Plastic Surgery Secrets You Always Wanted to Know
Have you tried your hardest to stay one step ahead of aging, only to be disappointed with the results? With over one
million cosmetic surgeries performed each year, plastic surgery is quickly becoming one of the hottest new trends
in health care. Plastic surgeon, Karen Powers, MD, of Stonegate Plastic Surgery shares a few of her secrets to a
youthful appearance and answers some of the questions you’ve always wondered about but may have been
too apprehensive to ask.
Fiction: Botox® and Fillers Last Forever
In general, Botox works on wrinkles caused by muscle action
while fillers work on wrinkles caused by gravity. Injections of
botulinum toxin block muscular nerve signals, which then
weakens the muscle so it can't contract. When a filler like
Juvederm® is injected, it acts like an inflated cushion to
support facial structures and tissues that may have lost
volume or elasticity due to normal aging. The end result is
diminished unwanted facial wrinkles. Botox and Juvederm
typically last three months, but can last longer if patients
stay on schedule for regular injections.
Fiction: Breast Augmentation Always Looks Fake
Breast augmentation surgery involves using silicone or
saline implants to increase the size of your breasts with the
goal of increasing fullness and projection of the breasts or
improving the balance of your figure.
“There’s probably many people you know who underwent
breast augmentation and you have no idea – the results
can actually be very subtle,” said Dr. Powers. “For many
women, going up a size or two actually helps to better
align the size of their breasts with the natural shape of
their body. Ultimately, the size and shape of your
breasts is up to you.”
Fiction: Insurance Companies Won’t Cover Plastic
Surgery of the Breasts
While it’s true insurance companies don’t cover cosmetic
surgery of the breast, they will cover reconstructive surgery
which includes breast reduction procedures to make the
breasts smaller. However, there are strict guidelines in
place for what is considered medical necessity in regards
to breast reduction. Often this requires documentation
from your physician in regards to ailments such as back,
neck, or shoulder pain.
Fiction: Liposuction is a Substitute for
Diet and Exercise
Liposuction, sometimes referred to as "lipo" by patients,
slims and reshapes specific areas of the body by removing
excess fat deposits and improving your body contours and
proportion. During this procedure, fat cells in a particular
area are destroyed and are no longer able to absorb fat.
While a great solution for the affected area, this procedure
is not a permanent solution for weight loss and if you were
to put on excess weight it would simply be housed in a
different part of your body