NYC Plastic Surgery Blog

Botox Used to Treat Post Operative Pain in Breast Reconstruction

August 31st, 2010 by newseditor

Botox may be useful for reducing post-operative pain after breast reconstruction surgery, according to plastic surgeon Allen Gabriel M.D., who discussed the procedure at the recent meeting of the International Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery.

The doctor conducted a 30-patient clinical trial for this off-label application, demonstrating that botulinum toxin type A can help physicians address post-operative pain of breast reconstruction.

A temporary tissue expander is often used during breast reconstruction, which is placed between layers of the chest muscle and filled with water to create a pocket for the breast implant. Pain can result from muscle contractions and spasms in response to the gradual tissue expansion.

Dr. Gabriel, along with his collaborator Dr. G. Patrick Maxwell, theorized that Botox injections could offer relief by temporarily paralyzing the muscle so that fewer spasms occur, thereby reducing pain and discomfort.

They designed a clinical trial with 30 breast cancer patients, who all planned a mastectomy and subsequent silicone implant breast reconstruction. They were divided into 2 groups: one received Botox injections in the chest muscle and the other received injections of saline solution as a placebo.

After reconstructive surgery, the women who received the Botox injections were reportedly more comfortable than those who received placebo. The doctors measured patient responses 3 times during and after the procedure, noting that during days 7 to 45 of the recovery period, those that received Botox injections used significantly fewer doses of narcotics and muscle relaxants.

New York Law Aims to Improve Care for Breast Reconstruction Patients

August 30th, 2010 by newseditor

A new law recently signed by the Governor of New York aims to improve the information that breast cancer patients receive about reconstructive surgery and how it may be financed.

An unfortunate reality is that many patients don’t undergo breast reconstruction because they’re not educated about their options and not aware about universal health insurance coverage for the procedure. Under the new law, hospital physicians are required to have a discussion of breast reconstruction options with each patient, thereby increasing the number who choose the surgery (improving quality of life).

There appears to be a stark contrast in resources between breast reconstruction patients of different backgrounds. Evidently, some are making decisions about treatment with a relative lack of information, while others are independently seeking out advanced microsurgical procedures.

According to a recent study in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, a growing number of breast cancer patients are using the Internet to find a reconstructive surgeon on their own, and many are choosing advanced microsurgical breast reconstruction procedures.

Tags: breast reconstruction, ny law
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Liposuction, Breast Augmentation International Plastic Surgery Favorites

August 13th, 2010 by editor2

Liposuction and breast augmentation were the most popular plastic surgery procedures performed worldwide in 2009, according to statistics released by the International Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ISAPS), with more than one million each performed by plastic surgeons.

Blepharoplasty, or eyelid surgery, was the third most popular plastic surgery procedure internationally, also breaking the one million mark according to survey results. Rounding out the top most popular procedures were rhinoplasty, abdominoplasty, or tummy tuck, and breast reduction, which were each performed on more than half a million patients across the globe in 2009.

It is not surprising that patients seek these body contouring and facial plastic surgery procedures above all others regardless of their nationality, as problems like stubborn fat deposits, loose abdominal skin, small breasts, drooping eyelids and nasal imperfections are truly universal and occur as a natural result of aging in men and women in every part of the world.

Patients in the U.S. were most likely to undergo plastic surgery last year, and U.S. plastic surgeons performed more than 15 percent of the world’s surgical procedures. More than one million patients sought surgical procedures in not only the U.S., but also in China and Brazil, however the U.S. ranked first for total procedures performed by plastic surgeons in 2009 with 1.3 million.

India and Mexico ranked fourth and fifth, respectively, however plastic surgeons in each of these countries performed more than half a million fewer procedures than plastic surgeons in third-ranked Brazil.

Unlike plastic surgeons in most other countries, U.S. plastic surgeons performed more non-surgical procedures than surgical procedures in 2009, including Botox and Dysport injections, laser hair removal, Juvederm and Restylane injections and vein treatments.

Wrinkle-relaxing injections with Botox and Dysport, as well as hyaluronic acid filler injections were the most popular non-surgical procedures administered internationally by plastic surgeons last year, but other injectables, including Radiesse, Sculptra and collagen products were not as popular.

This statistical data was collected from surveys sent to more than 30,000 plastic surgeons in 25 countries by the ISAPS organization.

Tags: statistics
Posted in Body surgery, Breast surgery, Facial plastic surgery, In the Media | No Comments »