Plastic surgery Face enhancement articles

Lip enhancements, whether through implants, lifts, or fillers, are about harmonizing the procedures with your unique features. It’s not just about knowing what you want, or what bothers you; it’s about effective communication to help you achieve the aesthetic you envision.

This patient is being prepped for an upper lip lift today.  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.

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.

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!

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.

Plastic surgeons have been performing Fat grafting surgeries for over a hundred years. Patients interested in having a procedure involving fat grafting should be familiar enough with the process to ask questions during their consultation.

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:

A recent article in the Wall Street Journal highlighted a Korean Plastic Surgeon who is popularizing the so called Smile Surgery. MSN News also recently featured an article about smile surgery, called a “smile lipt,” – a combination of the words “lip” and “lift.” While this procedure may sound odd, there are definitely some patients who are good candidates for this procedure. I have performed it in my practice in Baltimore. Some people have a distinct permanent frown type expression and Smile Surgery can help them because it lifts the corners of the mouth. It helps change the permanent sad or angry look to a more pleasant expression. This technique is different than a traditional lip lift procedure, as that technique focuses solely on the long space between the upper lip and the base of your nose.

Patients today are doing a lot of research about the upper Lip lift,. One of the most frequent questions I get is if the surgery involves the muscle of the upper lip. Patients want to know if my technique involves only the skin, or if I lift the muscle in any way. My Lip lift technique involves lifting the skin only, and I do not involve the muscle. It seems one of the biggest proponents of technique incorporating the muscle is Dr. Randall Heyworth in California. In 2008, he and I met on a trip to China representing the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, and I enjoyed his company. But I have a different approach to the upper lip lift and I will explain why.

We so often see photographs of celebrities that have duck lips. If you don’t know what I am referring to, please tune into the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills and take a look at most of the women. You know the story–the lips protrude out like duck bills because too much filler is put into the lips. While Taylor wins the prize, Kyle is catching up to her. It does look terrible. So, how can YOU have fuller lips without getting duck lips?

Let’s clarify what lip lift does first. The lip lift shortens the long space between the base of the nose and the upper lip. Some people are born with a longer space, while other people start to notice it more during the aging process.

Here are the considerations to make when planning the procedure, and the steps involved in the procedure.

Fat grafts to the face are a great way to rejuvenate your face. As you age, your dermis thins, and your face will sag.You may lose volume in your cheeks and under your eyes. These areas appear to be hollow or not as defined as they were when you were younger. Additionally, some people have areas of their face lacking volume no matter what their age. Fat grafts will naturally fill those areas to restore your youthful appearance. Additionally, your own adipose fat contains adults stem cells. Adult stem cells have regenerative properties that can increase blood supply to your tissue and skin to make you look younger.

In summary, Laser resurfacing technologies destroy tissue (which the body repairs), while fat grafting (Fat injections) builds up and regenerates tissues.

Most lasers shoot a high energy beam which vaporizes cells, whereas fat grafting techniques mobilize teams of repair cells to bring more blood supply and nutrients to your face.

I believe that stem cell enhanced fat grafting offers an advantage to lasers currently being used by plastic surgeons and dermatologists. Fat grafts are the most natural way to get a long lasting youthful rejuvenation of your face.

The year 2010 ushers in a new decade where science , beauty, and your own fat make a marriage that promises to deliver one of the most disruptive medical technologies of the century. Dr. Ricardo Rodriguez, a Yale trained Plastic Surgeon believes that stem cells from your own fat will lead the cosmetic surgery trends.

Fat injections are long lasting if done correctly. That is my position and I stand by it! If you frequent various plastic surgery blogs, there is a big difference in the types of techniques that surgeons are using. Thus, there is a wide variation in their results, so many patients think that fat injections do not last. Fat injections are permanent if the following is done:

1. correct technique of extraction and processing
2. proper post surgical protocol for patient.