Seven Things You Should Know About a Tummy Tuck

You have discovered that ending your relationship with your love handles is harder than finding help in a box store. Your efforts at diet and exercise have not gotten rid of stubborn fatty bulges, and the loose skin from multiple pregnancies or weight loss simply hangs and hangs. For a smoother and shapelier torso your remaining option is the tummy tuck, also known as abdominoplasty.

With a tummy tuck, excess skin and fat are removed surgically from the abdominal region and the underlying muscles are tightened to create a slimmer and smoother contour. The procedure also better defines the waist. This plastic surgery procedure is a major surgery and does require some recovery. Like any plastic surgery, not everyone is a candidate, but if you are considering a tummy tuck, consider these facts about this common cosmetic procedure.

1. Your physical condition determines whether you are a suitable candidate for a tummy tuck. Ideally, men or women who are in reasonably good physical condition make the best candidates for the removal of excess fat bulges and loose skin, especially if they have already tried to get rid of it with diet and exercise.
2. If your excess skin and fat is mostly concentrated below the belly button, you may be a candidate for a mini tummy tuck. In this procedure, there is a shorter incision and the belly button is not moved. There is also a shorter recovery from a mini tummy tuck than from a standard or full tummy tuck.
3. Because a tummy tuck is a surgery that requires a long incision, you will be left with a scar. To reduce this negative consequence, we place the scar in the lower abdomen that will typically be covered by underwear and bathing suits. And, with proper healing, the scar often becomes very faint.
4. Smoking interferes with recovering from surgery and increases the risks of complications following a tummy tuck. If you are a smoker, you will have to face quitting smoking two weeks before your surgery and during your recovery. Permanently quitting would certainly be best for many reasons.
5. You should be aware that liposuction may be used in conjunction with your tummy tuck. Indeed, liposuction might be all that is needed to achieve the desired result on your abdomen. Be open to the possibility that you may only need the less invasive procedure of liposuction. When you meet your plastic surgeon, he or she will examine you and help determine the best option.
6. When you visit your Beverly Hills plastic surgeon for a consultation about a tummy tuck, be candid about your body-shaping goals. Your surgeon will be evaluating the skin and fat deposits of your body along with your expectations about results. Then, your surgeon will discuss with you what can be realistically achieved with a tummy tuck.
7. The results of a tummy tuck can be very long lasting if you eat sensibly and stay active. If you overeat and gain weight excessively, then your skin and tissues will be forced to stretch out into new bulges.

A final thought for you to consider about tummy tucks is that nothing is standard with plastic surgery. Each body is unique with its own shape and underlying physical attributes. A plastic surgeon must assess each person individually and perform a tummy tuck that is suited to each body. If you get a tummy tuck, it will be the tummy tuck for your body and it will not necessarily look like the tummy of another person who also had the procedure.

Men Flock to Plastic Surgery But Need Different Procedures and Techniques

Plastic surgery has undergone a change lately. When I first started training 15 years ago, I met only a few men who wanted to go under the knife. Plastic surgery was the domain of young women working on their bodies, and women over 35 refreshing their faces. Men picked up their wives and girlfriends after the procedures. They stayed away from the operating room themselves. Not anymore.

Last year more than 1,000,000 men had plastic surgery procedures, according the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery. The number is growing: I see more and more men every month. Sports Illustrated now sits with Vogue in our magazine rack.

Men are turning to plastic surgery to feel better, look younger, and help with their careers. But just as men are from Mars and women are from Venus in relationships, so too are they different when it comes to plastic surgery. With the wrong procedures, or the right procedures done the wrong way, men wind up looking less like they did when they were in college -- and more like their college-aged daughters.

Where women tend to undergo lifts, men steer more toward reshaping and recontouring. Nationally, the top three surgical procedures for men are liposuction, rhinoplasty (nose work), and blepharoplasty (eyelid surgery). Men are going for Botox and skin treatments as well.

Even in-shape guys have love handles that tend to scream "flab." These areas usually can be eliminated with liposuction. Likewise, many men I see complain of fullness in the chest (and I am not talking pecs here) that diminishes their masculine look. Los Angeles liposuction provides excellent results here too. This surgery can help bring back the abs men had in college.

Liposuction often provides desired outcomes that often cannot be achieved at the gym. Localized fat deposits that are hard to exercise away stand as inviting targets for liposuction. I had one patient nickname my Beverly Hills liposuction machine his "mechanical personal trainer." Results like this are improved still more as men head back to the gym after their procedures.

Like rings in a tree trunk, lines reveal our age. In men, they tend to develop around the eyes and forehead. When treated early, Botox smooths fine lines on the face. By weakening tiny facial muscles, it stops the constant pulling that leads to lines on the overlying skin. Though the results only last between three and six months, the changes look very impressive -- and this Beverly Hills plastic surgery procedure has one of the highest rates of patient satisfaction.

When fine lines around the eyes graduate to true wrinkles, eyelid surgery turns back the clock. By removing excess skin and fat of either the upper or lower eyelid, men look refreshed without changing their overall appearance.

Men have different goals from women in seeking plastic surgery. And their distinct anatomy means that simply offering the same cosmetic surgery procedure to men as women will leave men dissatisfied with the results.

Plastic surgery is no longer for women only. Men have great results, just like women. But their bodies, goals, and temperaments are different. So the correct procedures, done in the right way, need to be selected to give men the outcomes they're looking for so they can get the most out of plastic surgery for men.

Plastic Surgery and Dating

As people try to get the most from their dating experiences, it is important to feel their best. Confidence comes from many sources, and one of them is feeling comfortable with how you look. Plastic surgery and other cosmetic enhancements might offer options for looking the way you always hoped to.

As a Beverly Hills plastic surgeon, I can say that cosmetic surgery is not for everyone and is not a decision to be taken lightly. My best patients are the most informed about what plastic surgery can and cannot do. They understand their own goals and how plastic surgery might help accomplish them. If you are seeking changes from plastic surgery, it is useful to understand what sorts of procedures are most helpful at different ages.

Teens: Focus on the center of the face.
We see a lot of people in their teens who are concerned about their noses. Sometimes they feel their nose is too large, or has a bump in its bridge, or that it simply does not match the rest of their face. Rhinoplasty (sometimes called a “nose job”) can bring the nose into harmony with the rest of one’s features. The nose is at the center of the face. If people feel their nose has improved its appearance, they tend to feel much more confident in their overall appearance.

20’s: Tune-up for bodies.
That means liposuction for men and women, and often breast procedures for women. Liposuction works best for people who are in good shape overall, but have stubborn areas that resist the good effects of diet and exercise. We do a lot of Los Angeles liposculpture on men on their chests and “love handles” and for women on their thighs and tummies. Recovery from the procedure is usually rather quick, with most returning to work in several days.

Many women have breast augmentations to become larger or to make the breasts more even in size or position. Others have breast reduction procedures if they have always felt top-heavy. Increasingly, many men are having male chest reduction procedures in their 20’s, if they are overly full in this area. This might be part of a situation called “gynecomastia” in which the male chest appears uncomfortably large.

30’s: Time to bring out the eyes and smooth those first lines.
We see both men and women in their 30’s who have full or baggy upper eyelids or puffiness of their lower eyelids. An eyelift can refresh the entire face and get rid of that tired-looking appearance. Fine lines often benefit from Botox treatments. This medicine works to quiet the tiny muscles in the face. When the muscles are quiet, they do not contract as deeply so they do not pull the overlying skin inward to cause wrinkles.

40’s: Another body tune-up time.
By the time we reach our 40’s, our bodies can show a bit of age. Sometimes a tummy tuck provides dramatic changes to the midsection. For men and women who have gained or lost a fair amount of weight, or for women who have had babies, a Los Angeles tummy tuck removes excess skin and tightens the muscles beneath. The result is a new and flat contour. For women, the procedure can be combined with a breast lift, or a small breast implant to reshape the entire torso – a procedure we call the Rodeo Drive Mommy Makeover.

50’s and 60’s: Back to the face.
As we age, our skin tends to sag. In our 50’s and 60’s this loose skin usually is most noticeable in the neck, along the jaw line, and in the cheeks. A facelift tightens the muscles of the face and neck along with the skin. Modern techniques emphasize work on the deeper tissues, so the skin is not pulled very tightly. This provides a natural appearance to the result, and avoids the “windswept” appearance common from facelifts in the past. A gentle touch when working on the skin is especially important for facelifts in men, who can look somewhat feminized when the skin is pulled too tightly.

Plastic surgery works best when people have specific concerns they want to address. If you are using plastic surgery to look your best for dating, think carefully about what specifically you would like to improve about your appearance. Beverly Hills plastic surgery will not solve social, family, or work problems. But it can help you feel comfortable in your own skin, and this sort of self-confidence goes a long way in the world of dating.

How to Select Your Plastic Surgeon

Your selection of a plastic surgeon to alter a physical feature of your body is a very intimate decision. You need to find a professional who makes you feel comfortable personally and in whose skill and competence you feel confident. Whether you have already met with a plastic surgeon or are just beginning to look for one, you need to be satisfied by what you discover in these three essential areas: education, experience, and communication.

Educational Credentials for Your Plastic Surgeon

The educational background of a Beverly Hills plastic surgeon should be made easily available to you both at the surgeon's office and at the surgeon's website, if one exists. Many doctors do not put their diplomas on the wall because of vanity. It is important for doctors to openly disclose and display their educational credentials.

When considering a plastic surgery California, you should also feel free to verify the educational background. This can be done fairly easily by doing an internet search for your state's medical licensing board. You would be able to verify that your potential plastic surgeon has an active medical license, and often the medical school where the plastic surgeon graduated will be listed as well – as it is at California's medical board.

The Experience of a Plastic Surgeon

Even if a plastic surgeon has excellent educational credentials, it does not mean that he or she is necessarily the right plastic surgeon for you. Specialties and expertise vary among plastic surgeons. For example, a plastic surgeon might focus on and be very accomplished in breast augmentation surgery. But if you are looking for a plastic surgeon to do a facelift, then this would not be a good match.

It is important that you ask your potential plastic surgeon what procedures he or she does most often. The plastic surgeon should be up front about areas of expertise and willing to refer you to someone else if what you need would be better done by someone else.

Communication with a Plastic Surgeon

Speaking with your plastic surgeon during a consultation is when you will discover the surgeon's interpersonal skills. You should feel that this individual is attentive and responsive to your deeply personal concerns about your body. The plastic surgeon should also answer all your questions with candor and explain the details of your desired procedure, including possible risks and recovery time. Some procedures might be a bit difficult to speak about, such as Beverly Hills breast enlargement, but your surgeon should make you feel comfortable.

Additionally, a plastic surgeon should also query you about your reasons for seeking plastic surgery. You should not be allowed to jump into a plastic surgery without thinking through your motivations. A well-informed decision on your part is in the best interests of you and the plastic surgeon.

As you search for a plastic surgeon, be sure to carefully weigh all your concerns and the skill set offered by any plastic surgeon with whom you meet.  That is what we work to provide at Rodeo Drive Plastic Surgery.

What to Expect After Your Rhinoplasty

Many people are unhappy with their noses. Sometimes they dislike the shape of their noses or they suffer from nasal breathing problems. If you fall into these groups and feel that nose surgery would improve your quality of life, then you might be a candidate for rhinoplasty, the plastic surgery procedure that reshapes the nose. This procedure is sometimes also called a “nose job.”

Many physical alterations can be achieved with rhinoplasty. This plastic surgery can increase or decrease the size of your nose, change the shape of the tip, narrow the nostrils, change your nose's angle, and correct breathing problems. Rhinoplasty is a very commonly performed plastic surgery procedure on both women and men, but the recovery process has several factors worth noting.

Your First 24 Hours After Rhinoplasty
Right after your rhinoplasty surgery your face will feel puffy and you may feel that your nose is stuffy. Naturally, you will have a sore nose. Pain medications will alleviate most of the discomfort, but puffiness and pressure will remain. You will need to relax during the first day after surgery and keep your head elevated. Keeping your head elevated decreases the swelling, and with less swelling you will have a faster recovery and less soreness. You may have packing in your nose for the first few days. You may also have a splint on the outside of your nose.

Your Next Three Days After Rhinoplasty
During the first two or three days after your surgery, swelling and bruising around your eyes and face may increase. Cold compresses to the face will help you relieve your discomfort, but at this point you will admittedly not be looking your best. However, you would typically be out of bed at this point and feeling better. You should still keep your head elevated as much as possible. When you are resting or sleeping in bed, you should keep your head propped up on three pillows. You should remain out of the sun.

The Next Six to Eight Weeks After Rhinoplasty
As the weeks go by after your surgery, improvement will gradually become very noticeable. Most likely you will have returned to work and resumed normal non-strenuous activity after about one week. Some light nose bleeding and stuffiness may persist, but it is important that you not blow your nose. By the end of one week following your rhinoplasty, you will be free of your nasal packing, splints, dressings, and stitches, which will make you much more comfortable. This is ture in all cases, including ethnic rhinoplasty.

Within two or three weeks, the swelling and bruising normally go away, except for some very minor swelling. People who wear glasses find these weeks after rhinoplasty surgery a bit of a challenge. Although you can wear contacts, depending on what was done during your surgery, your Beverly Hills plastic surgeon may recommend that you not wear glasses for a month or so after your rhinoplasty. Your glasses will need to be held in place with tape so they do not put pressure on your nose, and this is not the most stylish look. Still, it is a temporary inconvenience.

As the weeks and months go by, you will begin to enjoy your new nose and gradually resume your normal activities while your plastic surgeon monitors your progress. If you decide to go ahead with rhinoplasty be sure that you have considered the patience that is required during the recovery process. Sometimes people become a bit disheartened in the initial recovery phase because they are sore and their faces are bruised. Just know that these problems will pass and your new nose awaits you. If you understand what you are looking for from your rhinoplasty surgery, and what the stages of recovery entail, you are very likely to be delighted that you decided to have this surgery done.

Making Your Decision About Breast Implants

The cosmetic surgery procedure that increases the size of a woman's bust is known as breast augmentation. The enlargement is achieved with the use of breast implants that are surgically placed behind a woman's breasts, either underneath the chest muscle tissue or under the breast tissue itself. Two types of implants are readily available: saline implants or silicone implants. Each type has its advantages and disadvantages which are important to understand as part of planning your surgery.

Saline Breast Implants

A saline breast implant is filled with a sterile salt water solution that is harmless to the body. Saline implants are commonly used in breast augmentation procedures and they have the distinct advantage of leaving shorter surgery scars on a woman's body. There is also some thought that since these implants contain less material which your body recognizes as foreign, your body has less reaction to this type of implant. Obviously this can be an advantage in Los Angeles breast implants.

The Federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved saline implants for use in breast augmentation. This type of implant is also considered to cause fewer problems on the rare occasions when an implant ruptures. Furthermore, the saline implant seems to be less prone to the breast augmentation complication of capsular contracture, which is the tightening of the natural tissue lining that forms around any type of implant, breast or otherwise. We are doing the majority of our procedures with saline implants.

Silicone Breast Implants

The material within a silicone breast implant is derived from the element silicon that has metal-like properties. However, during chemical processing the silicon is transformed into the silicone molecule that is a polymer that can be formed into a liquid, gel, or rubbery substance.

The FDA has also approved silicone breast implants for breast augmentation, and they enjoy some advantages over saline implants. For example, silicone breast implants are lighter weight and therefore more resistant to the normal forces of sagging over the years. Also silicone breast implants have a more natural look and feel. They are less likely than saline implants to show any rippling or palpable edges through your flesh.

As with any implant, the possibility of capsular contracture remains, and some in the medical community consider the silicone implants to have a higher incidence of this condition.

Choosing Your Implant for Breast Augmentation

The type of implant selected for your breast augmentation surgery will be decided by you and your doctor. The structure of your body and your breast enlargement goals will be assessed by your plastic surgeon and used to make this decision. Right now, saline implants are used the majority of the time. But in other countries, such as in Europe, the majority of patients and plastic surgeons choose silicone gel breast implants. It remains to be seen if this will be the case with Los Angeles plastic surgery, though we are starting to see more interest in silicone implants.

Your motivations for seeking breast augmentation are likely similar to the reasons of other women. Typically, women desire a fuller bust or they want to rebuild their figure that has been changed by pregnancy. Although it is natural to desire the full bloom of youth for your body, it is important to be well informed about breast augmentation as you consider your options before going forward with surgery.

It is best to go into the procedure with as much advance knowledge as possible. Detailed information and before & after photographs of Beverly Hills breast augmentation are available at the web site of this Rodeo Drive plastic surgeon.

Ten Questions To Ask Your Cosmetic Surgeon

Cosmetic surgery offers you many possibilities for increasing your personal satisfaction with your body. It can be easy to get excited about what cosmetic surgery can do, but you need to proceed thoughtfully through the process of deciding to undergo an elective surgery. Your consultation with your cosmetic surgeon is a crucial time to communicate your concerns, goals, and have all of your questions answered to your satisfaction.

As you begin to search for a cosmetic surgeon, use the following list of questions as an aid to help you reach a decision.

1. What results can I expect from my cosmetic procedure? No matter which cosmetic procedure you are considering, you need to be given a clear idea of what a cosmetic surgeon can accomplish with your body.
2. How many times do you perform this procedure every year? You would ask this regarding your specific procedure to gauge the experience of the cosmetic surgeon.
3. How many years have you been specializing in cosmetic surgery? This question will also help you assess the experience of the cosmetic surgeon.
4. What are your educational credentials and training? Ideally you are looking for a cosmetic surgeon who has been specifically trained in cosmetic surgery during residency after medical school.
5. What will my recovery be like? In relation to your specific procedure you need to find out how long you can expect recovery to take and what limitations on your activities will be necessary. This information is very important to know when you need to take time off from work. It varies by procedure, such as for beverly hills tummy tuck or Beverly Hills breast enlargement.
6. What are the risks of my cosmetic surgery? Any surgery presents a chance for complications like infection or bleeding. You should seriously consider any possible risks and their consequences for you. Your potential cosmetic surgeon should be willing to discuss them.
7. Where will the surgery take place? You will want to know if your surgery will be at a hospital, surgeon's office, or outpatient surgery center. Any of these locations can be appropriate depending on your procedure.
8. Who will administer anesthesia? This question is particularly important if you will need to have general anesthesia during your procedure.
9. What will my procedure cost? There is no need to be shy about discussing the cost. Your cosmetic surgeon should be forthright about the cost of his or her services. Be sure to get an estimate of total costs, including lab work and follow up visits so you will not have any budgetary surprises after your surgery.
10. What will happen during my surgery? Your cosmetic surgeon should be willing to explain the technical details of your surgery. You have a right to know what will be done to your body.

These questions are not an exhaustive list of what you may want to discuss with your cosmetic surgeon, but they are a good starting point for understanding the many issues that you need to assess when selecting a cosmetic surgeon. In addition to basic questions, you will likely have unique concerns and medical issues that you will need to address during your consultation. Check out our other plastic surgery blog for more information.

Silicone Implants Grow In Popularity

After more than ten years of controversy and scientific study, the US Food and Drug Administration has approved silicone gel breast implants for general usage. They are now available to all women ages 22 and higher for both reconstructive and cosmetic breast surgery. People like choices, whether it is in their breast implants or in other plastic surgery procedures such as rhinoplasty Los Angeles.

The availability of silicone implants will greatly expand the options for women seeking cosmetic breast augmentation. In many situations, they have real advantages over saline breast implants. They tend to look and feel more natural than saline implants. They are less prone to rippling or crinkling which can sometimes be felt and occasionally can become visible under the skin. They are lighter than silicone implants. However, they are thought by some to have a higher rate of capsular contracture, which is scarring around the implant and can make the breasts hard.

In countries where both silicone and saline implants have been available the vast majority of patients and surgeons select silicone implants. This is testimony to their advantages. In the US, we are likely to see a large number of patients select silicone breast implants.But there will still be a place for saline implants. Some people might simply prefer not to have silicone placed in their body. Silicone implants are more expensive than saline implants. In some cases, the implant is used as a sort of platform to elevate the normal breast tissue rather than to give the breast the entirety of its shape. In this situation, saline implants function just about as effectively as silicone implants.

Silicone implants have not been shown to cause autoimmune diseases such as arthritis and lupus, as had been feared. But patients should realize that any breast augmentation procedure is essentially temporary. Body shape and anatomy can change, there might be problems with healing or the body's reaction to the implant. At some point, it is likely that additional procedures may be necessary. At Rodeo Drive Plastic Surgery, we are already doing quite a few breast augmentations with silicone implants. I expect we will see many more people interested in the procedure in the next few months as we do Los Angeles breast augmentation.

As these trends develop, keep an eye on our plastic surgery blog.

Ethnic Rhinoplasty

Modern rhinoplasty or nose job techniques stress retaining overall ethnic appearance and facial harmony. The steps to make this happen can be complex, but the benefits can be pleasing.

People of different ethnic groups often come to plastic surgeons seeking to refine the appearance of their noses. Innovative ethnic rhinoplasty techniques like those done at Rodeo Drive Plastic Surgery stress preservation of ethnic appearance along with overall facial balance. The nose should match the rest of the face. Ethnic rhinoplasty or nose job works to achieve this while providing the improvements and enhancements sought in the nose.

Ethnic groups often tend to have certain characteristics to their noses, both in terms of their outer appearance and of their internal structures. For this reason, it is best to address the noses of various ethnic groups such as African Americans and Hispanics and Asians individually. “Cookie cutter” approaches to rhinoplasty rarely work well, and this is especially the case with non-caucasian nose surgery.

There are many examples of how this individualized approach offers the best outcome in ethnic rhinoplasty. For instance, many people of Asian and African and Latino descent have noses with wide bases and broad tips. They often also have thick skin at the tip of the nose. This can give the tip a rounded or “bulbous” appearance. Non-caucasian noses often also have a bump at the bridge, along with a wide and flat bridge.

Because of these anatomic tendencies, ethnic noses frequently require extensive work on their internal structures to create the desired appearance. This includes using plastic surgery to change the shape of the bone and cartilage inside the nose, while working to create little or no external scarring. Since this internal structural work is extensive, it can have important effects on the function as well as the appearance of the nose. For this reason, the Rodeo Drive Breathe Easy RhinoplastyTM technique -- which works to improve both the appearance and the breathing function of the nose – is especially well-suited to providing good results in ethnic rhinoplasty.

Some rhinoplasty and plastic surgery techniques are commonly used for African American, Hispanic, and Asian noses. The flatter noses common in many ethnic people can be addressed by grafting cartilage from elsewhere in the body to shape the skin of the nose’s tip more finely, and provide it with a refined appearance. In some cases, the nostrils are noticeably wide and benefit from direct steps to narrow them during surgery.

Prior to your procedure, you will meet with your Southern California plastic surgeon to discuss your goals from rhinoplasty. It is important to have clear ideas of what you want to change about your nose so we can come up with the best plan for your nose surgery. This is how it should be for any procedure, such as Los Angeles breast implants.

How Botox Makes Those Lines Disappear

You can add wrinkles to death and taxes on the short list of things that are certain in life. As you age, the supple skin of youth gradually gives way to fine lines around your eyes, across your forehead, and between your brows. The non-surgical wrinkle reducer BOTOX ® Cosmetic now lets you graciously decline encroaching wrinkles instead of accepting the frown lines of the over-30 crowd.

BOTOX ® treatments for the temporary reduction of brow wrinkles have been approved by the Federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) since 2002. It is an extremely popular cosmetic treatment and over one million people have indulged in its face smoothing benefits.

To understand how BOTOX ® works, you need to understand how you develop frown lines. As years go by, your skin loses some of its natural elasticity and fails to bounce back from the movement and stretching that takes place as your facial muscles continually flex and release. This wear on your skin is evident in the fine lines that begin to form as early as your late 20s or early 30s when your skin stops returning completely to its smooth form.

How BOTOX ® Reduces Your Wrinkles

The basis for the BOTOX ® Cosmetic plastic surgery treatment is a protein obtained from the Clostridium botulinum bacteria. When small amounts of this protein are injected into muscle tissue, the nerve impulses to the muscles are blocked and paralyze the muscle. Because BOTOX ® is only used on small facial muscles around your brow, the paralysis is minute but the effect on the lines of your upper face is quite noticeable. Without the continual movement of muscles wearing on your skin, the skin has a chance to return to a smoother state.

After receiving a BOTOX ® treatment, people usually see results within a few days and improvement continues to rise for the first month. The wrinkle reduction is typically visible for up to four months before the protein is cleansed from the body and the effect fades.

What Is a BOTOX ® Treatment Like?

If you were to get a treatment, you would receive several tiny injections of BOTOX ® to the facial muscles around your brows. The process takes approximately 10 minutes and involves brief discomfort. The momentary pain of the injections can be reduced with the application of an anesthetic cream beforehand. The short amount of time needed for a BOTOX ® treatment and the absence of recovery time contribute to its rising popularity for cosmetic relief of wrinkles.

It is important to note that who administers BOTOX® treatments varies. It can, of course, be done by a physician, but many service providers have nurses or physicians' assistants handling the injections. It will be up to you to consider who should administer your BOTOX ® treatments should you choose to get them. The treatment can also be done along with other procedures, such as rhinoplasty. We have even administered the treatment to our liposuction patients!

As you explore your options for rejuvenating your face, keep in mind that Los Angeles Botox ® has only temporary results. However, the treatment can be repeated as you need it, and its speedy application and affordability have tremendous appeal for wrinkle relief.

Is There Really a Lunchtime Facelift?

After years of frustrated efforts, new techniques and products have allowed plastic surgeons to deliver noticeable improvements and freshening with little or no downtime.

The "lunchtime facelift" has been the holy grail in plastic surgery for quite a while. The idea of providing facial rejuvenation with no downtime appeals to both plastic surgeons and patients. Get your treatment, look improved and freshened, and immediately go back to work, out on the town or, for some of our entertainment patients here in Beverly Hills, head over to the red carpet at an awards show. Who wouldn't want to get their facial rejuvenation and then have no recovery?

Essentially all of the so called "no downtime facelifts" or "lunchtime facelifts" simply did not live up to their billing. As a plastic surgeon, I know that plastic surgery involves recovery. It is just the way the body responds to a surgical procedure. Traditionally, if the body did not react to the procedure, nothing much was really done and few changes were visible when all was said and done.But now we have many nonsurgical techniques that can create instant facial freshening -- removing or smoothing wrinkles, plumping lips -- with no recovery.

Botox, Restylane, Juvederm, Radiesse, Sculptra and other new products provide facial rejuvenation and do not create scars or undue swelling. They can help achieve that elusive goal of improvements without downtime. This is perhaps the biggest revolution in plastic surgery in thirty years.These products work very differently. When we do Botox in Los Angeles we are using the medicine to paralyze some of the tiny muscles in the face. The twitching of these muscles creates a skin wrinkle on the skin that lies above it. If the muscles lay quietly, they do not tense and cause a wrinkle in the skin above.

Botox is extremely safe, its results are predictable, and it can create fantastic improvements in facial appearance. Certainly this has been my experience as a cosmetic surgeon California. My sister recently had it for the first time, and it dramatically improved and freshened the look of her face – just like I have seen it do for countless other of my patients.The we use skin fillers such as Restylane and Juvederm we work to provide bulk under the skin to fill in wrinkles from below. They are very effective for both small lines and larger ones, such as the nasolabial folds which run from the sides of the nose toward the outside edges of the side of the mouth and the so-called marionette lines that go along the side of the chin.

Each person's face is different, so each person will do best with a different noninvasive treatment and nonsurgical skin rejuvenation. But the various procedures do provide fast changes with little or no recovery. In this respect, they are quite different from surgery such as tummy tuck in California, which does involve some recuperation. Where in the past the “weekend facelift” was illusory, it is now possible to create dramatic changes without downtime.

Time to Get the Fat Out? A Description of Liposuction

Liposuction is a commonly performed plastic surgery procedure. It is a very effective technique for removing areas of fatty bulge that are non-responsive to diet and exercise. Liposuction can be performed on a wide variety of body locations such as the abdomen, thighs, hips, arms, chin, and “love handles.”

If you have an area on your body with more fat than you would like, then liposuction in Beverly Hills may be a viable option for you if a plastic surgeon deems you to be an appropriate candidate. But before you can make a serious decision about pursuing liposuction, you naturally want to know something about it. Essentially, how does liposuction get the fat out?

During a liposuction procedure, the area of your body that is going to be treated will have a fluid injected into the fat tissues in order to make it easier for the plastic surgeon to sculpt the tissue and remove fat. Of course, anesthetic is injected into the same area as well so you don't experience pain during the procedure and also helps to keep you comfortable following the procedure. A third set of ingredients uses a blood vessel constricting medicine that reduces bleeding.

Once the body area has been prepared, your plastic surgeon will make multiple small incisions to access the fat tissues beneath the skin. The incisions are strategically located in natural skin folds to reduce the visibility of scars. Through the incisions, small tubes are inserted to pull out the fat. Unlike in a procedure like a tummy tuck, there are basically no scars with liposuction.

Beyond the basics of the liposuction procedure, there are various techniques that your plastic surgeon may employ on a case-by-case basis depending on what you may need. Examples of types of liposuction are microliposuction and ultrasound-assisted liposuction. Many liposuction approaches are available and more techniques are being developed all the time. Your cosmetic surgeon will help you consider your options based on your body and what you hope to achieve.

For the most part, liposuction is an outpatient surgery. The extent of your liposuction surgery and your preferences along with your surgeon's judgment will determine whether you have a general or local anesthesia. It is also quite common for long-lasting local anesthetics to be injected into the surgery site to reduce pain for a couple days while you ease into recovery.

As you consider liposuction in Beverly Hills, it is important that you accept that liposuction is not a cure-all for weight problems. In fact, liposuction is best applied to people of normal or near-normal weight who want to address fatty areas and smooth away bulges.

Why Do You Want Plastic Surgery?

The criticism of plastic surgery as pandering to the vanity of people is unfair. The desire for self improvement is a natural impulse, and typically people who seek plastic surgery are simply unhappy about an aspect of their appearance. They feel sufficiently displeased to pursue a solution to make themselves more content. In some cases, plastic surgery even opens the door to greater self confidence.

Maybe you want to ease back the inevitable effects of age, repair the sagging legacy of childbearing, or augment or reduce your breasts. Employing plastic surgery as a means to improve physical traits is essentially the same as getting braces to straighten your teeth. No one would call you vain if you wanted straighter teeth. However, plastic surgery is generally more drastic than teeth straightening, which is why you should carefully examine your feelings for wanting plastic surgery. It is not a step to be taken lightly.

In 2005, the American Society of Plastic Surgeons conducted a survey to study the motivations people had for plastic surgery and their demographics. You might be surprised to learn that the study indicated that plastic surgery is not limited to higher income people. Members of diverse socioeconomic classes have an interest in and even undergo plastic surgery procedures.

According to the ASPS study, a broad range of age groups seeks plastic surgery, from ages 18 on up. Certainly the younger surgery candidates are seeking cosmetic modifications, typically to the nose or breasts, as opposed to older surgery candidates who also take the effects of aging into their plastic surgery plans.

In depth interviews with a selection of survey participants in the ASPS study revealed that most people who were interested in plastic surgery were deeply bothered by a physical feature. They wanted plastic surgery because they believed it would provide emotional, psychological, or social improvements.

As a practicing California plastic surgeon, it is part of my job to help potential plastic surgery patients examine and understand their motivations. A patient with a healthy perspective will want to modify his or her body so as to overcome a physical trait that is personally unpleasant. The rest of the world may not be judging you as harshly as judge yourself, but your self-confidence comes from your self-judgment, which is at the heart of the matter.

If you are considering plastic surgery, you should make sure to do some soul searching about your physical dissatisfaction and compare that carefully to the costs and risks of surgery. Make sure that the plastic surgeon you meet with is attentive to your goals and motivations. A plastic surgeon should not promise you the moon. Plastic surgery is not going to turn you into a movie star. Plastic surgery may be able to improve your body, but it will not produce a new body. However, California plastic surgery can be a positive experience that frequently helps people gain greater satisfaction with their physical appearances.

Travel for Plastic Surgery

Here at Rodeo Drive Plastic Surgery we have many patients that travel from out of town. Not only do they travel from within the United States, we have many patients that travel internationally as well.

There are several steps that we must go through to make sure the process of plastic surgery travel is safe and smooth as possible. One of the main steps is to decide if you are going to be a candidate for the surgery. Patients will send us a digital photo of the area that they have concerns about. The surgeon will take a look at these photos. We will then set up a phone consultation so you can speak directly with the medical director and ask any questions that you may have. We may ask you to see your regular doctor at home if there are any necessary lab or other tests to be done.

Once you do arrive in Los Angeles the surgeon must see you the day before we do the procedure. If you are traveling alone we will arrange for you to stay one or more nights with a nurse either in the hotel you are staying at or a specialized recovery center. We have a wide variety of hotels we use along with car services in the area. If you are traveling with a family member or friend they must stay with you the night after surgery in the hotel.

Each procedure varies in how long you will need to stay in town for. It will range anywhere between five to fourteen days. Within these five to fourteen days you will have follow-up visits with the surgeon. It will be important to not miss these follow up visits. Once you return home you may send photos of your healing process and speak to the surgeon so we remain in touch for even more than a year following your procedure.

Evaluating an Outpatient Surgery Center

Outpatient surgery is now the norm in US healthcare. Choosing the best outpatient surgery center takes several steps to confirm its patient safety procedures.

Times have changed in surgery. About fifteen years ago, just about all surgery – no matter how routine or small the procedure – was done in the hospital. Now, the majority of all surgical procedures are performed in outpatient surgery centers. These facilities are usually freestanding and are not attached to the hospital.

Now, even relatively complex and lengthy procedures are performed in outpatient surgery centers. These facilities are sometimes also called ambulatory surgery centers. More than 90% of all plastic surgery procedures such as breast augmentation as well as rhinoplasty and liposuction are performed in outpatient facilities. This is especially the case with procedures done by a Beverly Hills cosmetic surgeon. Certainly this is the situation with routine plastic surgery procedures, such as Beverly Hills liposuction.

This shift puts the burden on the patient or consumer to choose wisely. Surgery of all kinds has never been safer or more effective. But it is still a serious undertaking and the facility where it is performed is a key component of overall safety.

There are several things to look for when evaluating whether you should use a particular outpatient surgery center. The most important issue is safety. You should check on the certification of the outpatient surgery center. Some states offer licensure of these facilities, while others do not. There are certifying organizations that inspect facilities. Some of these include AAAHC and Medicare. When a facility has these sorts of certifications, they have been thoroughly inspected for their physical layout, staff training, safety equipment, and emergency protocols to assure they have the highest level of professionalism and safety.

You should ask your surgeon why he chooses to use the given surgery center. Has he found the surgery center to be safe and convenient for patients? You should ask if the surgery center has a transfer agreement with a local hospital. In case of a problem, this confirms that you can get quick access to emergency care in the hospital setting. You should ask about the safety equipment on hand at the facility. Following your procedure in an outpatient surgery center, you likely will go home. You should ask your surgeon what provisions are made for contacting him and her with questions and concerns during off hours.

You should also ask who will be performing your anesthesia. Is the anesthesiologist or nurse anesthetist experienced in outpatient surgery? You might also ask to receive any prescriptions for post-procedure medications prior to your surgery day, so you need not go to the pharmacy following your surgery. In some cases, some of the procedures can be paid for with a plastic surgery gift certificate or are covered by insurance, so know all your financial options prior to going forward.

Outpatient surgery is now routine and safe. But it is important to check on the surgery center prior to deciding where to have your procedure performed. Make sure you are comfortable there, whether it is for celebrity plastic surgery or anything else.

Is Plastic Surgery for Everyone?

Plastic surgery is no longer strictly the domain of celebrities. All types of people pursue plastic surgery as a means of enhancing their satisfaction with their appearances. From mothers in their early 30s to baby boomer men in their 60s, plastic surgery has increasingly been accepted as a path to self improvement.

The entrance of plastic surgery into the mainstream is evident in the statistics about plastic surgery. Comprehensive survey data is collected by medical societies every year, and the results reveal the surprising popularity of plastic surgery among different demographic groups. Baby boomers are getting breast lifts, upper arm lifts, and facelifts, and mothers are not shy about turning to the "mommy makeover" procedures to rejuvenate their bodies.

In 2006, 11 million cosmetic procedures were performed in the United States. These procedures included plastic surgery and minimally invasive cosmetic treatments such as BOTOX ®. Of the people receiving plastic surgery or cosmetic treatments, the overwhelming portion remain women who make up 90 percent of patients. However, men are showing a rising interest in cosmetic plastic surgery. The number of men pursuing cosmetic procedures has risen 8 percent between 2000 and 2006.

Baby Boomers and Plastic Surgery

At this time, the 40 to 54 age group, which includes both men and women, seeks plastic surgery the most often. With nearly 5 million procedures in 2006, this age group accounted for 45 percent of total patients. People age 55 and over made up one quarter of cosmetic procedures in 2006 at 26 percent. According to statistics both of these age groups combined displayed a 12 percent rise in cosmetic procedures from 2005 to 2006.

People in the 40 to 54 age group and especially the age 55 and over group represent the famous baby boomer demographic. With a large segment of the population aging, the rise in cosmetic procedures makes sense, but the youthful attitude of many baby boomers prompts them to seek plastic surgery. Healthy and active lifestyles are becoming the norm for people as they enter their 50s and 60s, and the desire to look young is a natural reaction.

Data from surveys indicate that since 2005 tummy tucks have increased 7 percent, breast lifts are up 11 percent, and facelifts went up an impressive 22 percent for the baby boomer age groups. It does seem that more and more people are turning to the work of a Beverly Hills plastic surgery specialist.

Mothers and Plastic Surgery

The plastic surgery procedures of tummy tucks, liposuction, and breast lifts are often dubbed "mommy makeover" surgeries. Although not all women who undergo these procedures are mothers, they do provide women unhappy with how pregnancy has changed their bodies with attractive options for rejuvenation. Among women of childbearing years, typically ages 20 to 39, plastic surgery is on the rise. For example, within this age group tummy tucks were up 9 percent in 2006 over the previous year and breast lifts rose 11 percent.

According to studies, more childbearing women are turning to plastic surgery due to busy schedules and their need to return to their careers quickly after becoming mothers. However, other contributing factors are the broader availability of qualified plastic surgeons across many regions and the appeal of the results that can often be achieved. Tummy tucks for example are sometimes the only way to achieve a firmer and smoother torso once skin has been stretched by multiple pregnancies.

Furthermore, women often have a deep personal desire to slim and firm up their bodies after childbearing in order to boost their self image. Some women can take considerable pride in looking good after having children, and revitalizing some of the physical firmness of their pre-pregnancy bodies provides much satisfaction.

The types of people that seek plastic surgery and their reasons for wanting to enhance aspects of their physical appearances are diverse. Cosmetic procedures attract women and men of all different ages. In fact, plastic surgery for men is a rapidly increasing part of the specialty. No single stereotype of the plastic surgery patient exists. People generally have a natural desire to improve and maintain their appearances according to their personal preferences, and for some people this includes plastic surgery.

Does Plastic Surgery Help With Your Career?

Now that the economy has slowed down, people are looking for ways to stabilize or improve their financial and career prospects. During these sorts of periods, there seems to be a lot of media attention paid to plastic surgery as a career advancement tool. Does Beverly Hills liposuction really lead to that promotion? Is this really the best reason to have a procedure?

The answers to these questions are: Maybe and maybe not. A recent study does seem to show that cosmetic surgery may help with career advancement. Excerpts from this study are below. But having a procedure for reasons other than to feel better about oneself tend to create a high degree of disappointment. People who get a Los Angeles breast augmentation for a boyfriend, for example, are often saddened to find that changes in appearance often do not improve a relationship.

So it is with procedures for career advancement. Suppose you get the procedure and then you do not advance at work. The level of disappointment is usually very high. People who do best from plastic surgery, know what they want, why they want it, and have a desire to look better in order to feel better.

Below are some excerpts from an article in US News about career advancement with cosmetic changes---

The media, and its consumers, generally keep conversation about plastic surgery and careers pegged on a couple of figures: the aging Hollywood idol and the would-be Hollywood idol. Cosmetic surgery is de rigueur in the movie and TV business—pretty understandable given how much looks matter on-screen and in career trajectories.

But there's increasing research that says looks matter in jobs beyond the silver screen—that beautiful people make more money and have more opportunities for advancement. So it's no real surprise that plastic surgery is being deployed as an instrument of career advancement by men and women in office suites far from the glare of the klieg lights.

History is, of course, full of very successful individuals who weren't much to look at: Think Napoleon or Albert Einstein. But these are the exceptions, and they don't disprove the rule, a career couch says.
There is, of course, one other option. People could all rise up, armed with the awareness of their discriminatory tendencies, and make a conscious effort to start treating everyone equally. Even newborns.

Photos on the web site are actual patients who underwent procedures at Rodeo Drive Plastic Surgery. They are for illustration only. The results can vary.