About Plastic Surgery

Ideal Plastic Surgery Candidate
An ideal candidate for plastic surgery understands the limitations plastic surgery has. The plastic surgery candidate must understand why they wish to have surgery performed, what the goals are, and what they expect the final outcome of surgery to be. A patient who is unrealistic about the expectations they think they can attain through a surgical procedure or who lack a strong self-image is not an ideal candidate of plastic surgery. Someone who has also just had a major life crisis or transition is also not a good plastic surgery candidate because the individual may be trying to overcome or move on with a certain aspect of their life through the means of altering their physical appearance.

The majority of ideal plastic surgery patients has a strong self-image but possesses a physical trait or characteristic that they wish to improve. Some people have been born with some type of a physical defect that has increasingly made the patient more and more self-conscious. The defect can start to affect a healthy self-image over time, and getting plastic surgery often can dramatically improve the way an individual feels. Common motivations for cosmetic plastic surgery are:

To look as young on the outside as an individual may feel.

Correcting asymmetry of a certain body part.

Wishing to maintain a young and healthy appearance, often times motivated by one’s profession.

It has been shown that plastic surgery candidates that have undergone procedures for the purposes of doing it for someone else end up feeling much greater levels of disappointment and dissatisfied with the results. Although certain plastic surgery procedures can greatly improve one’s self-image, it should not be used strictly for those intentions. When used properly with an ideal candidate, plastic surgery does encourage a stronger self-image by allowing a small change on the outside to drastically change how an individual feels on the inside. If you are interested in getting an initial consultation for a plastic surgery procedure from a board certified plastic surgeon, click here to find a qualified doctor in your area.

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Plastic Surgery Risks
There are risks associated to any type of surgical procedure, and plastic surgery is no different. Plastic surgery can positively affect an individual, but they must know the risks that are involved, which combines the actual surgical risk with the individual patient’s risk factors.

Because incisions are made during plastic surgery it automatically opens up an individual to infection and bleeding. The longer the incisions are left open and the larger the incisions are will increase the risk for adverse reactions to occur. The use of anesthesia also carries risk. That is why during the initial consultation with your plastic surgeon it is important to disclose any and all of your medical history and information about your lifestyle and dietary intake because this can greatly play on if your plastic surgery is free of complications or not.

The risk of complication is greatly decreased by choosing a qualified board certified plastic surgeon that has been thoroughly trained to detect and properly manage any complications that can arise with any procedure. To locate a board certified plastic surgeon in your area, please click here.

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Before Plastic Surgery
The board certified plastic surgeon determines if the potential patient is an ideal candidate for a surgical procedure during the initial consultation. It is very important for open and honest communication between the patient and the plastic surgeon for the safety and outcome desirability of the surgical procedure. The plastic surgeon will ask the candidate detailed questions, which will entail why they wish to get the procedure, how the patient wants the surgery to turn out, and what feelings you expect to have following the procedure.

A complete health evaluation will be made along with a physical exam, preoperative pictures, and then an explanation on what the surgeon feels are the best techniques for the goals and body type of that individual. It is extremely important to express the outcome hoped for through surgery so that the surgeon can tell the patient if the results are even possible, as well as to avoid reaching full satisfaction from the procedure simply because of poor communication prior to the surgery. The plastic surgeon will discuss the type of anesthesia that will be used, the facility the procedure will take place at, and go over the risks involved with any surgical procedure.

The patient’s age, skin types, overall health, and genetic background to name a few often affect the plastic surgery outcome. Patients who smoke have been found to be at higher risk for pulmonary complications and have a delayed healing time verses non-smokers. Individuals with damaged skin conditions may also find the results of their surgical improvement a little lesser than those patients that do not have damaged skin conditions. Regardless, there are many factors that will determine the outcome of a surgical procedure, but there is no sure proof way to predict the exact results.

Directly prior to a plastic surgery procedure patients should avoid any type of anti-inflammatory medicine because the increase bleeding, and alcohol and smoking should be stopped until the plastic surgeon indicates to the patient that it can resume. Based on individual health and risk factors, along with the type of plastic surgery procedure the plastic surgeon will properly instruct pre-operative directions that must be followed. If a patient fails to adhere to the guidelines set forth by the surgeon the procedure may be cancelled in order to better guarantee the safety of the patient. A ride to and from the mainly outpatient procedures should be arranged ahead of time.

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After Plastic Surgery
Depending on the type of plastic surgery the patient has undergone will affect the recovery time and lifestyle modifications that will occur after the procedure. Any discomfort or pain can vary on the location of the plastic surgery as well as individual factors. Some individuals may possess a higher threshold for pain and can better withstand the postoperative conditions.

Depending on the procedure and the board certified plastic surgeon’s advice the patient would be given a prescription to help reduce the feeling of discomfort. Facial cosmetic plastic surgery is viewed as having the least amount of postoperative discomfort associated to it, while any plastic surgery that involves elevation or tightening of the muscles is associated to the largest amount of discomfort and pain.

The adjustment period to the “new you” depends on how dramatic of a change was made and the individual’s own emotional and mental tendencies. Some plastic surgery procedures may have greatly altered a previous image of one’s self and the change in image may take awhile to adjust to. Discoloration and swelling is normal right after surgery too, so a patient should not jump to any conclusions until it has settled down. By having someone to help with the physical, emotional, and mental aspects of the plastic surgery can greatly support the patient.