Take this explicit and comical blog written by Toni Nagy last week (warning: hilarious and crude descriptions used to make her points) “My Vagina Needs Plastic Surgery?” is meant to make women laugh at the idea having a “designer vagina” and that the audacity of suggestion is just a ploy by the industry of  cosmetic surgeons. She fulfills on this end to use every slang terminology to get her point across, but there are other factors to consider for those who may really have medical issues and concerns that can be helped via surgery.

Cosmetic Surgeries That Address Female Genitalia and Their Vaginas On The Rise

Regardless of the reasons women may want to cosmetically alter their most feminine parts, there are more serious reasons. For example: female genital mutilation. The surgeries required to help victims differ in some ways from vaginoplasties and labiaplasties, though the procedures do share some techniques in common. With female genital mutilation, the vaginal opening may be stitched shut and the clitoris removed, thus diminishing a woman’s desire to engage in sexual activities. The practice is most common in some African countries and it is often regarded similarly to circumcision in those areas. A scalpel and stitches are often required, but the end result and the goals of female genital mutilation are notably different from the goals and results of vaginoplasty and labiaplasty which are performed to correct deformities, enhance sexual pleasure and restore function to the vagina when muscles become lax due to childbirth.

Some individuals have pointed out that a diversity of agents are currently on the market to address the male influence and how such surgeries are for their pleasure (both visual and sexual) and that female genital surgery may be the answer to help women gain confidence about their “parts” and anatomical short-comings, in addition to those  women who have experienced sexual problems due to their female anatomy, but having any cosmetic or plastic surgery procedure is a personal choice, and one that women should make for no other reason or person, than “self.”

Some Obstetricians and Gynecologists has spoken out vehemently against labiaplasty and vaginoplasty, as these surgical procedures continue to grow in popularity. It’s true that sometimes the results of these surgeries don’t quite meet women’s expectations and sometimes things even go wrong during the procedures, but the negative perspectives have yet to quell interest in genital surgeries perhaps because these procedures really are solving some of women’s physical and sexual issues.

Take for example, Paul Mason, a 51 year-old postman from Ipswich, England who was once referred to as the world’s fattest man at 980 pounds. After losing 630 pounds or two-thirds of his weight after gastric bypass surgery three years ago, he wants plastic surgery to remove the excess skin left behind after with dramatic weight loss.

According to The Sun, a British newspaper and the ABC News story reported only days ago, Mason is now 350 pounds, but he is still weighed down by excess folds of skin around his stomach, arms and legs, and is wheelchair bound, “because the skin hampers his ability to walk.”

Former "World's Fattest Man" Paul Mason Requests Plastic Surgery to Remove Excess Skin After Losing 630 Pounds (Photo: Paul Nixon Photography)

“It doesn’t matter how much toning up you do, it’s only going to get worse,” The Sun quoted Mason as saying.

In the article, Dr. Jeff Kenkel, a professor of plastic surgery at UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, stated that loose “overstretched” skin is an common side effect of weight loss surgery. “It’s like letting all of the air out of balloon — it collapses and wrinkles,” he said.

Dr. Jeff Kenkel, a professor of plastic surgery at UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas proclaimed that Mason’s weight loss has left him an estimated “50 pounds of baggy skin around the abdomen — and up to 75 pounds of excess skin overall.”

“Removing the extra skin certainly could help improve Mason’s mobility,” Kenkel said.

Body contouring surgery is an important component in the quest for a healthier body following obesity. Patients who have lost a lot of weight need to factor in the cost and recovery period from having reconstructive surgery to tighten up loose skin. According to a recent study published in the November 2012 issues of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, satisfaction with weight loss starts to wane if patients can’t rid themselves of the extra skin tissue often left behind following major weight loss.

Hygiene issues as well as physical and emotional discomfort can plague patients who succeed at weight loss but fail to follow through and have reconstructive surgery to fix left over flaws. It can be difficult for patients to exercise or even just embrace their new identity if excess skin is left behind have weight loss. Clothes don’t fit properly and patients have a hard time really feeling good about their new image.

It may seem far-fetched, but research has shown that smiling, even when a person is faking it, can make a person feel happier. In contrast, of course, chronic frowning can spur sadness and depression. Nerve signals from the face can actually affect a person’s mood, according to studies. Based on this line of reasoning, scientists are exploring the possibility that Botox might be able to help alleviate one of the causes of depression.

Botox: Frown Line Treatment May Aid Against Depression

Not all patients respond well to anti-depressants such as Prozac or Paxil. Indeed, some anti-depressants cause undesirable side effects that can make patients more uncomfortable than they were before taking the medication. For patients who don’t respond well to anti-depressants, alternative therapies are somewhat scanty. Patients can go to weekly talk-sessions with a therapist or try alternative medicine such as acupuncture to try to get rid of the blues. Finding a new treatment strategy could provide help for a number of depressed patients who aren’t able to find relief from their depression through medication.

The study was performed by Dr. Eric Finzi and a team of researchers from Chevy Chase Cosmetic Center in Maryland. Severely depressed subjects who had been suffering with depression for approximately 2 years without relief using anti-depressants participated in the study. There were 84 participants total and they were divided into randomized groups. One group received the Botox treatment and the other was given a placebo. They were then assessed at three weeks and again at six weeks.

The group that was given Botox showed promising results. About 27 percent of those subjects experienced relief from their depression. In the placebo group, only 7 percent felt better after the treatment. Though scientists are intrigued with the results, more research is needed because it isn’t clear exactly how Botox works on the body. Does it alter the immune system or work purely on a psychological level? Interestingly, in 2011, a different study performed by researchers at the University of Southern California and Duke University showed that Botox not only impairs the physical expression of emotions, but also the perception of emotion in others. People who had been given a Botox treatment were less able to read another person’s emotions. A better understanding of how Botox interferes with emotions could help scientists develop even more effective treatments for depression and perhaps other mood disorders as well.

Growing Trend: Giving Cosmetic and Plastic Surgery as a Gift

Directly before and after the New Year, and during the holiday season, plastic surgeons often see a surge in sales due to the fact that patients may need a “touch up” ask for the gift of plastic surgery. Also, patients who otherwise stick to a strict work routine may be able to find time for recovery from procedures during the holiday vacation season, further driving business for cosmetic practitioners. Everything from Botox to liposuction can be performed and “given” as a gift during the holiday season.

Between Thanksgiving and Christmas, and before the new year rolls around, people like to look their very best. It can also be a time when insecurities about one’s body image can be highlighted, because of symbolism of the new year. More recently, when it comes to holiday gift-giving, non-invasive procedures have become more popular as a “wish list” item. Dermal filler injections and other less invasive procedures are less taboo than a facelift or breast augmentation, which has made cosmetic enhancements grow in popularity as ideal as gifts. Facelift and breast enhancement gift cards, however, are sometimes appropriate and very desirable. Patients may even receive the gift early so that they can use vacation days off from work and reveal their new image before the next year.

Newer trends are showing that just prior to the beginning of the holiday party season, Botox and Juvederm treatments begin to be in higher demand for plastic surgeons across the country. Whereas a decade ago, many patients would simply dye their hair or get a new wardrobe, today people are making more dramatic changes before and during the season in an effort to look their best. Recovery from non-invasive procedures is usually short or non-existent, so patients can usually have the procedure done, leave the office, return to work, and start seeing results almost immediately. Despite the advances and quicker recovery times, cosmetic and plastic surgery procedures should not be completely trivialized, and for surgeons and aesthetic professionals, the consultation process is a very important step to make sure the patient is a fit for the procedure. Patients also need to prepare and schedule adequate time for their treatment and recovery before a big social event is planned to take place just in case bruising or swelling occurs from a treatment.

Though plastic surgery is fast becoming more popular as a present, people still need to make sure they do their research to determine which doctor is the best fit for the patient. Board certified plastic surgeons are a must and surgeons should have plenty of experience performing the treatment that will be given as a “gift”. Patients should feel comfortable with the plastic surgeon and have realistic expectations about what they hope to accomplish through treatment.

How to Keep the Fat Off After Liposuction Procedures

There is currently no technology in place to guarantee “permanent” results of any kind from plastic surgery. That’s because all patients age, and with that comes metabolism changes and shifts in body weight and mass. Though plastic surgery procedures can definitely alter this process and sometimes even turn back the clock, results will still be affected by the passage of time. And liposuction procedures that are meant to help shave off weight gain in areas of the body that tend to be unresponsive to diet and exercise, aren’t ideal for use as a form of long-term weight control. Indeed, if you haven’t been successful at getting your weight into the ideal (or near ideal) range using healthy lifestyle habits, it’s likely that liposuction will produce only temporary results.

A patient’s motivation behind getting liposuction translates into action after the surgery is complete. If the patient desired liposuction in order to lose weight, the odds are good that poor lifestyle habits will continue to cause weight gain, even in the treated area. However, for patients who wish to target fatty deposits that aren’t responding to positive lifestyle habits, the probability is much higher that there will be long-term results from the procedure.

Smart, Safe and Effective Body Contouring

SmartLipo was the first laser lipolysis system of its kind and it was approved by the FDA in November of 2006. Manufactured by Cynosure, Smartlipo systems makes use of high-tech surgical advancements that safely and effectively melt and dissolve fat before removal by liposuction. Here’s how it works: Smartlipo utilizes a revolutionary process that liquefies fat cells using sophisticated lasers. The lasers coagulate the blood in vessels, and simultaneously tighten the skin in the targeted area. SmartLipo, SmartLipo MPX, and SmartLipo Triplex are first, second, and third generation technologies that all aim to produce ever more refined results through the addition of additional wavelengths of energy.

Another big factor in increasing the safety and outcomes for patients is that only local anesthetic is required for Smartlipo™,   Smartlipo MPX™, and Smartlipo Triplex™ so patients remain awake throughout procedure. The use of lasers also help reduce side effects, bleeding, bruising, swelling – significantly diminishing the down-time normally associated with traditional liposuction. The multiple enhanced safety aspects have contributed greatly to the popularity of the procedure. In addition, experienced surgeons can now achieve high definition results with Smartlipo devices, which allow for better sculpting on nearly any area of the body.

More than 74K prospective patients search for Smart lipo terms per month. The improved safety and effectiveness of Smartlipo increased searches and awareness in the public eye, driving volumes of prospective patients to https://www.smartlipo.com to get more information about this evolved “lipo” technique.

Sarah and Poppy Burge: Image Courtesy Frugal-Cafe.com

Burge, now 51, is not only an advocate for cosmetic surgery, but also an addict, and with three daughters now aged 8, 18, and 27, to whom she is passing along her obsession with personal appearances. It is no surprise that Poppy appeared in the United States this year on the beauty pageant circuit, and mom is proud.  Burge was quoted in saying this in response to sharing her holiday news with the media,  “Everyone has their own budget, but we are in a culture where we give so much at Christmas and that equates having things with happiness, and it is our role as parents to teach children about the society we are living in … a recent Girl Guides survey questioned girls aged 10-17 about their happiness levels and the results were astonishingly low.”

Cankles Be Gone (Image Courtesy: Funnytheworld.com)

Luckily, women who have cankles have new options available as a result of advances in laser-assisted plastic surgery. Liposuction or liposculpting surgery is now available to treat the ankles, offering new hope to women everywhere. The procedure is relatively simple, effective, and safe. Women can be in and out of the office in only about one hour to treat “cankles” using liposuction. The procedure can be performed on an outpatient basis because only local anesthetic is required making it accessible to the masses. Women come into the office with cankles and then leave with ankles that will have a respectable ankle circumference after a short recovery period.

New Conical Implants In UK (Photo Courtesy: HumanChorus.org)

PR-Inside.com posted the information about the new form of breast implant used by the UK group. They report that the company of plastic surgery clinics performs more operations with conical implants than any other in the country. They note that patients and surgeons are satisfied with the implants’ look and feel.

Mike Mazza, CEO of Harley Street Plastic Surgery, and James Frame, medical director, prefer the conical implant for its shape being comparable to a natural breast. They describe it as filling the breast while giving lift, which is a positive for patients that have sagging breasts after childbirth.

One of the drawbacks of conical implants is the requirement of specialists to perform the operation. This is made all the more important when you consider having a qualified (board-certified) surgeon to perform the procedure. On the upside, conical implants require a less invasive augmentation operation. It is recommended to have a consultation with the surgical team to learn more about the treatment.

Canada.com published the article about Stronach, a former Member of Parliament or MP and Magna International CEO, and her journey for a treatment to have mastectomy and breast reconstruction in one procedure.  She had the operation in Los Angeles, quite a distance from Canada, due to breast reconstruction limitations.

Belinda Stronach Discussed Reconstructive Surgery on Canada.com

“It was quite different than any other option that I was given in Canada,” she said. “It meant I could have the reconstruction at the same time, and important to me was I could keep my nipple.”

In Canada, more than 23,000 were diagnoses with breast cancer in 2011. Though fewer are dying from the disease—the five-year survival rate is around 88 percent—because of advance treatments and improved screening, the Canadian Cancer Society estimates that one out of every nine women is expected to have a breast cancer diagnosis.

Common treatments for breast cancer include chemo therapy, radiation therapy, lumpectomy (removal of a portion of the breast) and mastectomy (complete removal of the breast and possibly the chest muscle and lymph nodes). Breast reconstruction is a treatment that is not as well known or discussed with patients; only 945 women of 24,735 that had mastectomies had an immediate reconstruction. About 1,719 had a delayed reconstruction.

Stronach decided on a lumpectomy to remove the tumor and surrounding tissue. The mass is then examined for cancer cells to make sure no cancer cells reside in the tissue—otherwise known as the margins. More tissue has to be removed if margins have cancer cells.

There were cancer cells in Stronach’s margins, and she decided on a mastectomy but did not want to part with her nipple. “I wasn’t really excited about that option,” she said. “I just felt that . . . why do you have to remove my nipple if the cancer isn’t in it?”

Her radiation oncologist told her about plastic surgeon Dr. Randy Sherman of Cedars Sinai Medical Center that could help her keep her nipple and surrounding skin via a single-stage mastectomy and reconstruction procedure. Because it is a somewhat new operation, the long-term safety is unknown, especially because the chances for cancer to appear in the nipple are a concern—though short-term studies are favorable.