Self-Esteem Jumps After Chest-Abnormality Surgery
Children with a congenital chest deformity called pectus excavatum, or funnel chest, are routinely self-conscious and ill at ease in the extreme. But after they undergo surgery to correct the defect, their self-concept and social lives improve dramatically.
"These results should prompt physicians to consider the physiologic and psychological implications of pectus excavatum just as they would any other physical deformity known to have such consequences," said Robert E. Kelly, of Eastern Virginia Medical School, in Norfolk, Va., and his colleagues in the journal Pediatrics.
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Doctor Debuts "Stem-Cell Facelift"
A new technique using adult stem cells from the body's own fat tissue has been found to restore the plumpness, smoothness and skin tightness of a more youthful face.
Dr. Vincent Giampapa, who has worked on perfecting the technique during the last four years, introduced the procedure, which rules out the need for surgery or the injection of temporary under-the-skin fillers such as Restylane, Juvederm and hyaluronic acid. The so-called Stem-Cell Facelift also evens out age- or sun-induced facial color differences.
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Injectable Fillers Produce Youthful Appearance
The latest strategy to overcome wrinkles, sagging facial flesh, bony hands and flappy earlobes is under-the-skin injections of cosmetic fillers with exotic names like Restylane, Radiesse, Sculptra, ArteFill, Juvéderm, Ultra Plus and Perlane.
The idea behind all of these fillers is to inject an organic chemical, such as poly-L-lactic acid (in the case of Sculptra) or hyaluronic acid (in the case of Restylane) - which have been approved by the federal Food and Drug Administration - to plump up the skin. This erases wrinkles, lines, jowls, creases and the like - for a period of time.
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Cosmetic Laser Surgery: The Cutting Edge
Laser surgery has become the cutting edge in cosmetic medicine. Why? Because it's able to accomplish just as much as invasive surgical techniques in less time and with faster recovery rates.
Using laser surgical techniques is also more precise, and produces less bleeding, bruising and scarring. A patient will typically get an injection of anesthetic, making the procedure painless, and be done in 30-40 minutes.
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Plastic Surgery, the Who and What of It
Ever wonder who's getting plastic surgery? For the most part, it's women. Statistics compiled by the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery show that of the 11.5 million cosmetic surgical and non-surgical procedures done in 2005, over 90% were preformed on women. In fact, surgical procedures for women showed a modest annual increase of 2%, while they were down 8% for men.
People ages 35-50 years are the most likely to have a cosmetic procedure done, accounting for nearly half of procedures, compared with just 4% of people 65 and older.
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