Below are some questions
that Dr. Silberblatt has been asked. If you have a question
that remains unanswered, please contact
Dr. Silberblatt today.
There are many surgeons that will routinely combine multiple
procedures including body contouring such as you ask. Certain
procedures such as a facelift and eye surgery or a forehead
lift go well together. It is my preference to do major
procedures separately if possible because I feel that people
are less likely to have complications if they are subjected
to surgical trauma for shorter periods of time in fewer areas
simultaneously.
There are people who are unable to put aside time for recovery
more than once a year because of job constraints or family
obligations. I try to work with these patients to find where
the balance between risk and benefit lies for them. For most
people, a tummy tuck combined with breast enlargement would
be more than they should expect to be able to handle as outpatients
in their home. Inpatient arrangements can be made but are
costly. In the end, safety of the patient must always remain
the most important consideration when deciding how much surgery
to do in one sitting.
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“Recover” can be defined as “When can I
be seen in public?”, “When can I go back to work?”
or “When can I do everything that I did before surgery?”
The answer to each of these will vary with the kind
of surgery one has had and the activities one wishes to resume.
Virtually all operations will require 48 to 72 hours
of rest and quiet so as to avoid post operative bleeding and
minimize swelling. Most facial operations, lipoplasty
and breast augmentation will require reduced exertion for
two to three weeks although sedentary jobs can be resumed
in four or five days. Bruising can be covered by make up after
three or four days. Breast reductions and abdominoplasties
may require a recovery of as long as six weeks, particularly
for people with physically demanding jobs or activities. It
is always better to plan elective surgery at a time when there
are few other demands on your time. The recovery period is
not a time to plan to paint, spring clean or do other household
chores.
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The “right time” for any cosmetic surgery
is mostly determined by how you yourself feel about what you
want corrected. When it bothers you to the point
that you really want to change what you see in the mirror
and are prepared to take the (usually minimal) risks that
have been explained to you by your doctor, then the time is
probably “right.”
Your doctor’s input should be limited to understanding
what you express to him, “seeing” what you want
changed through your eyes and agreeing that he has the ability
to meet your expectations. If not, he needs to explain what
can be done and giving you the option of agreeing or disagreeing
with it. Again, the decision should always be the patient’s.
Never let friends, family or your physician talk you
into doing anything you really don’t want.
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In normal leg veins, valves direct the blood from
the superficial veins to the deep veins and up the leg in
both deep and superficial veins towards the heart. Failure
of these valves will cause the blood to back up into the very
superficial veins, distending them. That is when
they become visible. Increased levels of progesterone have
been linked, in some studies, to the relaxation of the smooth
muscle walls of veins and subsequent valve incompetence. Injecting
the small veins with solutions that sclerose or occlude them
can often get rid of them. However, since the valves are not
normal, new varicosities will usually appear, given enough
time. Possible problems with injection of these veins include
small ulcerations, protracted bruising, cramping and reappearance
of the veins.
It is not unusual to require several sessions to clear a
given area of veins. Compression hose are usually worn for
two or three days after injection and strenuous physical activity
should be avoided during that time as well. Ancillary treatment
with lasers and specialized light may have a place in very
small veins but is expensive. Most people are satisfied
with their results.
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The scar maturation process will take from 6 months
to several years depending on your age and the severity of
the injury. In the first four to six weeks, most
scars will get worse as large quantities of collagen (the
main component of scar tissue) are deposited in the injured
area. The scar will then remodel over the ensuing months and
years. It usually stays red until remodeling is complete.
The redness, lumpiness and firmness of the scar will usually
go away on their own if you wait long enough.
It has been found, however, that sanding prominent
scars about six to eight weeks after the injury will help
make them less visible in the long run. It may be
that the transition from injured to uninjured tissue is blurred
by sanding but no one has adequately explained this. It is
my recommendation, therefore, that facial scars be re-examined
four to six weeks after an injury for possible sanding 6 to
eight weeks after an injury.
I prefer to use my office CO2 laser for this. Scars on other
parts of the body should rarely be sanded. Silicone sheeting
can sometimes help these scars. Occasionally, excision and
re-suturing of a scar is the only appropriate form of treatment.
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When considering the advisability of plastic surgery
for their teenage children, parents should ask themselves
and their teen at least the following three questions:
1) Who originally requested the surgery? Ideally, the teen
should be the one and the request should have been expressed
more than once over a period of time.
2) What does the youth expect surgery will do for him or her?
Beware of signs that the teen blames a less than perfect feature
for a lack of popularity, soured relationship, etc.
3) Has the teen been consistent in his likes or dislikes?
Teens who change their fashion preferences quite frequently
are often poor candidates for aesthetic surgery.
Remember that surgical alterations, unlike hair color, are
permanent. Deciding whether or not plastic surgery in a teenager
is appropriate involves a delicate balance between the teen’s
possibly transitory desire to conform and his or her rationally
based feelings about a given feature.
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Our practice offers complimentary pre-consultations.
Our patient representative can meet with you, show
you an educational video, discuss the procedure you are interested
in and quote you a range of fees. Preoperative and post operative
pictures are also shown. Patients thus have an opportunity
to become acquainted with our staff and the services we provide.
Pre-consultations are offered by appointment only. Contact
us today to arrange a complimentary pre-consultation!
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