The field of plastic surgery has gown significantly over the last fifteen to twenty years and continues to grow as more people are seeking ways to achieve their ideal body image.  As a potential patient, how are you supposed to know what plastic surgeon to choose and what qualities are important?  As one would guess, it is considerably easier to get good results with a single good surgery than it is to be forced to undergo multiple procedures to fix the results of a botched plastic surgery.  And although liking your surgeon can help to some degree in choosing a plastic surgeon, there is more information to consider.

Following a few simple steps can likely help you to  avoid less trained surgeons and ensure that your procedure and recovery will go as well as possible:

• Check that your surgeon is well trained and certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery.  There are a number of “cosmetic surgeons” that claim to be certified by the American Board of Cosmetic Surgery.  However, the Board of Cosmetic Surgery is not officially recognized by the American Board of Medical Specialties, and is therefore not an actual board.  Also, many of these surgeons are not plastic surgeons even though they claim to be able to perform plastic surgery.  The bottom line is you need to do a little research.
• Ask questions.  Ask specifics about what your surgeon was actually trained in.  Once again, there are many “cosmetic surgeons” that claim to have adequate experience in the field of plastic surgery.  Ask specific questions about their training, like what they trained in, where they trained, and the number of procedures in this area that they have carried out.
• Advise your plastic surgeon of any medications that you are currently taking, and provide your complete medical history.  This information is crucial prior to undergoing an procedure (no matter how minor).  The more information your surgeon has before the procedure, the better he or she will be able to foresee any potential risks.
• Check that the surgical facility is officially recognized and that there are licensed, skilled staff that will administer and monitor you before, during, and after your procedure.
• Lastly, make sure that you are comfortable with the surgeon and the staff.  Surgery can be frightening, so the more you know and the more comfortable you feel before,  the better you will feel after.

While good credentials cannot guarantee a positive outcome, they are an important step in the right direction.  To verify whether your plastic surgeon is board certified, contact the American Board of Plastic Surgery or visit their website at www.abpsurg.org.

A good plastic surgeon will talk with you, at length, about your goals and expectations prior to moving forward.  You can think of plastic surgery like a journey.  They begin a step forward and continue to a chosen end point.  Like a journey, you should know where you are going before you start.  Good outcomes are no accident and the careful choice of your plastic surgeon can make all the difference.

People can get scars from surgery, acne, or abrasions.  Unfortunately, most of these scars are unavoidable.  However. if you have a plan to fight the scars, you can usually lessen the severity of them.  Following these steps can help to greatly reduce the appearance of scars:

1. Talk with your physician about the best way to care for any wound and how likely the wound is to scar.  Knowing the best way to care for the wound will help it to heal better and faster, causing less scarring.

2. Allow your skin to breathe.  Skin will heal better if it can be exposed to the air, rather than covered in ointment or a bandage.  Once the wound has stopped bleeding, remove the bandages and let your skin breathe.

3. Cleanse the wound with an antibacterial soap to ensure that the wound stays as clean as possible and free of infection.

4. Apply a small amount of aloe vera to the affected area at least once per day as the wound is healing.  This will ensure that the damaged skin stays moisturized and healthy.

5. Once the wound has healed and there is a blemish left, rub vitamin E on the scar every night.  Vitamin E will help to soften the scar tissue and reduce inflammation, helping to flatten out the damaged skin.

6. Apply a light moisturizer containing sunscreen to the area in the morning.  Because scar tissue is made up of damaged skin, it is fragile and susceptible to sun damage.

7. After the skin has completely healed in the area of the wound, gently exfoliate the area.  Exfoliating helps to remove dead, discolored skin cells and allows the new healthy skin cells to show.

8. For a thick, raised scar, try putting silicone sheets on the scar.  The silicone encourages hydration of the skin, and softens the tissue, allowing the scar to fade faster.  For best results, it is necessary to wear a silicone sheet on the blemish for 12 to 24 hours per day for 12 weeks.  Improvement in appearance may appear in as few as 4 weeks, and reach optimal results in 12 weeks.

If you follow these steps, it is likely that you will be able to dramatically reduce the amount of discoloration and inflammation in your scars, allowing their appearance to blend in to the color and texture of your healthy skin.

Weight loss surgery is one of those issues that can leave people very divided on what to do or think about the procedures. Weight loss surgery, often called bariatric surgery or gastric bypass surgery, is a surgical way of making the stomach area smaller, thus helping the patient eat much less. By eating less, the patient loses weight – in some cases, enormous amounts of weight in a short period of time.

It is often recommended for those who are facing serious health risks due to their weight. Certain conditions, such as high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, and the like can be alleviated or even reversed with gastric surgery. But as with any surgical procedure, there are risks involved. Understanding the risks, and then weighing them against the potential positive outcomes, will help you make a choice on whether weight loss surgery is right for you.

The Risks

Any surgery runs the risk of excessive bleeding, infection, or reactions to the anesthesia. These risks are not unique to gastric bypass surgery, but they are a very real consideration. If your immune system is weakened, you have any conditions that could cause serious bleeding, or if you have shown an adverse reaction to anesthesia in the past, think long and hard before having any surgery, including weight loss procedures.

Risks more specific to weight loss surgery include:

• Vitamin and mineral deficiencies, as a result of eating so much less
• Dehydration, as a result of drinking less
• An intolerance to certain foods
• Low blood sugar or hypoglycemia, again as a result of eating less
• A bleeding stomach ulcer or hernia at the incision site
• Kidney stones or gallstones

Other serious problems, such as blood clotting in the legs, pneumonia, issues with the surgery itself, and a risk of death from the surgery are all slight possibilities, but are possible nonetheless. No surgery is risk-free, and the same holds true for any sort of weight loss procedure.

But keep in mind the benefits of the surgery as well. Often weight loss surgery is done because the patient has several looming medical problems that will become worse without the surgery. The risk of diabetes, heart problems, high blood pressure, and even death is lessened by the weight loss that results from the surgery. Problems like sleep apnea and acid reflux are also lessened. The weight lost means you can be more active, which then results in even further weight loss – and the benefits are increased over time.

If you are considering weight loss surgery, talk to your doctor about what you can expect, and carefully weigh the pros and cons before making that very important decision.