Cosmeticsurg Blog

It depends on what method was used to do your liposuction. There are some liposuction techniques that really benefit from massage therapy. This article explains why massage techniques are helpful in some cases and not needed in others.

As with any surgery, the body lift comes with possible complications and potential revisions as it lifts and tightens the entire lower part of the body. The good news is that most complications are relatively minor and can be handled post operatively in the office setting.

This patient is being prepped for an upper lip lift today and after completing the surgical plan markings, she graciously allowed me to take this quick video to explain the pre-op markings I make for lip lift patients.

Media reports over the past couple of years detail many BBL tragedies, the most recently reported tragedy was just last week. I have been performing this procedure safely for 15 years and the new data emerging about the increased mortality rates is disturbing. As a member of the multi-society task force team of surgeons studying gluteal fat grafting, I believe that the recent mortalities with this procedure can be dramatically reduced.

Your BMI, or Body Mass Index, is calculated with a mathematical formula using your height and weight. The higher your BMI, the higher your surgical risk for complications both during and after surgery. Therefore, when I am evaluating patients for cosmetic (elective) procedures, I use their BMI as a surgical complication risk assessment factor. Find out what your BMI needs to be in order to schedule plastic surgery.

BALTIMORE, March 30, 2017 – Local physician, Dr. Ricardo Rodriguez, is one of 500 doctors worldwide to receive the RealSelf 500 award, a prestigious award honoring the top influencers on RealSelf. The award honors the top rated and most engaged board-certified aesthetic doctors who consistently demonstrated a commitment to patient education and positive patient outcomes throughout 2016.

Since I started writing about fat grafts, stem cells, and the regenerative properties and medical potential back in 2009, about 7 years after performing one of my first fat grafting cases, I have become more and more involved and dedicated to the science of fat grafting. As the current President of IFATS (the International Federation for Adipose Therapeutics and Science), I’m excited to be posting a quick note about this year’s conference, which starts tomorrow in San Diego. This year we’re bringing together not only the leading clinical practitioners with whom we are all familiar, but also leading endocrinologists, experts in the field of genomics and big data as applied to medicine, and stem cell researchers from other specialties such as cardiology and orthopedics.

Laser resurfacing is a procedure which is aimed at rejuvenating the face. It works by evaporating the top layers, the epidermis, of your skin causing a regeneration of new skin. While it is an effective method for prompting fresher, more youthful facial glow, there is a great alternative to consider if you are seeking a younger looking face. In fact, I am using laser resurfacing less and less in favor of fat grafting for facial rejuvenation. Why? Because with laser, regeneration of the skin is prompted by destruction and that destruction can also cause fat volume loss whereas with fat grafting, regeneration of the skin is prompted by adipose stem cells which reside in the fat that is injected and there is no additional facial fat loss. Here is why some people experience facial fat loss after laser resurfacing.

Following surgery, in an effort to repair damage to your dermis, your body forms new collagen fibers – which results in a scar. This new scar tissue will look and feel different than the surrounding tissue. A normal scar will generally appear somewhat flat and pale and will typically fade with time. In fact, many scars eventually become undetectable to the naked eye. However, some scars follow a more disruptive path, and can even get worse as time goes on. When the body produces too much collagen in an effort to repair the damage it can result in a ‘raised’ scar. These are considered ‘bad scars’ or ‘adverse scar conditions’ and they can unfold following any incision, including an incision made during a Plastic Surgery procedure.

Since the 1990’s Plastic Surgeons have reliably used fat grafting as a way to improve and enhance the cosmetic appearance of the face, breast, hands, feet, hips, and buttocks. However, more recently, clinicians have documented the therapeutic benefits of fat grafting in the healing of wounds and scars, as well as fat’s ability to repair damage to breast tissue following radiation treatment.

Patients routinely get fat grafts to the face, breast, and buttocks. However, some patients do not get the result they wanted because the fat graft did not ‘take.’  So, what happened? Why do fat grafts sometimes die or fail to take? In this post, I will explain one of the most important factors in creating a long-lasting fat graft. When the recipient tissue is normal, there really should be no need for a touch-up, or revision. Plastic surgeons have all of the tools they need to create a good fat graft on the first try!

What type of scar will you get with a Breast lift procedure? This is a very common question, and an important question that all patients should discuss with their plastic surgeon prior to having surgery. Any procedure that lifts the breast will require the surgeon to make an incision and that incision will leave a scar on your breast. In most cases, the scar will eventually fade and the positive aesthetic outcome of the ‘lifted’ breast will far surpass the remnants of a scar.

We get quite a lot of questions regarding Lip lifts, so here’s a quick video of me talking about what techniques I consider to be the key for getting the most successful Lip lift. The goal of the upper lip lift procedure is to raise the upper lip to a more youthful.

There is an old saying in photography: “A photographer is known for what he shows, not for what he shoots.” In other words, a photographer only shows his best work and there may be a lot of lousy pictures… he is just not showing those. Think of post-operative pictures of Brazilian butt lifts the same way. You may be seeing the surgeon’s best work because that is what he is showing! So the question is, “how do you find out about what the surgeon is NOT showing?” Here are few hints for gathering information about a plastic surgeon’s Brazilian butt lift results by seeing what he’s really showing you in his patient photo gallery.

Patients interested in having a procedure involving fat grafting should be familiar enough with the process to ask questions above and beyond the usual questions they might ask when consulting with plastic surgeons. The success of fat grafting is highly dependent on the skill and technique of the surgeon as well as the patient’s attention to detail and instructions during post-op. Here are 10 questions to arm yourself with prior to a consultation for any plastic surgery involving a fat transfer.