Friday, December 19, 2008

A Scarless Nose Job: Open vs Closed Rhinoplasty

The nose is the central part of a person’s face. How the person’s face is perceived to a large extent depends on the size and shape of the nose as well as the balance of the nose with the rest of the face. It is not surprising that a large number of people turn to plastic surgeons to improve the shape of the nose. The beauty and movie icon city is no exception – in Los Angeles Rhinoplasty procedures are among the most popular.
Nose reshaping surgery or nose job is called rhinoplasty. Most Beverly Hills rhinoplasty experts will agree that rhinoplasty is the most difficult plastic surgical procedure. The two common techniques to peform rhinoplasty are close and open approaches. Increasingly, in high awareness Beverly Hills Closed rhinoplasty (also referred to as endonasal rhinoplasty) is gaining prominence.
In open rhinoplasty, an incision is made across the bottom portion of the nose the skin is elevated exposing the underlying cartilages and bony structures. Even though in most patients the scar is may not be noticeable, there are many patients who complain of the visible or notched scar following an open rhinoplasty. Certain groups of patients are more prone to developing unfavorable scars including patients that have thick skin and patients with olive and darker color skin. Unfortunately, there is nothing that can be done to remove the scar.
Closed rhinopasty (endonasal rhinoplasty) is performed through incisions inside the nose which avoids external scars. Using a closed rhinoplasty approach the nose can be effectively reshaped and breathing can be improved. Recovery after closed rhinoplasty is usually faster than after open rhinoplasty. Sutures are placed and inside and do not need to be removed as they are absorbable. Closed rhinoplasty requires a higher level of surgical experience. Regardless of the approach used, outcomes following rhinoplasty largely depends on the surgeon’s experience with this procedure. There are far fewer Los Angeles Closed Rhinoplasty specialists, as it is a different skill set. To learn more about closed rhinoplasty visit http://www.vgplasticsurgery.com .

Monday, December 15, 2008

Rhinoplasty Among Asians

Nose job or rhinoplasty Los Angeles for years has been a popular plastic surgery procedure among various ethnics groups. While many groups tend to request a smaller and shorter nose, many Asian patients seek to have a larger and narrower nose. There are several characteristics common to Asian nose surgery Los Angeles.
First, a number Asian patients request to augment the bridge the area to reduce the flattened appearance of the nose. Augmenting the bridge area makes the nose look bigger and narrower. Various materials are available to augment the bridge of the nose including synthetic implants, processed tissue, or patient’s own tissue such
cartilage or fascia. Most surgeons prefer to use synthetic materials, particularly silicone implants. A silicone implant is easy to place and produces a smooth bridge with a predictable amount of augmentation.
Another step performed in Asian rhinoplasty is tip refinement. Many Asian patients complain of a wide and flat nasal tip. Reshaping of nasal tip usually involves narrowing the tip and augmenting the tip using the patients own cartilage. Augmenting the tip effectively balances the tip with the augmented bridge. Synthetic implants have also been used for tip augmentation but have a higher risk of complications.
Nostril width reduction is also frequently performed as part of Asian rhinoplasty. When reducing the width of the nostrils, a plastic surgeon will balance the nostrils not only relative to the rest of the nose but also relative to distance between the inner corners of the eyes. Any Los Angeles plastic surgeon performing rhinoplasty in Asian patients should aim to produce a natural appearing shape while preserving some ethnic nasal features in those patients desire so. Click on the hyperlink to learn more information on rhinoplasty Los Angeles .

Sunday, December 14, 2008

Evolution of breast augmentation

Breast augmentation has become one of the most commonly performed plastic surgical procedures across the world. Many women turn to plastic surgeons to enhance the size of their breasts or restore the breast volume that may have been lost following pregnancy or weight loss. Today breast enlargement procedures are performed using silicone or saline breast implants. However, in the past other materials were tried.

First breast augmentation was performed using paraffin injection in 1890. This procedure resulted in infections and formation of lumps and thus lost its popularity. Fat transfer from the abdominal or buttock area to the breasts was attempted in 1920.

Not all of the transplanted fat survived. As some fat went away, breast asymmetry and lumps resulted. Even though this procedure did not gain a wide acceptance at that time, recently some surgeons were able to produce more predictable results with fat transplant. However, concerns remain whether cancer detection may be obscured with transplanted fat.

In 1960 silicone was introduced for breast augmentation. Initially this was done in the form of silicone injections. The injections resulted in chronic inflammatory lumps called granulomas. Silicone migrated to other parts of the body in some patients. Today silicone injections are FDA approved for breast augmentation. Some physicians or non-physicians still performed silicone injection for breast augmentation, typically outside of the US.

In the mid 1900s polyvinyl sponges were used for breast augmentation. These synthetic sponges hardened producing a hard breast. Additionally, sponge infections and possible link to cancer caused this procedure to be abandoned. Another unsuccessful material for breast augmentation was soybean oil. Soybean oil implants produced toxic and rancid byproducts and therefore were not approved.

In the 1960s silicone breast implants gained a wide popularity for breast augmentation as they resulted in soft feeling augmented breasts. Due to concerns that silicone implants may cause cancer, FDA banned the use of silicone implants for cosmetic breast augmentation but permitted their use for reconstructive purposes through clinical trials. Recently, silicone implants became FDA approved for cosmetic breast enhancement as studies have confirmed their safety.

Today saline filled and silicone gel breast implants are FDA approved for breast augmentation. Recent studies in the US show that the new silicone breast implants have similar complication rate to saline filled breast implants. The new generation of silicone implants are less likely to leak and form capsular contracture than the first generation. Gummy bear breast implants are currently under investigation and will likely gain FDA approval in the near future.

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