Once physicians graduate for medical school and their specialty training, and they receive their medical licenses, they are permitted to perform surgery, along with many of the other activities expected of doctors. But don’t for a second think that a doctor fresh out of medical school is ready to deliver a fantastic cosmetic surgery result. There’s a lot more training that any doctor will need on his or her way to becoming a truly great surgeon.

As an experienced surgeon specializing in cosmetic plastic surgery such as liposuction near Salt Lake City, I can tell you that the additional training I received after medical school was invaluable in helping me develop and refine my techniques. In the area of plastic surgery, it is common for doctors to pursue several additional training opportunities before entering private practice:

• Internship: Typically lasting 1 year right after medical school, the internship helps a doctor begin to put the concepts and theories learned in school into practice in the real world.
• Residency: This post-graduate training lasts several years and generally takes place in a “teaching hospital” in which the surgical resident receives guidance from several more senior doctors.
• Fellowship: After completing a residency, a physician may apply for additional focused training in a particular area or sub-specialty of surgery.

Some surgeons receive “on the job” training as well. For instance, you may have heard about the military offering free plastic surgery for soldiers. This program isn’t meant to subsidize the men and women who have joined the armed forces, but instead offers younger physicians additional surgical training to prepare them for the battlefield.

Choosing a highly qualified surgeon is one of the most important things you can do to ensure excellent results, regardless of the type of surgery you will have. Pay attention to a surgeon’s training and feel free to ask questions. Always remember to find out if your surgeon is board certified.

I don’t know about you, but I think it’s time for some summer fun. I’m going to mix it up a little here and play a game I’m calling “Name That Surgery.” I’ll give you a few facts about or descriptions of popular plastic surgery procedures, and you can guess which procedure I’m referring to. Let’s see how many you can get right.

1. While it’s no substitute for a healthy diet and regular exercise, and it can’t reduce excess skin, this procedure can tackle those tough-to-target areas of unwanted fat.
2. This non-surgical treatment reduces the appearance dynamic wrinkles (those caused by the movement of facial muscles), but it isn’t BOTOX® Cosmetic.
3. This breast enhancement procedure isn’t just popular with women. It is increasing in popularity for men in the U.S. and abroad.
4. This was the most popular cosmetic surgery procedure for US women in 2009, according to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS).
5. This was the most popular cosmetic surgery procedure for US men in 2009, according the ASPS.
6. These combined procedures are used to restore a woman’s figure after pregnancy and childbirth. Procedures that are commonly combined include tummy tuck, liposuction, and breast lift.
7. This procedure, also called a forehead lift, addresses the upper third of the face, correcting wrinkles that appear horizontally across the forehead  and between the eyebrows.
8. Get longer, thicker, darker eyelashes with nightly application of this non-surgical treatment.
9. These non-surgical treatments add volume to facial features and reduce the appearance of nasolabial folds.

What do you think? At my office in Orange County, liposuction, face lift surgery, tummy tucks, and breast augmentation are all popular procedures. Could any of these be among the answers? Comment on this blog with your answers and I’ll let you know if you’re right.

At my practice in Birmingham, Alabama, liposuction is a very popular procedure. Liposuction is meant to slim and reshape specific areas of the body, improving contour and proportion – and often enhancing self image. Despite the obvious appeal of the procedure, not everyone is an ideal candidate. There are a few basic requirements:

• Patients should be within 30% of their ideal weight
• Patients should not have a life-threatening illness or condition that could impair their ability to heal properly
• No smokers!
• Anyone pursuing the procedure should have realistic goals and a positive attitude

In addition to these requirements, however, there’s another very important factor to consider: skin quality. More specifically, patients with poor skin elasticity may need reconsider liposuction. Inelastic skin can cause wrinkles and sagging. Liposuction can make this worse. Although some liposuction techniques (such as laser-assisted liposuction) claim to help with skin retraction, evidence does not necessarily support these claims and, even if some skin retraction can be achieved, it is not enough for most patients with inelastic skin.

But don’t worry – for individuals with poor skin elasticity, there are still ways to achieve cosmetic improvement. Procedures such as tummy tuck and body lift that actually reduce loose, sagging, excess skin can simultaneously slim and smooth body contours.

It should also be noted that liposuction is not a treatment for obesity or a substitute for proper diet and exercise. Nor is liposuction a cure for cellulite, the dimpled skin often described as “cottage cheese.”

Some practitioners are trying to carve a niche in the growing liposuction and weight loss markets by specializing in “large volume” liposuction. Large volume liposuction is generally defined as the removal of 5 or more liters of fluid during the liposuction procedure. I perform liposuction in Maryland to safely sculpt localized areas of unwanted fat in otherwise healthy individuals, and am of the opinion that large volume liposuction may be falsely promoted as a weight loss solution.

Liposuction is generally used as a tool for reducing areas of stubborn fat that don’t respond to diet and exercise. Most plastic surgeons will tell you that the ideal candidate for liposuction is a healthy, fit person who is at or very close to their ideal weight. My liposuction patients typically want to improve the proportions of their body, not drastically change their size, and they’ve tried diet and exercise first.

Large volume liposuction certainly has some appeal for overweight individuals who are frustrated and want a “quick fix” to lose several sizes and a significant amount of weight in a matter of hours. However, there are significant risks involved in massive liposuction. First of all, many liposuction practitioners are not trained in the complexities of large volume liposuction. When large volumes of fat are removed all at once, the patient also loses a lot of blood and fluids. If this isn’t replaced intravenously, the patient could die. Large volume liposuction also requires general anesthesia, which carries more risk and a longer recovery time. After the extensive recovery period of a massive liposuction procedure, the patient may find that they are left with lumpy, stretched, and sagging skin that they were not prepared for.

The bottom line: large volume liposuction is not for everyone, and there are very few board-certified plastic surgeons specializing in this procedure due to its potential for complications. Do your research and choose your surgeon and your procedure wisely.

In recent pictures of actress Tara Reid, one thing stands out: she’s wearing a bikini. If any of you think this is a normal occurrence for her, think again. This was the first time she has been photographed in a bikini since 2004. That year Reid underwent a breast augmentation and liposuction procedure that produced unnatural and unattractive results. Now, the actress shares that she had a revision surgery to correct her liposuction results. Just by looking at photographs before and after her corrective surgery – you can see what a difference revision can make.

Poor results from plastic surgery (as from any medical or cosmetic procedure) can occur – although precautions against complications can be taken, most importantly by selecting a highly qualified surgeon. Thankfully, in the event that complications do occur, all hope is not lost. Revision procedures can be performed and may greatly improve unsatisfactory results. For instance, a Boston liposuction patient that received inadequate results such as unevenness may want to consider a liposuction revision in Boston.

Please feel free to share your experiences. Have you been frustrated by poor results from a previous cosmetic surgery? Have you pursued revision surgery to correct poor surgical results?

Despite the widespread popularity of liposuction, I am often surprised by the number of misconceptions many people still hold about this procedure. While there are different types of liposuction and different levels of qualification among practitioners, there are some myths that are just untrue under any circumstances, and they are worth discussing. However, the best way to find out the truth about liposuction is to discuss your questions and concerns with a board-certified plastic surgeon.

Myth #1: Liposuction is a good weight loss tool.

Liposuction at my Long Island practice is used to reduce isolated areas of fat on individuals who are otherwise healthy and at a reasonable weight. It is not a substitute for diet and exercise.

Myth #2: Removing fat from one area will cause you to gain it in another.

Good liposuction candidates should be at a stable weight, so this should not be an issue. If a liposuction patient subsequently gained a significant amount of weight after their procedure, it might be less noticeable in the treated area, but the weight would still be distributed in the pattern that is natural for the patient’s particular anatomy.

Myth #3: Liposuction is a “big” procedure to treat only large areas.

Liposuction does not have to be a “big” procedure. In fact, newer liposuction technology has made sculpting and refining very small areas – such as the upper arms, chin or neck – much more effective. Since I use tumescent liposuction for my Suffolk and Nassau County patients, I can usually perform the procedure using sedation and local anesthesia, which may shorten recovery time and reduce cost.

Myth #4: Liposuction is only for women.

More men are discovering that liposuction is a great way to contour certain areas that don’t respond to diet and exercise. Common treatment areas for men include the waist, flanks, abdomen and chest.

This past April, attendees at the annual meeting of the American Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery in Washington D.C., discussed the hot topic of laser liposuction. The debate: is laser-assisted liposuction safe and effective? Some surgeons believe that this procedure does not improve results and only adds to the cost of traditional liposuction (as well as increasing side effects). Others think that it can tighten skin, encourage collagen production, and lead to less bruising and faster recovery time than the traditional approach. Unfortunately, there is no definitive “yes, it is effective” or “no, it is not,” so surgeons must decide for themselves.

Although there is no “correct” answer, I choose not to offer laser liposuction to my Las Vegas liposuction patients. Instead, I offer 3 great alternatives: the super-wet technique, the tumescent technique, and ultrasound-assisted lipoplasty (UAL). What is my rationale for avoiding laser-assisted liposuction? I need proof that a procedure is safe and effective before I’ll perform it. It’s that simple. And this procedure just hasn’t met that basic requirement. However, I will continue my research and stay up-to-date on the latest liposuction studies.

Stretch marks are a big concern for my “mommy makeover” and post-weight-loss patients, and there are a few things you need to know about how you can minimize these. First, stretch marks are actually paper-thin scars below the skin surface, which is why “miracle creams” that only reach the top layer of the skin don’t work. But there are plenty of good options for treatments that will get rid of stretch marks (or at least disguise them):

5 Stretch Mark Solutions that Work

• 1 – Tummy Tuck – When I remove excess skin and fat during a tummy tuck, I can often position the incision so that I remove as much of the abdominal stretch marks as possible along with the extra skin. A tummy tuck does replace the stretch marks with a thin scar below the bikini line, but it’s also the most thorough solution and the only one that can get rid of stretch marks in the abdominal area completely.
• 2 – Mini-Tummy Tuck (limited abdominoplasty) – If the patient has fewer stretch marks, this procedure can sometimes correct the problem the same way as a full tummy tuck.
• 3 – Microdermabrasion – This skin rejuvenation technique can sometimes be used to polish away some of the fibrous stretch-mark scar tissue microscopically. Over time the new, healthy cells can help disguise the marks.
• 4 – Liposuction – This procedure isn’t at the top of my list because large stretch marks can actually work against good liposuction results by preventing skin from tightening after the procedure. In a few cases, though, this option can help minimize the appearance of newer, smaller stretch marks because it removes the fat that pressed them outward and made them more visible.
• 5 – Laser Therapy – Certain types of excimer, fractional, and pulsed-dye laser therapies can partly disguise the appearance of stretch marks, but unfortunately they won’t eliminate them completely the way surgery can.

Which option? If you’re not quite sure which treatment would work best for you, the best thing to do is to consult a qualified plastic surgeon for advice. Most of us offer dermatologic services like microdermabrasion, and a consultation is the best way to find out which option would get the best results.

As cosmetic surgery becomes more a part of mainstream culture, it is easy to forget that, not so long ago, options were much more limited. Patients who come to me for plastic surgery in Atlanta these days have more and better choices than ever before.

Here’s a look at how things have changed:

• Breast Implants – Women today have the choice of saline or silicone implants. The newer generation of silicone implants is filled with a cohesive gel that feels natural and stays intact even if the implant ruptures. In addition to different sizes, implant manufacturers also offer a variety of shapes, textures, profiles and diameters, giving women more options for breast augmentation than ever before.
• Face Lifts – Gone are the days when a face lift resulted in tight skin, a pulled or windblown appearance, and long scars zig-zagging through the scalp. Newer techniques, such as endoscopic approaches and short incision face lifts create beautiful, natural-looking results with minimal incisions. Doctors no longer simply pull skin tight to smooth out wrinkles; we are trained to carefully reposition underlying tissues, alter muscles, and re-drape skin to restore a more youthful appearance.
• Liposuction – Liposuction has seen a tremendous evolution, ultimately becoming the safe, relatively quick, and highly effective option for body contouring we have today. Thanks to advanced methods (such as the tumescent technique), larger volumes of fat can be removed more efficiently and smaller areas can be corrected more precisely.

These are just a few of the exciting advances in plastic surgery that we have seen in recent years. There are also been tremendous developments in the area of nonsurgical options for cosmetic enhancement, including BOTOX® injections and dermal fillers.

It’s true that liposuction is not the best way to drop large amounts of weight. If you have more than 20 pounds to lose, better exercise and healthier eating are the appropriate place to start. Having said that, here are a few reasons why liposuction can actually help you get in better shape:

1. The “investment” factor: Liposuction is a significant personal investment for every patient, and when they know that healthy habits foster better results, they often feel very motivated to start eating a bit healthier or take on a more challenging exercise routine after they’ve healed. Often my Saratoga Springs and Albany area liposuction patients end up improving their fitness habits significantly just because they’ve worked hard to follow my recommendations and take the steps to make sure their results last.
2. “Look healthy, feel healthy, act healthy”: Many of my patients who choose liposuction tell me that their surgery helped them make lifestyle and fitness changes, because the surgery changed the way they see themselves. As a result, they start to develop healthier habits that fall right in line with a refreshed self-image.

Will it work for you?

It isn’t reasonable to expect weight loss and improved fitness just because you’ve had a liposuction procedure. Still, the procedure can create an opportunity or that “extra push” a person needs to make the change and lead a healthier lifestyle.