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atlanta breast augmentation

Is a Mommy Makeover Right for Me?

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As a board-certified plastic surgeon, part of what makes my job so enjoyable is being able to work with such a wide variety of patients. From patients who are experiencing the unwelcomed effects of aging, to those who have always felt insecure and unhappy with their appearance, plastic surgery can help many kinds of people to improve their self-confidence. One of the most common types of patients that I work with, however, is women who have had one or more children and want to return to their pre-pregnancy figure. Pregnancy, childbirth, and breastfeeding have a profound effect on many areas of a woman’s body, and a common solution is to combine multiple procedures into one comprehensive surgery, called a mommy makeover. To help guide patients who are deciding whether or not a mommy makeover is what they’re looking for, I’ve compiled a few questions for patients to ask themselves when considering this procedure.

Do you want to see improvement in multiple areas of your body?
A mommy makeover is different for every patient, but it simply refers to combining a cluster of procedures that intend to help a woman counteract the ways that pregnancy has changed her body. Most women benefit from the combination of a breast procedure, a tummy tuck, and liposuction. Because every woman’s body responds differently to pregnancy and/or breastfeeding, some women desire a breast augmentation to restore volume that has been lost, while others are left with enlarged breasts and prefer a breast reduction, but most women need a breast lift in order to restore a more youthful shape and position, which can be combined with an augmentation or reduction as well. While a tummy tuck can serve multiple purposes by removing excess fat and loose skin in the midsection as well as tightening the stretched abdominal muscles, liposuction is used for areas that only need fat removal, such as the hips or thighs. For patients who would like to see results in more than one area of the body, a mommy makeover can be a more satisfying choice.

Would you benefit from minimized recovery time and surgical costs?
By combining multiple cosmetic procedures into one surgery, a mommy makeover provides several bonus benefits to the patient. First, the recovery time is minimized. While it’s true that it often takes patients longer to recovery from a mommy makeover rather than a simpler procedure, like a tummy  tuck alone, the total recovery time for three procedures is lowered dramatically when everything is done in one surgery, as illustrated by the graphic below.

Mommy makeover atlanta alpharetta georgia

A mommy makeover can also significantly lower costs. The total price of plastic surgery includes a number of different costs, from surgeon’s fees and the anesthesia to the surgical facility to the medications used. By only using the surgical facility and anesthesia once, having one longer surgery as opposed to three more brief procedures can lower several of these costs.

Are you planning to have more children?
Understandably, many women are eager to return to their pre-pregnancy figure as soon as possible. However, I always recommend that patients wait until they are finished having children before pursuing a mommy makeover surgery. While plastic surgery can help to remedy the effects of pregnancy, it cannot prevent the same effects from occurring after future pregnancies, so patients can find themselves experiencing the same aesthetic concerns after having another child. The patients who will see longer-lasting and more satisfactory surgical results are those who wait until they’re ready to stop having children.

Has your body not returned to what it once was despite being in good physical health?
While many women do have added fat to lose after pregnancy, “losing the baby weight” is not always that simple. While diet and exercise can help new mothers maintain or return to a healthy weight, pregnancy can also cause loose skin and stretched muscles that cannot be resolved with a healthy lifestyle. As we continue to see women waiting until later years to have children, this is especially true for more mature mothers, as aging has made their bodies less able to “bounce back” than the bodies of younger mothers. Candidates for mommy makeover surgery should be in good health and should be seeking plastic surgery to improve the effects of motherhood that have been resistant to diet and exercise, rather than to take the place of a healthy lifestyle.

Pregnancy, childbirth and motherhood require a lot from a woman’s body, and they should be a source of pride. However, we live in an age where women can be mothers without having to give up their career, their interests, or their social lives, and thanks to cosmetic procedures like the mommy makeover, mothers don’t need to give up their figure either. To start setting up a plan to restore your body’s pre-pregnancy youth, schedule a consultation with me, Dr. Franklyn Elliott, and join me on Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ in the meantime to start learning more about the procedures I offer.

Fat Transfer for Breast Enhancement

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One of the most exciting developments in breast enhancement is fat transfer. In this technique, liposuction first removes some excess, unwanted fat from a desired part of the body – usually the abdomen or thighs. The removed fat is purified, and then is injected into the patient’s breasts. Fat transfer can be used either as a stand-alone breast augmentation procedure, or as a way to enhance the results of breast reconstruction. There are many reasons why fat transfer can be a successful option for many women if performed in the appropriate setting, but as a board certified plastic surgeon, I also want to caution patients about a few misconceptions about the procedure.

breast-reduction-atlanta-georgiaAdvantage: Fat transfer is a very simple way to enhance the breasts. The injections can be done using local anesthetic, so this procedure is minimally-invasive and carries less risk of an infection, simply because it minimizes the incisions that would otherwise be larger if implants were used to increase the breast size.

Advantage: Fat transfer may provide smoother, natural-looking results. Because the added tissue is soft and free-moving, rather than inside a flexible yet round shape, it seamlessly adds volume to create an especially natural-looking result.

However, fat transfer provides a more mild augmentation than implants do. While fat transfer patients, like breast implant patients, can choose how significant they would like their size change to be, fat transfer simply has a more limited augmentation potential than implants do. In addition, it isn’t possible to know how much of the injected fat will ultimately survive and how much will be reabsorbed, so there may be a higher risk of breast asymmetry. Fat transfer is ideal for women who are looking for a natural, subtle breast enhancement, while implants are typically preferable for women who are seeking a more substantial size increase.

Advantage: Fat transfer combines two cosmetic enhancements in one: removing excess fat and adding breast volume. By using the patient’s own fat to augment her breasts, the fat transfer procedure serves two cosmetic purposes at once. For many women, combining the procedures can diminish the total recovery time, compared to having two separate procedures for liposuction and breast augmentation using implants.

However, this procedure should not be used for quick weight loss. Some patients who are in the process of losing weight feel that this procedure would be a good way to kick-start their results. But in order to provide the best possible plastic surgery results, I encourage patients to reach a stable weight before undergoing any plastic surgery procedure. Fat transfer is more ideal for patients who have reached a healthy, stable weight, but have stubborn pockets of fat that are not responding to healthy diet and exercise.

The fat transfer technique can be a great way for breast augmentation and breast reconstruction patients to have more natural-looking, safer results. But just as with any cosmetic procedure, patients need to be cautious about who they allow to perform the procedure, and about having realistic and accurate expectations for their results. Fortunately, both of these concerns can be resolved simply by doing your research. To start the process toward being more comfortable with your appearance, contact me, Dr. Franklyn Elliott, to schedule a consultation and join me on Facebook, Twitter, or Google+ for daily updates about the procedures I offer.

After Breast Surgery

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Many patients are diligent about preparing for breast surgery: they research their options, research their surgeon, schedule consultations, and follow preparation instructions to the letter. But often patients look at the procedure itself as the “finish line” and don’t give much thought to what happens after the procedure. Whether you’re having breast reconstruction, breast augmentation, or breast reduction, it’s important to have realistic expectations for your surgical results and the recovery period, so I’ve simplified the information and provided a quick guide of what you need to know about recovering from breast surgery.

Breast reconstruction surgery recovery informationWhat to expect after breast augmentation
Recovering from breast augmentation surgery is generally manageable. I’ve found that within 3-4 days after the procedure, most patients can comfortably perform about 80% of their usual day-to-day activities. As many patients would expect, the last piece of recovery is typically the ability to perform physical exercise. While I encourage most patients to begin taking walks for exercise around 1 week after their surgery, most women are not ready for higher-impact activities (such as jogging or running) until between 3 weeks and 6 weeks post-surgery.

The risk of complications from a breast augmentation is very low, but it is still important to be aware of the risks so that you can identify if there is a concern. One potential complication is called capsular contracture. Any time there is a foreign object in the body, our bodies build a scar capsule around it. Capsular contracture occurs when this scar capsule hardens and gives the breast an unnaturally firm feel. Another complication to look for is implant malposition, in which the implant shifts out of position.

What to expect after breast reduction
After breast reduction surgery, most patients can expect to be returning to work and performing most of their day-to-day activities within 1-2 weeks post-surgery. However, patients are typically advised to minimize physical activity for 2-4 weeks, and may also be instructed to wear surgical bras (specially designed bras for post-breast reduction patients) for about a month after the procedure.

Many patients ask whether a reduced ability to breastfeed may be a complication of breast reduction surgery (as well as breast augmentation surgery), but breastfeeding issues occur in a very small percentage of breast surgery patients. It’s also important to keep in mind that breast fluctuations that accompany pregnancy and breastfeeding can affect the longevity of your surgical results.

What to expect after breast reconstruction
Breast reconstruction after mastectomy is a highly varied procedure because patients’ needs differ widely. For example, some patients require a full reconstruction of one breast or both breasts, while others simply require partial reconstruction of a breast that has been deformed due to a lumpectomy. Even among patients who require similar reconstructions, there are numerous options regarding what type of tissue or implant is used and how exactly the procedure is performed. These varied procedural techniques can significantly vary the recovery expectations (healing can take anywhere from 2 weeks to 8 weeks), so it is vital to discuss your options in your consultation and to understand the differences between the procedure before making your decision.

Breast revision surgery
No matter how well-planned and well-orchestrated a breast surgery is, there is always the possibility of needing future revisions. Breast revision surgery may be performed to rectify complications that have arisen after the initial surgery, such as ruptured implants, capsular contracture, or implant malposition after a breast augmentation, or future fluctuations in breast size after breast reduction. Or, some women simply choose to have their breasts adjusted. Many factors can cause a patient to desire a breast revision, from experiencing changes to her results due to pregnancy or weight fluctuations, to simply a changing opinion on what type of breasts best compliment her body.

For any breast surgery patient, it is important to have the appropriate balance of preparing for all the possibilities involved in recovery and reminding oneself that recovery is likely to go very smoothly so you can soon be enjoying breasts that are better aligned with your body and your self-image. The best way to ensure a successful surgery and recovery is to work with a highly-qualified plastic surgeon. While this is a rather simple procedure, it is sometimes offered by doctors who are not qualified. Before any cosmetic procedure, it is vital to ensure that it will be performed by a Board-Certified Plastic Surgeon who has admitting privileges at a reputable hospital in the case of any complications. To take the first step toward your breast surgery, schedule an appointment or join me, board-certified Atlanta plastic surgeon Dr. Franklyn Elliott, on Facebook, Twitter, and Google+.

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