| Being a surgeon, like
being a musician, involves sitting down every day to practice, to come to a new
interpretation of an old work, to discover something not recognized before, to learn and
to grow. The practice of plastic surgery is an ongoing one. Procedures evolve with new techniques, innovations and knowledge influencing the choices available to patients and the procedures offered by the surgeon. For example, sanding of the skin, to smooth scars and irregularities was once done by – sanding – actually using a sand paper, then using a diamond dust drill bit. New approaches 20 or more years ago added the use of chemical agents to burn the skin, smoothing away irregularities. Today, laser is the tool of choice. In all cases, the end is the same, smoothing the skin to give it a more pleasant appearance. Sandpaper to diamond drills to acid peels to focused light, laser. In another example, body sculpting once involved making large incisions in the area to be treated – buttocks, abdomen, thighs, and then skin and fat were undermined widely and cut out. Liposuction, introduced less than 10 years ago in the US became a more aesthetically pleasing means of sculpting – the scars a re minimal and pain is less. The newest refinement uses sound waves – ultrasound, to blast open the fat cells which can then be more completely sucked out. In reconstruction, the most ancient tool (over 400 years old) is the use of skin grafts. Today, research on the growth of new skin in the lab, making in available for burns, patients with non-healing ulcers, or other conditions where skin needs to be replaced is available, and may soon be available in prepackaged form just like Band-Aids are today. The use of investigative and innovative techniques permits the choice of the best approach for the individual patient’s unique problem. On a daily basis, this variety of choices prevents stagnation, eliminates the risk of boredom and assures all involved that the day will be interesting, challenging and produce the best possible results. |
3 case studies We urge those people who are interested in knowing more about the particular case studies below to click on the image and go to a page devoted to that case. We do warn everyone that the photographs in each section are graphic and explicit. Please make sure that you do want to see them. Case Study I : The Cleft Palate 
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