COSMETIC SURGERY EXPLAINED

Cosmetic surgery - often referred to as plastic surgery - is a surgical procedure to enhance the appearance. Most times when the procedure involves the alteration or function of a person's body, this is called plastic surgery. Sometimes these procedures are called "reconstructive" and these tend to be for cases of malformity or for instance where someone has suffered serious and traumatic injury arising from a fire or a motor accident.

The expression "plastic" comes from the Greek word plastiko, which means moulding or to shape and it is important to understand that it has no association with the modern-day material of the same name which is a common misconception.

There are a number of techniques used in plastic surgery an d these include: excision, incision, electrosurgery, chemosurgery, laser surgery, dermabrasion and a more recent addition, liposuction. A skilled cosmetic surgeon will achieve the best results if the plastic surgery is undertaken by carefully planning the incisions in order that they are positioned in the natural folds or lines in the skin and using fine sutures. The recovery is assisted by the early removal of sutures so that wounds are then held together during the healing process by sutures that lie beneath the skin.

Reconstructive plastic surgery generally involves the treatment of defects arising from disease or serious injury. Whereas constructive plastic surgery is commonly associated with inherent defects. Alternatively, anaplastic surgery is for dysfunctional appearance.

If you are looking for information about cosmetic surgery, the following links may also be of interest to you:

Plastic surgery dates back as early pas the eighth century BC when physicians in ancient India were using skin grafts for reconstructive work. We also know that the Romans were able to carry out simple plastic surgery operations such as repairing damaged ears around the first century BC. It was not until the late nineteenth 19th and early twentieth century that plastic surgery became more commonplace. Until the use anaesthesia became possible, the surgery involved great pain and most patients had to resort to alcohol and biting on leather straps to cope with the pain. Post-operative infection was commonplace until sterile techniques were developed and disinfectants were being used in earnest. The quantum leap forward in terms of patient recovery without difficulties came into being with the invention and use of antibiotics. Initially with the use sulphur compounds drugs and then the introduction of penicillin.

The most common reconstructive surgical operations are as follows: breast reconstruction of the breast following mastectomy, palate and cleft lip surgery, contracture surgery for people who have suffered severe skin burns.

In recent years, plastic surgeons have begin using microsurgery to transfer tissue to cover a defect and tissue flaps comprising skin, bone, muscle, fat or a combination of all three, may be taken from other areas of the patient's body and transferred to the area that needs reconstruction, whereupon connection to the blood supply is achieved by suturing veins and arteries that can be as small as one or two millimetres in diameter.

There are a number of different types of plastic or cosmetic surgery and the most common are as follows:

Abdominoplasty more commonly known as the "tummy tuck" involves the reshaping and firming of the abdomen by removing excess skin;

Augmentation Mammaplasty or otherwise referred to as breast augmentation or breast enlargement. Colloquially it is often referred to as a "boob job". This involves the enlargement of the woman's usually with either silicone gel implants or saline;

Umbilicoplasty otherwise known as "belly button surgery" is the reshaping the patient's belly button;

Buttock Augmentation can also be called butt augmentation or even butt implants and involves the enlargement of the buttocks. by using silicone implants or fat grafting and transfer from other parts of the patient's body;

Labiaplasty is the surgical reduction or reshaping of the labia;

Blepharoplasty or "eyelid surgery" involves the reshaping of the eyelids;

Otoplasty is ear surgery and is for reshaping the ear;

Rhytidectomy more commonly known as a "face lift" is used to remove wrinkles and visible signs of aging and sagging from the face;

Chemical peel involves reducing acne, pock marks and other scars. It can also be used to good effect to enhance a face that has suffered sun damage (age spots), including wrinkles. the chemical peel usually involves the use of carbolic acid, trichloroacetic acid, glycolic acid or salicylic acid to remove the upper layers of skin.

Suction-assisted Lipectomy, otherwise known as liposuction (often misspelt as lipsuction or liposucktion) is the removal of unwanted fat from the patient's body;

Rhinoplasty, otherwise known as a "nose job" is the reshaping or reduction of the nose;

Chin augmentation involves improving the appearance of the chin with a silicone implant

Try searching on the Internet for "cosmetic surgery" and you will be amazed just how many pages are on offer. Try it for yourself by hitting the search button below!

N.B. The views expressed in this article and all other comments on this page should be independently validated and Fetcher Limited does not accept any responsibility whatsoever for the accuracy or otherwise of the information provided. The contents do not constitute specific advice or guidance and should be viewed merely as an additional resource from which you can form your own opinion and draw your personal conclusions on the subject matter.