering liposuction and want to be as healthy as you can be; contact my office. I’d be happy to give you a pinch and a heartfelt opinion.

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When is the best time for cosmetic surgery?

Thursday, April 15th, 2010

The best time for cosmetic surgery is when you have the time and support to recover. Each operation that I perform has different timing in terms of average recovery.   Things that require pulling or stretching of muscles like tummy tucks for example will need a longer recovery than skin tightening procedures such as breast lift.  While each patient is different I offer some general rules of thumb:

1. Give yourself off about a week for all but the most minor procedures:
It is better to be pleasantly surprised and need less recovery time than to need more time and not have it.  I go into detail about the expected average recovery for each procedure in consultation.  Some patients may take less than average amounts of time to recover but some may take more.  Better to be on the safe side and have more than adequate time.

2. Have support at home:
My clientele is made up of healthy people.  As such, I perform most of my surgeries outpatient.  It is my firm belief that hospitals are full of illness and harmful bacteria.  I feel strongly that my patients get better care in a cleaner and healthier environment when they are at home with the support of a spouse or loved one.

3. Plan ahead:
If you want to enjoy your figure in the summer have your surgery in the winter or fall.  I see an influx of breast augmentation patients just before the summer each year.   Implants take 3- 6 months or more to settle post op.  Patients who come in earlier in the year will look more settled and natural by the time summer comes.

4. Don’t do surgery right before a major life event.
Each year I see the bride who wants breast implants two weeks before the wedding or her mother who may want a face lift. While I would love to be the physician for these patients it makes no sense to have surgery just before an important life event. Plan at least six months ahead if you can.

5. Stay in the area for a while:
In a perfect world my patients would live next door for a week following surgery.  While not realistic I at least want to have my patients in the vicinity.  Once in a while I have a patient who plans to hop on a plane and recover in an exotic location.  It is just as important for me to be available to you after surgery as before.  Stick around for a while.

6. Stop Smoking.
Without doubt this is the toughest of the recommendations and the hardest for patients.  Smoking exponentially increases the risks of healing problems or infections. While not everyone is able to stop it is one of my strongest recommendations and requires the most forethought.

7. If you have any medical problems schedule even further ahead:
My goal is to perform your surgery as safely as possible.  For patients with medical issues we need time to get appropriate testing and clearance where necessary. It can take more time to get these evaluations and results.

If you would like help in safely planning the procedure you are considering please don’t hesitate to call my office and schedule a consultation.

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So what exactly is a mommy makeover?

Wednesday, March 10th, 2010

The term “mommy makeover” gets used a lot on web sites and in marketing. In my own practice I call it post partum restoration which I think sounds more professional. Weather its makeover or restoration the goal is the same. It’s about making women who have had children feel normal again and it is one of the most rewarding parts of my practice. There are usually two components to this kind of restoration: breast enhancement and rejuvenation of the abdomen.

Breast enhancement:

In a rather cruel way the breasts enlarge with childbearing but they often deflate after weaning leaving even less volume than before pregnancy. My patients who have had children complain of feeling “deflated” after pregnancy and they just want to feel normal again, nothing more, nothing less. Through breast augmentation or breast lift and sometimes both I help to restore the balance of what used to be.

Tummy enhancement:

The other part of “mommy makeover” is the tummy. While sometimes the skin of the tummy will shrink back well after delivery, often it does not. Some women will do well with their first pregnancy but not with the second. The usual treatment here is tummy tuck. What! , tummy tuck, not liposuction? Yes, when the skin becomes loose, wavy saggy or irregular it needs to be tightened. Liposuction makes skin looser not tighter. I guide my patients by pinching on their tummies. If the skin tone is good (which is unusual postpartum) I will recommend liposuction. If the skin is loose I may recommend full or mini tummy tuck depending on how much I can pinch.

“My husband says I should just go to the gym and work it off…” is something I hear daily. What the men often don’t understand is that the problem isn’t the muscles at all. The problem is the “overstretched” skin. Women with loose skin who diet, exercise and do everything right usually see weight loss. Paradoxically the weight loss leads to even more loosening of the skin and greater need for tummy tuck.

If you feel loose or deflated after child bearing and would like to be evaluated please contact our office today.

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