Aging Gracefully, the European Way
February 23rd, 2011
According to a recent article in the New York Times, the objective of plastic surgery in Europe, says Dr. Michel Soussaline, a Paris surgeon with more than 30 years of experience, is “to keep the natural beauty and charm of each individual woman, not to fit some current ideal of beauty.â€
We will likely see the opposite of this philosophy during the parade of Hollywood stars on Red Carpet this Sunday. The Academy Awards receives worldwide attention, only partly due to handing out the coveted Oscar statues. The rest of the media hype revolves around fashion, make-up and cosmetic surgery, and especially targeting those who look less than divine.
It has been reported that American women who particularly spend so lavishly on cosmetic surgery, fillers and wrinkle potions, prefer to be noticed. I tend to agree with this premise. However, by contrast, European women are more discrete and are genuinely thrilled when nobody notices a little Nipntuck. We’ll see if this year’s Oscar coverage fulfills these claims.
MONDAY MYTH #3: Cosmetic Surgery is easy to do
July 26th, 2010
Is it true that cosmetic surgery is easy to do?
I believe this is a mistaken belief that stems from two aspects of cosmetic surgery. The plastic surgery community has largely looked down upon limiting a practice to elective cosmetic surgery, since its inception over 125 years ago. Plastic surgeons doing cosmetic surgery exclusively used to be referred to as “nose crackers†or “hair dressers†by their reconstructive surgery colleagues. It was considered a less noble specialty. In fact, one of my earliest mentors as a medical student said, “Always do some reconstructive surgery, so your peers won’t call you a nose cracker!â€
Secondly, the technical aspects of cosmetic surgery procedures are actually simple by design. Incisions are small, there are few steps and the physiologic stresses to the patient are minor. This all true. But the difficult part of cosmetic surgery is the sculpture and all cosmetic surgery is sculpture. Tissues are removed, implants are added or underlying structures are rearranged. Poorly done, this sculpture will result in a very unnatural and aesthetically displeasing result. Done well, the result will be natural and balanced, enhancing the patient’s own beauty and self-esteem. A good result is often one that no one notices.
Follow Us!
