Plastic Surgery Restores Confidence After Trauma

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Plastic Surgery Restores Confidence After Trauma

Plastic surgery is commonly seen as a superficial industry that focuses on vain cosmetic enhancements. However, the men and women in this profession are improving the quality of life for patients who have suffered from serious wounds, traumatic accidents, and devastating diagnoses. Plastic surgery procedures restore a person’s confidence and reshape a patient’s view of the world following a tragedy.

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Skin grafts

Burn patients and other accident victims typically seek plastic surgeons to undergo skin grafts. This procedure takes skin from a healthy area of the body to replace damaged skin in another area. Depending on the case, doctors will transplant just a few layers of skin with a split-thickness graft or all of the skin layers with a full-thickness graft. The damaged skin is surgically removed before adding the new, healthy layers.

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Animal bites

Millions of people get bitten by dogs every year. While it’s usually not an issue, these accidents can be serious and lead to cosmetic surgery procedures. Facial dog bites are one of the most common causes for plastic surgery following an animal bite. Children are especially at risk because of their height and their interactions with the animals. At a young age, kids don’t always understand how to interact with dogs. Their behavior can provoke aggression in the animals. Plastic surgeons work to reconstruct the victims’ face and minimize the damage.

Dogs are not the only animals that bite humans and lead to reconstructive surgery. Brown Recluse spider bites can cause serious wounds. Rodent bites can leave major gashes and tears. Shark bites, snake bites and scorpion stings are rare but very serious. Even cats can cause serious cosmetic damage.

Cancer

A cancer diagnosis is devastating for patients and their families. As they fight through that illness, recovery is their only thought. Once a person is free of cancer, however, he or she wants to regain normalcy. Plastic surgery is a great way for cancer survivors to move forward after treatment. Procedures are typically reconstructive, following surgery to remove the cancer. Breast implants are common after mastectomies. In men, penile and testicular implants help them regain confidence after testicular cancer. When nerves or skin tissue are removed because of head, neck or skin cancer, a plastic surgeon can replace them. For example, tissue from the abdomen or thigh can be reapplied to reconstruct the patient’s throat. These surgeries are typically free flap procedures, which means muscle and skin are transferred with the original blood supply from the donor site.

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Weight loss

While weight loss is a cause for celebration, not a tragedy, it’s still a medical reason to seek plastic surgery. After significant weight loss, patients often choose to undergo surgical body contouring. These procedures remove excess skin and enhance the shape of supporting tissue. Weight loss burns fat and builds muscles, but it doesn’t get rid of sagging skin. Not only are these folds of skin unsightly, but they’re also a heavy weight to carry around. Body contouring plastic surgery procedures include facelifts, breast lifts, tummy tucks, lower body lifts, arm lifts, thigh lifts and basically anywhere on your body where there’s excess, sagging skin. Make sure your weight is table before considering plastic surgery after dramatic weight loss. The skin will stretch again if you gain all the weight back. Experts recommend waiting at least six months with a stable weight before meeting with a plastic surgeon.

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