Surgeons Seek Approval for Face Transplant

newseditor — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 12:11:06 +0000

Maybe you remember the near-total face transplant performed two years ago at the Cleveland Clinic. Surgeons and many other physicians spent 22 hours restoring a woman’s face after she had suffered severe facial trauma years before.

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

Can Rib Cartilage Be Used During Rhinoplasty?

newseditor — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 17:24:24 +0000

The answer is yes, but are these grafts ideal for use in rhinoplasty? Researchers at the University of Texas published a study that sought to answer this question.

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

Mandell-Brown Cosmetic Surgery » facial plastic surgery

Surgeons Seek Approval for Face Transplant

Can Rib Cartilage Be Used During Rhinoplasty?