The End of the Man-Boob

Women are the greatest consumers of plastic surgery procedures, comprising about 85% of my practice. I think there are many reasons for that, including childbearing, age discrimination, and others that could be a topic for another blog.

Men come, generally, to have a few things touched up. They come for Botox when their scowls make them look "too mean" to make a sale. They come for liposuction when they can't get a handle on their love-handles. They come to have their heavy eyelids removed, so they don't look so tired. And, more often than ever now, they come to get rid of their man-boobs. Our professional term for "man-boobs" is "gynecomastia.

There are a few ways to get rid of man-boobs, including laser-assisted liposuction and direct excision (cutting out the extra tissue). The scars are minimal and so is the down-time.

In fact, the procedure can often be done in the office under local anesthesia. Southside Steve, one of The Regular Guys from Rock 100.5, had his procedure done in my office a few months ago and took the time to create a YouTube video about it. My disclaimer here is that I had no editorial control over the video and it probably won't appeal to all of you. View at your own risk.

Fox News ran a story today about man-boobs and the trend of getting rid of them. Thought you might be interested.

Thanks for stopping by here!

Octomom--My apologies for extending her 15 minutes

The same woman who denied ever having her lips plumped is now saying her flat tummy (after 14 kids!) is just from diet and exercise. I'm not buying it. Her bellybutton looks like an operated one, and, even if she didn't have a tummy tuck, air-brushing can work miracles!

Now can we all quit talking about her so she'll just go away?

Jumping on the Heidi Bandwagon

I was as stunned as anyone to see the latest Heidi Montag photos in People magazine (and everywhere else!). She looks like an older, plastic version of herself. Or, as a friend of mine said, "She looks like an old porn star."

Now, I'm obviously a fan of plastic surgery. But, as with most things, plastic surgery is better in moderation. And it's better when the procedures are actually correcting a problem, not just tweaking things that are just fine. I'm not sure how any 23 year old could really need 10 cosmetic procedures.

Here's my take on what she had done:

1. Botox: at age 23, likely not needed. But not bad maintenance and prevention, so I can't really knock it, even though her brow position now makes her look a bit evil.

2. Mini-browlift: I'm not even sure what this procedure is exactly. You either do a browlift, or you don't. Meanwhile, it's clear from her "before" photos that she didn't need anything done to her brows.

3. Chin reduction: Ok, I see the difference, but, again, not necessary.

4. Revision of breast augmentation: Obviously to go even larger. All I can say is this: the bigger they are, the harder they fall. She may regret this later.

5. Liposuction: I can see this difference, too, in her hips and waist. Many otherwise thin women do come for contouring of areas that they consider to be their "problem areas", and I think that's not entirely unreasonable. I'm not sure Heidi has done anything to take care of problem areas, though. It seems to me that she's had all this work done, and had People magazine following her every step of the way, just to get more press for the launch of her pop album.

6. Fat grafting to the cheeks: completely unnecessary in a 23 year old

7. Lip augmentation: Not bad

8. Buttocks Augmentation (presumably with fat): I can't really tell a difference here, nor can I see that she needed this procedure done.

9. Revision rhinoplasty (nose-job): She may be on the Michael Jackson path here. Her nose looked just fine before this second surgery.

10. Otoplasty (ear pinning): I don't recall noticing her ears being prominent prior to her surgery, so I can't really say if this made sense. It wouldn't be unreasonable if they did stick out quite a bit before.

I just hope that Heidi doesn't have as many fans as she seems to think she has, so there won't be be hordes of young women following her lead. And I hope she gets the help she needs for her obviously impaired self-esteem. And I hope her 15 minutes are over soon.

Dentist = Plastic Surgeon? I don't think so!

There's a story out today about a dentist who performed breast reduction and liposuction on a 15-year-old! Here's the link to the full story. Now, I've got a couple of issues with this.

First, what's a dentist doing working below the neck? This guy did go to medical school as well as dental school, but that doesn't make him a plastic surgeon. He never did an accredited residency or fellowship in plastic surgery, so, in my opinion, he shouldn't be venturing too far from the face!

Unfortunately, there are no laws against ANY kind of doctor performing ANY kind of surgery he/she wants, so long as they can do it in their own office! That's because no hospital would allow them to do those surgeries in their facilities--the hospitals don't consider them to be adequately trained to do such surgeries. If I wanted to really be reckless, and if I could find someone willing, I could do brain surgery in my office. I guess I could take some weekend courses before-hand, so I'd be "qualified".

Second, who does liposuction on a 15-year-old?! There was another story a few years ago about a 12-year-old who had liposuction, but that was a very unusual case, and there certainly is no accepted established precedent for such surgery. There is sometimes good reason to do breast reduction surgery at that age, but it's not common. There is, in my opinion, no good reason for liposuction on someone that age--that poor girl should have been encouraged to diet and exercise some more.

So, buyer beware: a "cosmetic" surgeon is often NOT a surgeon at all. Most ABPS-Certified plastic surgeons don't call themselves cosmetic surgeons because we're aware of all the non-plastic surgeons using that name.

How do you know if your cosmetic/plastic surgeon is legit? Check out your surgeon here. You'll find out if he/she is Certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery. Can't find your surgeon there? Check him/her out here. You'll see exactly what specialty their board-certification is in (internal medicine, plastic surgery, emergency medicine, etc). And, check out your surgeon here, too. If they're an ASPS member, they have to be an ABPS-Certified plastic surgeon.

Getting Back Your Body After Baby: Mommy Makeovers in Atlanta, GA

What's a busy Mom to do when the family is complete, but all the diet and exercise in the world aren't working to give her back her pre-baby body? Seek out a Mommy Makeover! The trend isn't new, but it's certainly picked up steam in recent years. Both celebrities and soccer moms have these procedures.

Mommy Makeovers are designed to take care of the problem areas that most women have after pregnancy. Now, every Mom is different, but the most common procedures in a Mommy Makeover are tummy tucks, breast lifts, and liposuction.

When you're ready for your Mommy Makeover, come see me at Kavali Plastic Surgery. As a Mommy myself, I can understand what you're going through.