Cosmetic Plastic Surgery Procedures At-A-Glance
What You Need to Know
The First Step:
Plastic surgery involves many choices. The first and most important is selecting a surgeon you can trust.
Choosing an ASPS Member Surgeon ensures that you have selected a physician who:
- Has completed at least five years of surgical training with a minimum of two years in plastic surgery.
- Is trained and experienced in all plastic surgery procedures, including breast, body, face and reconstruction.
- Operates only in accredited medical facilities
- Adheres to a strict code of ethics.
- Fulfills continuing medical education requirements, including standards and innovations in patient safety.
- Is board certified by The American Board of Plastic Surgery or in Canada by the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada®.
ASPS Member Surgeons are your partners in cosmetic and reconstructive plastic surgery.
Look for the ASPS Member Surgeon logo.
To find a plastic surgeon who performs a procedure, visit the online referral service of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS). ASPS, founded in 1931, is the largest plastic surgery organization in the world and the foremost authority on cosmetic and reconstructive plastic surgery. All ASPS physician members are certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery (ABPS) or the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada.
Excerpted from the ASPS/ASAPS Patient Education Brochures
© ASPS/ASAPS 2008
Facelift
If you are bothered by the signs of aging in your face, a facelift may be right for you.
Technically known as rhytidectomy, a facelift is a surgical procedure to improve visible signs of aging in the face and neck, such as:
- Sagging in the midface
- Deep creases below the lower eyelids
- Deep creases between the nose and mouth
- Fat that has fallen or is displaced
- Loss of muscle tone in the lower face that may create jowls
- Loose skin and excess fatty deposits under the chin and jaw
A facelift is designed to correct all of these aging features, restoring a more youthful, rested appearance with uplifted contours and improved tone in facial skin and underlying muscle.
Procedural steps: Typical incisions begin within the hairline, above the temple and continue along or just inside the ear, ending behind the ear. This allows access to tighten underlying tissue, remove excess fat and reduce sagging skin.
A second incision under the chin is sometimes necessary. If skin tone is good and only mid-face aging or excess fat in the neck will be corrected, abbreviated techniques with shorter incisions may be used. Liposuction techniques may assist with removal of fat deposits.
Your results: Swelling and bruising should subside within 2-4 weeks. Final results may be apparent in 1-2 months. Incision lines will continue to refine and fade for 1 year.
Eyelid Surgery
Cosmetic eyelid surgery, called blepharoplasty, is a surgical procedure to improve the appearance of the
upper eyelids, lower eyelids, or both, restoring firmness to the area surrounding the eyes and making you look more rested and alert.
Specifically, eyelid surgery can treat:
- Loose or sagging skin that creates folds or hides the natural contour of the upper eyelid
- Excess skin that hangs down from the upper eyelid, sometimes impairing vision
- Excess fatty deposits that appear as puffiness in the upper eyelids
- Bags under the eyes
- Droopiness of the lower eyelids, showing white below the iris
- Excess skin and fine wrinkles of the lower eyelid
Procedural steps: An incision within the natural crease of the upper eyelid allows access to remove excess skin, muscle and underlying fatty tissue. Using an incision inside the lower eyelid, fat is removed or redistributed and muscle modified to correct a baggy lower eyelid.
An incision just below the lower lash line allows excess skin to be removed. Laser resurfacing may be used to smooth lower lid skin.
Your results: Bruising should subside in 5-10 days and swelling should subside in 2-4 weeks. Final results may appear in 1-2 months. Incision lines will continue to refine and fade for 1 year.
Nose Surgery
While the shape of your nose is usually the result of heredity; the appearance may have been altered in
an injury or during prior surgery.
Also known as rhinoplasty, surgery of the nose improves the appearance and proportion of your nose, enhancing facial harmony and self confidence. Surgery of the nose may also correct impaired breathing caused by structural defects in the nose.
Rhinoplasty can change:
- Nose size, in relation to facial balance
- Nose width, at the bridge or in the size and position of the nostrils
- Nose profile, with visible humps or depressions on the bridge
- Nasal tip, that is enlarged or bulbous, drooping, upturned or hooked
- Nostrils that are large, wide or upturned
- Nasal asymmetry
Procedural steps: Incisions hidden at the nostril base and/or inside the nose allow access to reshape underlying cartilage and/or bone. This may include lowering humps, narrowing of nasal bones, shaping of the nasal tip or nostril size and improving the angle between the nose and the upper lip.
This procedure also can correct breathing difficulties caused by structural irregularities.
Your results: You should see a change within 6-8 weeks following surgery, with continued refinement for 6-12 months. Cartilage is a flexible and growing tissue, therefore results following surgery are not fully predictable.
Brow Lift
If you have expression lines or other signs of aging in the forehead and brow region which you find
bothersome, a brow lift (also called a forehead lift) may be right for you.
A brow lift:
- Minimizes the creases that develop across the forehead, or those that occur high on the bridge of the nose, between the eyes
- Improves what are commonly referred to as frown lines
- Repositions a low or sagging brow that is hooding the upper eyelid
- Raises the eyebrows to a more alert and youthful position
A brow lift is designed to correct all of these aging features, restoring a more youthful, rested appearance with uplifted contours and improved tone in facial skin and underlying muscle.
Procedural steps: Brow lift surgery can be performed through multiple limited incisions hidden within the hairline or through a single incision in the natural crease of each upper eyelid.
Results of a brow lift may be enhanced through laser resurfacing or a chemical peel that can further improve skin tone and surface appearance.
When there is significant excess skin in the forehead, an alternate technique using a wide incision across the top of the scalp may be recommended.
Your results: Swelling should subside in 2-4 weeks. Final results may appear within 1-2 months. Incision lines will continue to refine and fade for up to 1 year.
Facial Implants
If you would like to change the contours of your face, you might want to consider implants. They can
improve proportion and profiles and correct imbalance caused by injury or hereditary traits.
Procedural steps: Appropriately sized and shaped implants most commonly in the cheek, chin, jaw or nasal region will be carefully selected and placed. Incisions inside the mouth or discreetly placed external incisions create space in soft tissues for implant positioning and support.
Generally performed as an outpatient procedure under local anesthesia with or without sedation; general anesthesia may be recommended.
Your results: Almost immediate, initial swelling should subside in 2-4 weeks and dissipate in 1-2 months as final results appear.
Injectable Fillers
If you would like to restore facial contours, or reduce the appearance of lines and creases, injection therapy
with soft tissue fillers may be right for you. Injectable fillers can:
- Plump thin lips
- Enhance shallow contours
- Soften facial creases and wrinkles
- Improve the appearance of recessed scars
Procedural steps: A pharmaceutical filler substance or your own fat is injected below the skin surface to fill hollow areas and creases, or plump the lips and back of the hands. Fat is typically taken from the inner thigh or abdomen.
Your results: Swelling should dissipate in 2-5 days, or 1-2 weeks with fat injections. This procedure produces temporary results, lasting a few months to several years or more, based on the filler used, treatment site and individual patient factors. Some products may be permanent.
Skin Resurfacing
If you would like to improve the surface and appearance of your skin, reduce fine lines, surface
irregularities such as scarring, uneven pigmentation and sun damage, then skin resurfacing may be right for you.
Procedural steps: A variety of lasers and intense pulsed light devices achieve a wide range of benefits.
Chemical solutions of varying types and concentrations are applied to peel the skin surface allowing new skin to form.
Mechanical resurfacing, dermabrasion or dermaplaning, uses a fine abrasive or scalpel to scrape the skin surface to a controlled depth; generally used to improve an irregular surface, such as acne scarring.
Your results: Any flaking or crusting should resolve in 5-10 days. Results may appear in 10-14 days. Skin is most likely pink or flush for 1-6 months.
Breast Augmentation
Breast size is important to many women for a variety of reasons. If you are dissatisfied with your breast
size, augmentation surgery is a choice to consider. Breast augmentation can:
- Increase fullness and projection of your breasts
- Improve the balance of your figure
- Enhance your self-image and self confidence
Also known as augmentation mammaplasty, the procedure involves using implants to fulfill your desire for fuller breasts or to restore breast volume lost after weight reduction or pregnancy. Implants also may be used to reconstruct a breast after mastectomy or injury.
Procedural steps: Common incision locations include the breast crease, in the underarm, or around the areola (pigmented skin surrounding the nipple).
Placement of implants beneath the chest wall muscle or directly behind breast tissue using pre-filled implants or implants filled during surgery creates desired volume.
Generally performed as an outpatient procedure under local anesthesia with sedation; general anesthesia may be recommended.
Implants may need to be replaced: It's important to know that breast implants are not designed to last a lifetime. You should plan for an annual examination by your plastic surgeon to see if the implants need to be replaced.
Breast Lift
Also known as mastopexy, a breast lift raises and firms the breasts by removing excess skin and tightening
the surrounding tissue to reshape and support the new breast contour. Sometimes the areola becomes enlarged over time, and a breast lift will reduce this as well.
Procedural steps: Excess skin is surgically removed to raise the nipple and tighten the breast tissue. Incision patterns vary, depending on degree of excess skin and amount of lifting required as well as patient and surgeon preference.
Your results: Swelling should subside in 2-4 weeks. Breast shape may take 1-3 months to fully refine. Incision lines will continue to flatten and fade for up to 1 year.
Gynecomastia
Enlarged male breasts, also known as gynecomastia, can cause emotional discomfort and impair your self
confidence. Gynecomastia is characterized by:
- Excess localized fat
- Excess glandular tissue development
- A combination of both excess fat and glandular tissue
- Gynecomastia may present unilaterally (one breast) or bilaterally (both breasts)
Gynecomastia can be surgically treated by removing excess fat, glandular tissue and/or skin. The result is a better proportioned, more masculine-contoured upper body and the freedom and self confidence to lead an active life.
Procedural steps: Surgical removal of excess tissue is performed by excision and/or liposuction. This procedure can include areola reduction.
Your results: Initial swelling should dissipate in 2-4 weeks. Final results may appear in 2-4 months. Incision lines will continue to fade for up to 1 year. Significant weight gain can reverse results.
Get detailed procedural information on breast reduction for men
Tummy Tuck
If you want a tighter, flatter abdomen, then a tummy tuck may be appropriate to help achieve your
goals.
Also known as abdominoplasty, a tummy tuck removes excess fat and skin, and in some cases restores weakened or separated muscles. This creates an abdominal profile that is smoother and firmer, often enhancing your body image and confidence.
Procedural steps: A tummy tuck involves the surgical removal of excess abdominal fat and skin and includes tightening of the abdominal wall where muscles have weakened.
A full tummy tuck requires a horizontal incision in the area between the pubic hairline and navel. Incision size is largely dependent on the amount of excess skin to be removed.
Where correction is isolated to the area below the navel, a limited or mini tummy tuck with a shorter incision at the pubic bone may be recommended.
Liposuction may be performed with a mini tummy tuck where excess fat is the only factor.
Your results: Swelling should subside and initial results may appear in 2-4 weeks. Final results could appear in 8 weeks. Incision lines will continue to flatten and fade for up to 1 year.
Spider Veins
Also known as sclerotherapy, this cosmetic procedure reduces or eliminates surface vessels or spider veins, commonly on the face and legs.
Procedural steps: Sclerosing solution is injected directly into a vessel, causing it to slowly fade or disappear and may be used in conjunction with Doppler ultrasound device for larger veins.
Laser or intense pulsed light therapy reduces tiny surface vessels on the face and legs.
Your results: Veins gradually fade, usually in 7-10 days for significant improvement, and the final results will be apparent in 2-6 weeks.
Liposuction
Despite good health and a reasonable level of fitness, some people may still have a body with
disproportionate contours due to localized fat deposits. These areas may be due to family traits rather than a lack of weight control or fitness.
Liposuction slims and reshapes specific areas of the body by removing excess fat deposits, improving your body contours and proportion, and ultimately enhancing your self-image.
These techniques may be used to reduce localized fat deposits of the:
- Thighs
- Hips and buttocks
- Abdomen and waist
- Upper arms
- Back
- Inner knee
- Chest area
- Cheeks, chin and neck
- Calves and ankles
Procedural techniques: There are three common variations to the procedure:
- Traditional liposuction is surgical suctioning of excess fat deposits
- The tumescent or super-wet technique requires an infusion of saline solution with adrenaline and possibly anesthetic prior to removal of excess fat
- Ultrasound-assisted lipoplasty uses ultrasonic energy to liquefy excess fat prior to surgical suctioning
Your results: Swelling should subside, bruising should fade and initial results may appear in 2-4 weeks. Final results could appear in 2-6 months. Significant weight gain can cause recurrence of fatty deposits.
Questions to ask my plastic surgeon
Use this checklist as a guide during your consultation
- Are you certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery?
- Are you a member of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons?
- Were you trained specifically in the field of plastic surgery?
- How many years of plastic surgery training have you had?
- Do you have hospital privileges to perform this procedure?
- If so, at which hospitals?
- Is the office-based surgical facility accredited by a nationally- or state-recognized accrediting agency, or is it state-licensed or Medicare-certified?
- Am I a good candidate for this procedure?
- What will be expected of me to get the best results?
- Where and how will you perform my procedure?
- What surgical technique is recommended for me?
- How long of a recovery period can I expect, and what kind of help will I need during my recovery?
- What are the risks and complications associated with my procedure?
- How are complications handled?
- How can I expect to look over time?
- What are my options if I am dissatisfied with the cosmetic outcome of my surgery?
- Do you have before-and-after photos I can look at for this procedure and what results are reasonable for me?
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