Plastic Surgery Gone Wrong - Dangers of Poor Plastic Surgery
The demand for plastic surgery continues to annually rise. The American Society of Plastic Surgeons publishes the itemized listing of all procedures done on a yearly basis. Again, 2013 saw an increase in total cosmetic procedures performed totaling 15.1 million operations.
Although plastic surgery has an extremely high success rate, in comparison to other surgical procedures, there are still horrible instances of plastic surgery gone wrong. Looking at industry statistics, we can ascertain higher risk procedures and potentially educate the public on the potential causes of failure.
All of us have seen horrible pictures of bad plastic surgery procedures. A general internet search can produce thousands of photographs of unrecognizable before and after photographs. Chances are that we may know of someone who has had a procedure that went horribly wrong.
The landscape is littered with many real life examples of plastic surgery gone wrong (You can find more examples of bad plastic surgery at this blog Plasticsurgerytalks.com). These individuals are instantly recognizable and forced to live the remainder of their lives in a poorly altered state.
Picking the right surgeon
Ethics and good judgment play just as important role as surgical skill sets. Plastic surgery is a multi-billion dollar per year business and physicians need to shoulder a certain degree of responsibility. Perform due diligence and research the available surgeons/physicians in your area.
If plastic surgery becomes a possibility for you, start with some guidelines for your plastic surgeon. Always pick a surgeon who is board certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery. This is the only plastic surgery review board that is recognized by the American Medical Association.
Always ask your potential surgeon which types of medicine they hold certifications in. You can then cross reference these certifications on the American Board of Specialties website. Any medical doctor can claim to be a surgeon so checking and rechecking with all available options is the best way to eliminate a bad decision.
You should also make certain that your potential physician has the ability to operate in a hospital. Many plastic surgeries are done in smaller professional offices. This is quite common and has become the normal operating platform for nearly 2/3 of all plastic surgeries performed. Your physician should still maintain ‘hospital credentials’ and if they have none, there may be justifiable cause for concern.
If the procedure is to be performed in a private space, make sure the facility is accredited. It is also imperative that registered nurses are on staff and that an anesthesiologist is on hand in case anything goes wrong.
Common areas where plastic surgery goes wrong
The highest failure rate resides in breast augmentation surgery. Though not truly measurable, it is believed that the failure rate in breast augmentation surgery could exceed 20%. Improved over time, breast augmentation surgery and breast reconstructive surgery still possess a higher failure rate than all other cosmetic surgery.
With the numerous cases and visual examples of failed breast augmentation surgery, people are considerably more resigned to keep what God gave them.
However, the total numbers of plastic surgeries increased from the 2012 reporting.
This increase can be allotted to the shift in types of surgeries performed. Due to the ever decreasing cost, many are opting to improve facial features. Invasive surgeries such as decreasing excess skin, lifting of cheek bones, and facial injections to eliminate wrinkles are propelling the industry today.
These procedures contain risk, as with any procedure, and when these plastic surgeries go wrong it is noticed by all. A patient cannot simply cover the ill-effects of poor facial surgeries like they are able to with breast and buttock augmentation. They are highly visible procedures that when performed wrong endured for the rest of their lives.
Rhinoplasty or nose augmentation
Nose reshaping is one of the most difficult cosmetic surgeries available. When rhinoplasty goes wrong, it goes wrong in a major, permanent way. Performed by a highly skilled surgeon, primary rhinoplasty is typically very successful.
In general, a first time rhinoplasty (or primary rhinoplasty) is far less risky, particularly in the hands of an experienced rhinoplasty surgeon. Secondary, or revision rhinoplasty, in which the tissues have been previously damaged by prior surgery, is always associated with increased risk.
In addition to pre-existing inflammation from prior surgery, revision rhinoplasty must also overcome increased scarring, diminished blood supply, reduced skin elasticity, and damaged or missing skeletal elements.
Here is a perfect example of plastic surgery gone wrong. The initial surgery, though performed correctly, does not produce the desired results for the patient. Now the patient seeks further consultation through a different spectrum of plastic surgeons, and soon fall victim to their own demise. What occurs is a doctor believing they can increase patient satisfaction and multiple surgeries are performed. The problems, now compounded, become too much for a successful outcome and the nose becomes forever damaged beyond repair.
Cosmetic surgery addiction
The horrific pictures that plague the internet of plastic surgeries gone bad almost always have a certain degree of patient addiction involved. Plastic surgery addiction is a recognized medical condition that is categorized as behavioral or process addiction. In these addictions, a patient becomes addicted to a process regardless of the consequences or negative outcome. A mental obsession to alter their bodies and faces overpowers any rational thought about consequence or potential danger.
This is specifically where plastic surgeons shoulder the responsibility to stop this dangerous behavior. The multitude of tragic photos could be greatly reduced by ethical physicians declining to perform procedures they know to be of high risk. Surgeons should always have upmost concern for patient care. Surgeries continue to be performed where physicians know little chance for improvement exists.
A proper time and place
Plastic surgeries improve the lives of many people with functional abnormalities. Patients who have been severely injured or burned can find an enormous degree of normalcy after reconstructive surgery. Aesthetic plastic surgery can completely change an individual’s self confidence and provide an avenue to improve an unsightly facet of their facial features.
Done in moderation with exceptional physician care, plastic surgery is a tremendous option to improve one’s life. However, there remains a fine line that should always be considered. Crossing over this line is one of the fastest ways to know firsthand what occurs when plastic surgery goes wrong.
