Researching Top Doctors
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These days, it is becoming more and more common for medical doctors to limit their practice to certain surgical procedures, or the treatment of certain conditions. One big reason for this is that it decreases their ability for Jung money houston malpractice (lawsuits) while increasing their expertise/experience. Thus, they become more recognizable in their field of expertise throughout the community as well as nationwide.
Cosmetic Surgery and Board Certification
It is important to understand that no single plastic surgeon will master or have special expertise in every surgical procedure/condition related to plastic surgery. Therefore, finding plastic surgeons who are mostly recognized and referred to in regards to certain surgical procedures and who have a solid background in their professional career is key.
Although plastic surgery certification is most common some surgeons are certified in otolaryngology or ophthalmology specializing strictly in facial plastic surgery and reconstruction. Such surgical procedures include eyelid surgery, rhinoplasty, facial reconstructive surgery, oculoplasty/ophthalmic, and other facial cosmetic surgical procedures to name a few.
In addition, not all otolaryngologist have special expertise in facial cosmetic surgery. As a matter of fact, only a few do. The three most commonly used fields in plastic surgery and their board certification statuses are plastic surgery, surgery of the hand, and otolaryngology. However, some plastic surgeons are double, triple, and even quadruple board certified.
What To Do When Hiring a Cosmetic Surgeon
1. When choosing a plastic surgeon forget about the phone book.
2. Use caution when approaching websites that offer free ratings or claim to have comprehensive free doctor credential information. You should, in reality, expect to see negative ratings for every doctor.
3. Beware of plastic surgeons who advertise a lot. Top-notch plastic surgeons are extremely busy for a reason and often do not need to advertise or attract much more clientele then they already have.
4. Make sure that the surgeon is board certified in the respective field.
5. Every plastic surgeon has a special interest area of expertise, find those areas and make sure they are the areas you are looking for.
6. Generally speaking, the more depth in their professional history report the more experience they have.
Inside A Top Plastic Surgeon's Professional History
Years of practice in a specialty field, academic appointments, hospital appointments, fellowship training, membership affiliations, awards, reputation, special interest/expertise area, malpractice judgment(s), disciplinary actions, board certification status, and recognition from peers for certain surgical procedures are some of the most critical factors for finding top-rated plastic surgeons. Yet, all this information will not guarantee that you will receive the highest quality of care; rather, it will increase your chances of receiving higher quality care regarding your cosmetic medical needs.
The most important specialty member organizations for plastic surgeons who are members of the American Board of Medical Specialists (ABMS) are the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, American College of Surgeons, and American Society of Plastic & Reconstructive Surgeons. However, many other organizations exist, although none have the same depth and requirements as these do.
It's important to understand that any cosmetic surgeon can become a member of these societies therefore-although membership status is essential, it by no means indicates that the surgeon holds the highest standards or expertise in plastic surgery.
Researching a Surgeon
Although it is true that the Internet has abundant websites offering information on medical doctors' credentials, you will certainly want - and need - more than just a license number, education, free anonymous ratings, and contact information. If your Internet search is growing tiresome, consider digging deeper using these resources:
1. Federation of State Medical Boards
2. American Board of Medical Specialties
3. The American Medical Association
4. Your local state medical board
5. MDNationwide.org
6. Medical society regarding doctors' specialty fields
7. Free medical doctor ratings sites
Today's silicone gel filled breast implant has come a long way from the device that was used by Dr. Cronin in Houston, Texas in 1962. Problems associated with this and other earlier breast implants have lead to the advances that have taken today's silicone gel filled breast implant to the level of safety comparable to the saline implant, while also raising the standard on quality and durability.
Back in those early pioneering days, Dr. Cronin utilized a sponge containing silicone oils that were thick liquids which escaped into the surrounding tissue when implanted under the breast, causing inflammation. Eventually, most women developed a thick, contractile (shrinking) scar tissue, which deformed the implant making it feel firm (hardening of the implant). This process is known as capsular contracture, and can occur with both saline and silicone gel implants. It was this problem alone that drove doctors, scientists, and engineers to create today's implant. Improvements were made to not only the silicone, but also to the creation and improvement of the containing part of the device, the shell.
Today's silicone gel filled breast implant contains a semi-solid gel that has no loose oils that could potentially penetrate the outer shell. This new substance is called 'cohesive' by the Allergan company and 'memory gel' by the Mentor company. Both are thick gels that are not liquid, and do not run. They are not thick enough to hold a shape, so they are very soft and need to be contained in an outer shell. The soft nature of this cohesive gel allows manufacturers to utilize a round and smooth shell, to obtain the most natural, smoothest, and softest result.
Both companies also make a gel that is thick enough to be 'form stable' and can keep its shape without an outer shell. This thick gel has been utilized in implants known as gummy bears. These devices are being placed in women today only in clinical research trials. There are some compromises associated with this type of breast implant, though. Because they do not change shape, they need to be 'breast shaped', and therefore have a risk of rotation in the pocket, which would cause a change in the shape of the breast. To counteract this process, all breast implants that are shaped need to have their outer shell texturized, so that the body will 'grip' the implant into position. Textured implants have thicker shells, and potential irregularities are more easily felt when touching the breast. To be noted, implant manufacturers have touted breast shaped implants ('contoured', 'anatomic', or 'tear-dropped') as an improvement over the round implant. In reality, a vast majority of plastic surgeons prefer round and smooth implants. Another potential problem with gummy bear implants is there fragility, which requires them to be placed through large inframammary incisions (under the breast in the crease). Although gummy bear implants have these potential compromises, they have virtually no risk of leaking, offering comfort to many individuals.
Like saline filled implants, today's silicone gel filled implants come in a variety of profiles. The profile represents how flat or how tall the implant sits when lying flat on a table top. This in turn reflects how projecting the implant will be away from your chest wall and how full the tops of your breast will be after augmentation. In general, a moderate profile implant gives the best, most natural result. However, in situations where a larger volume implant is needed to obtain the augmentation desired in a more confined chest or narrow breast, then a high profile implant may be best suited.
To obtain the best results possible from your surgery; you need to choose a board certified plastic surgeon that has extensive experience and a great reputation in breast augmentation.