Results are Short Term

Like many injectable products, Prevelle Silk is made with hyaluronic acid. Except with Prevelle you get a slightly lower concentration of HA, meaning the results will wear off in a shorter time.  That might sound like a drawback to some people, but for others it isn’t. A filler with short-term results actually provides a way to “test drive” injectable treatment.

Dr. Christopher Hess, a Virginia plastic surgeon, says his patients have been seeing results last about 2 months. If you enjoy the treatment and the cosmetic improvements, you can always come back in a few months for treatment with a different wrinkle filler, one that provides enduring results.

The Lidocaine Factor

Prevelle is manufactured with the anesthetic lidocaine. The significance of this addition can often be exaggerated in the marketing for these fillers, but when combined with traditional pain management techniques, it may enhance the comfort level of your injection.

According to the official website, clinical trials demonstrated a significant improvement over the filler Captique:

In the clinical study, 69% (29) of the 42 patients who responded to the questionnaire preferred treatment with PREVELLE Silk over Captique. Of these 29 patients, 97% (28) preferred PREVELLE Silk because it was less painful.

Contact our office in Cincinnati for more information on Prevelle Silk.

Acupuncture, the ancient Chinese therapy of strategic needle placement in the body, is long believed to alleviate a variety of physical ailments and emotional imbalances.  But could it be a cost-effective wrinke treatment?

In this ABC News segment, plastic surgeon Dr. Bruce Genter is critical of acupuncture for the purpose of wrinkle treatment, pointing to the lack of scientific evidence.

Julia Engstrom, who is featured in the video, says she has undergone Botox treatment and laser treatment in the past. She believes facial acupuncture has improved her skin texture and reduced her wrinkles. Nearing the end of 10 treatments, she says her improvements have come through improved sleep and relaxation. “I’ve noticed that my skin is a lot smoother, [there’s] a lot less red pigment in there and the wrinkling seems to be a lot less,” Engstrom said.

In an article for Prevention magazine, licensed acupuncturist and Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioner Phyllis Olson asserts that acupuncture can indeed lessen the appearance of wrinkles. She attributes this to a core premise of acupuncture – that health is reliant upon the healthy flow of chi (energy) in the body, which can be disrupted for a myriad of reasons. Acupuncture treatments are believed to break up energy blockages that prevent optimal blood flow to certain places in the body, improving circulation.

Acupuncturist Beata Maslanka acknowledges that acupuncture doesn’t yield visible results that compare to Botox or other facial fillers, but claims that beauty actually comes from within; when internal imbalances are resolved, people look better overall. Olson agrees, noting that the treatments foster relaxation of facial muscles, thereby reducing wrinkles. “Aside from the light, momentary stings, acupuncture is really quite relaxing,” she adds.

Althugh one can wonder about the salutary effects of relaxation and optimism, the visible results Engstrom points to are hard to discern from the video, and people sometimes have a tendency to see (and believe) what they want to see.

If acupuncture does produce any wrinkle-relaxing effects, how long can one expect them to last? NYC dermatologic surgeon Barney Kenet, MD tells Prevention: “If acupuncture relaxes the muscles, it might reduce wrinkling temporarily. As for the increased blood flow, at most it will probably give you a temporary rosy complexion–something you don’t want if you have an inflammatory condition such as acne or rosacea,” he warns. “Otherwise, cosmetic acupuncture is relatively harmless.”

Maybe it is harmless if you ignore the cost of acupuncture. The average price is about $60 to $100 per session, with 10 sessions recommended by Olson, followed by monthly maintenance procedures.

In contrast, the average Botox treatment in the US costs $472 and a single treatment will last 3-6 months. By comparison, this makes acupuncture wrinkle treatments appear costly as well as unproven. Dr. Genter (whose Philadelphia Botox patients are displayed on his site to demonstrate the wrinkle reducing effects of injectables) says: ”If it increases your well-being that’s great, I just don’t know that it can make your face look younger.”

Botox treatments in Cincinnati, Ohio

Now doctors and plastic surgeons at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center are seeking approval to perform a similar operation.  According to the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, doctors at the UPMC have experience performing hand transplants — procedures that require highly advanced surgery techniques that reconnect tissues, veins and blood vessels – but a face transplant involves more complex aesthetic goals and may require donation of organs that are very difficult to procure.

• Read more at the Pittsburgh Tribune Review

It is unfortunate that such men hesitate to speak with doctors about this procedure. One man who documented his experience online said he even perceived a “stigma or shame associated with male tummy tucks,” saying he was “initially embarrassed” when he first made inquiries about the operation.

A good surgeon will offer experience and specific advice about the tummy tuck on a male patient. In the online forum RealSelf.com, a man asks about abdominoplasty:

I’m dealing with loose skin after a 50 lbs weight loss in my teens. I’ve totally transformed and I’m very athletic with well-defined abs, but have [skin] laxity mostly below the navel and around the lower back. The problem areas are very localized and I hide it under the belt line with no one suspecting I was obese. But I feel “unfinished.” The front skin is very thin and hangs, the back is mostly smooth. Is there a tummy tuck technique that would excise the abdominal skin and provide modest tightening in the lower back?

Virginia plastic surgeon Chris Hess, answers, “even though we (men) tend to have better skin tone than women, we can still end up with excess skin due to skin memory. It sounds like you could undergo a mild excision of the excess tissue – less than a mini tummy tuck.”

However, in cases where the male patient has experienced a greater weight reduction, the full tummy tuck may be recommended. Dr. Angelo Cuzalina, an Oklahoma cosmetic surgeon writes “Do not hesitate to use a full abdominoplasty for a male patient with extreme skin laxity. Men tend to heal better than women after abdominoplasty.”

A comprehensive approach such as this may be optimal in many cases to provide satisfactory results. “You really need to treat [men] circumferentially, all the way around, because if you ask most men what bothers them, it’s the ‘love handles,’ and that goes all the way around to the back” said Dr. Alan Matarasso in the publication Cosmetic Surgery Times

Clearly, many plastic and cosmetic surgeons can offer specific advice for men considering abdominoplasty. If you think you might benefit from the procedure, don’t hesitate to ask a qualified surgeon for more details.

• Read more about tummy tuck surgery in Cincinatti, Ohio

Facts to know about Juvederm XC

• Contains a small amount (0.3%) of local anesthetic
• Composed of colorless hyaluronic acid – a hydrator and cushioning agent
• Results last about 9 -12 months
• Those allergic to lidocaine or Gram-positive bacterial proteins should not use Juvederm XC
• Traditional pain control methods can still be used to further minimize discomfort
• Safety profile and frequency of side effects is very similar to non-lidocaine Juvederm

Responding to the American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery and their plans to promote positive media coverage, the post is warning its readers to guard themselves against “mind-bending” stories that might “soften you up” and interfere with your ability to make a rational decision.

Not only would I like to believe that people are smarter than that, but also that the Academy only seeks to counterbalance the disproportionate volume of negative (even absurd) press regarding plastic surgery – the type of journalism that you can regularly find on the Huffington Post.  It seems that much of the time, the success stories of plastic surgery get lost amid the sensationalized commentary about celebrities and their complications/addictions.

If you’re reading this, know that we trust you to think critically and think for yourself.

But the looming question for many people is, are these treatments comfortable?

Fortunately the answer is yes, thanks to local anesthetics that numb one or more areas of the face beforehand. Lidocaine is the one most frequently used by plastic surgeons.

Lidocaine blocks pain signals, relieves swelling

Your dentist uses Lidocaine as as a quick and simple way to numb the mouth prior to potentially painful dental work. Likewise, plastic surgeons have found that it’s an excellent local anesthetic for injections. Lidocaine blocks the pain signal sent by the nerve endings on the skin in response to injections of the dermal filler solution. Patients quickly feel the anesthetic taking effect, and numbness kicks in.

The Benefits of Lidocaine for facial cosmetic procedures

• reduces or eliminates pain when the doctor is injecting into sensitive facial tissue
• minimizes tissue swelling that occurs when solutions are injected subcutaneously (underneath the skin)
• reduced swelling allows the surgeon to resculpt the targeted areas of the face with more accuracy to get the most attractive, natural looking result
• allows you to relax during the procedure
• during longer procedures – filling in the cheek area, for instance – it eliminates the need for general anesthesia

Several of the new dermal fillers, including Radiesse, Prevelle Silk, and Hydrelle, even come pre-mixed with Lidocaine.

To learn more about Lidocaine

1. Read about Prevelle Silk at Dr. Mandell-Brown’s Ohio office
2. See this MedicineNet article about lidocaine
3. View Mayo Clinic Lidocaine website

An ideal substance, according to the authors, would have these characteristics:

• Readily available in large quantities
• Resists infection
• Resists absorption
• Completely integrated into host tissues
• Causes little patient morbidity

Analysis of long-term rhinoplasty results with these grafts revealed that patients experienced a low complication rate. Moreover, 94.2 percent of the 357 patients said they were satisfied with the results.

Other common options for rhinoplasty include cartilage from the septum or the ear.  In recent years, non-surgical options such as Radiesse have grown in popularity as some patients choose to forgo a surgical operation.

More information

• Article on ScienceDaily.com
• Article in Archives of Facial Plastic Surgery
• Rhinoplasty in Cincinnati, Ohio
• Revision rhinoplasty with Dr. Mandell-Brown
  

• SkinMedica Rejuvenize peel for treating hyperpigmentation, fine lines, wrinkles and acne scars
• Oxygen treatment to hydrate the skin while treating rosacea and broken capillaries
• Cell-switching to rebuild skin from the inside-out, treating sun damage and other imperfections

During each of these treatments, Casey says she goes “above and beyond” for each patient, offering “arm massage, hot towels, dim lights — the little things to make patients more comfortable, more relaxed.”

Read the whole article on cincychic.com

A: Without getting into a sociological discussion, the two main reasons for the popularity of breast augmentation are 1) many women in America are dissatisfied with the size and shape of their breasts, and 2) breast augmentation is a very predictable and effective procedure for changing aesthetic characteristics of the breasts.

Q: Since silicone breast implants returned to the market in 2006, have we seen a dramatic increase in their use among plastic surgeons?

A: Only 3 years have passed since restrictions were lifted on silicone implants, so that’s still difficult to measure. 2009 statistics haven’t been publicized yet, but so far saline implants remain the most common choice for women in the United States.

Q: What type of surgeon is best qualified to perform breast augmentation?

A: This is a subject of much disagreement.  There are a few different ways one can receive training for breast augmentation, so it’s best to evaluate each surgeon on an individual basis. Speak to a surgeon in your area, review before and after photos, and talk to former patients.

Q: In what part of the country is breast augmentation the most expensive/inexpensive?

A: The national average cost of breast augmentation is around 4000 dollars. In certain areas where demand is higher or the cost of living is higher, you can expect to pay more. Check out this chart on RealSelf.com that outlines the cost of breast augmentation in each state.

Q: Is it true that breast implants do not last a lifetime?

A: According to Baltimore plastic surgeon Jeff Horowitz MD, “there is no implant “expiration date.” If you remain pleased with your appearance and no complications arise, it is possible that your implants may last a lifetime.”

Q: Is it true that natural fat can be used for breast augmentation?

A: It is possible, but this method is still being studied. Most surgeons agree that fat grafting for breast augmentation is not as predictable and not as effective as methods using silicone or saline breast implants. See this recent article in the New York Times for more information.

Click on the pic below to see Breast Augmentation before and after pictures from Dr. Mandell-Brown in Cincinatti.