Cosmetic Surgery Center, Dallas | Dr. Rai

China is feeling the current recession and one aspect of it is increased competition for jobs. Chinese government officials have estimated that about 6.1 million students will be graduating from colleges and vocational schools, which is nine percent more than last year. The prediction is that about a quarter of them will find no job this year.

Many young graduates are turning to plastic surgery to give themselves a potential advantage in job searches. Although Chinese law forbids hiring based on race, gender and religion, it does not forbid hiring based on height, weight and prettiness. Some job listings specify things like:

• Must be taller than 5’ 2.5”
• Must have acceptable facial features
• Must have symmetrical breasts
• Must enjoy smoking and drinking wine
  

The Shanghai Time Plastic Surgery Hospital, with a team of ten plastic surgeons, has been doing up to 100 procedures each day, which is 40 percent more than last year. A survey of their patients revealed that about half of them were having the surgeries to help them in their job search. Most were women.

Social Preference for Tallness

Apparently there is a preference in Chinese culture for a certain minimum height. Below that, the person looks unhealthy and weak, as if they would be unable to handle a heavy workload. So some have had a leg-lengthening procedure done, where the plastic surgeon breaks each leg and inserts a steel pin in each one. This can add three inches or so to the person’s height.

However, it is a risky surgery. Infection is always a potential risk of surgery and a bone infection can be very painful. It could also have severe consequences.

• The bacteria causing the infection could damage the blood supply to the bone and thus prevent any antibiotics from reaching the infection site
• The infection could weaken the bone’s structural integrity and it could later break at any time just from weight-bearing
  

Leg-lengthening surgery is not available in the U.S. At The Cosmetic Surgical Center we offer many other safer plastic surgeries, such as the ever-popular liposuction and breast augmentation surgeries. We cannot make you taller, but we can re-contour your body shape to some extent. For example, if you have a pear-shaped body, we can correct the fat distribution but not the bone structure.

To learn more about available cosmetic surgeries, please contact plastic surgeon Dr. Rai for a free personal consultation.

The statistics compiled for 2008 by the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ASAPS) show breast augmentation as the most popular cosmetic surgery. This is the first time liposuction has not been at the top of the list.

It seems that American women have a lot of confidence now in both saline and silicone gel implants. They both give excellent results and the most important factor in this choice is the patient’s knowledge of the advantages and disadvantages of each type of implant.

During the 14 years that the FDA restricted use of silicone gel implants to reconstruction only, barring them from cosmetic use, women had only one choice of implant and that was saline. Now they have two choices and that has boosted the popularity of breast augmentation nationwide.

Comparison of Saline and Silicone Gel Implants

• Ruptures in both types of implant are unlikely. However, a rupture in a saline implant is immediately noticeable because the saline solution leaks out quickly and is absorbed by the body easily. A rupture in a silicone gel implant may not be noticed unless you have an examination by your cosmetic surgeon or an MRI. That is because the silicone gel stays where it is, in one piece, and does not run out like saline solution.
• Saline implants more often show ripples. If there is adequate breast tissue covering them, the ripples will be less visible than in a thin woman with less breast tissue.
• Saline implants are inserted empty and then filled as desired whereas silicone implants come pre-filled in a range of sizes. This means that incisions for silicone implants must be longer than for saline implants.
• Many people consider silicone implants to look and feel more natural than saline implants. Saline implants seem more like a water balloon.
  

The choice between saline and silicone gel implants is a personal one and depends on your lifestyle, your body build, your cosmetic desires and goals, and on your cosmetic surgeons recommendations for you. Whichever type you choose, you will be safe and if you make an educated choice you will almost certainly be pleased with your new appearance.

At the Cosmetic Surgical Center we offer both saline and silicone gel implants and we do place a high value on patient education. There are more choices to be made than just which type of implant. Please see Breast Implant Frequently Asked Questions for more details.

If you would like to schedule a free consultation about possibly having a breast augmentation surgery, please contact our cosmetic surgery office today.

Insurance companies generally regard breast reduction as a cosmetic surgery and therefore will not cover it. It certainly may give a cosmetic enhancement to your body proportions. But that does not mean it won’t also relieve pain and save you from

• Back problems
• Skin irritation
• Nerve damage, and
• Breathing problems,
  

to name just some of the problems caused by over-large breasts.

Even when a cosmetic surgeon can successfully show that significant health benefits will flow from a breast reduction, most insurance companies still apply limitations. If less than 500 grams of tissue are removed from each breast, they will not cover the surgery.

The mistake there is to look at the number of grams in isolation from other factors such as the woman’s frame size. For the same health benefits, a smaller woman will generally need less tissue removed than a larger woman. It’s a matter of each woman’s body proportions, not their absolute size. Many companies claim that smaller women want breast reduction for cosmetic reasons, and that relieves the companies from having to pay out anything (always a high priority for insurance companies).

ASPS Study

In 2006 a study was done by the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) called Reduction Mammoplasty: A Review of Managed Care Medical Policy Criteria. The researchers examined the criteria of 85 health insurance policies on breast reduction and compared them to the medical literature on breast reduction indications (that is, criteria that plastic surgeons use to justify doing the procedure).

They found no insurance company policies for breast reduction coverage that were supported by the medical literature. They concluded that insurance company criteria were “arbitrary and without relevance to the published studies on the indications for this procedure”.

If you are interested in having breast reduction surgery, and are wondering about financing options and insurance coverage, please contact our cosmetic surgery office today. We will be happy to work with you. Depending on what he finds during your initial examination, Dr. Rai might be able to write a letter to your insurance company explaining the health reasons for your procedure.

We tend to assume that damaged skin just comes with aging. Almost all old people have wrinkles, discoloration, blemishes and/or leathery skin. But over-exposure, or long chronic exposure, to the sun’s ultraviolet rays is what mostly causes these defects.

A young person on the beach or out sailing, with smooth suntanned skin, does not usually realize that an attractive suntan is just Stage One of Wrinkles/Brown Spots/Leathery Texture. Then there is skin cancer, which begins unobtrusively but can metastasize quickly and become hard to treat. A tanning booth causes as much harm as the sun.

Ultraviolet (UV) Light

UV light travels at a certain range of wavelengths and is divided into three categories:

• UVA, at 100 to 290 nm – which penetrates deeply into the skin’s middle layer (dermis), does not vary in its intensity during the daylight hours, and cannot be filtered out by glass
• UVB, at 290 to 320 nm – which only penetrates the top skin layer (epidermis), causes sunburn, is most intense during the middle daylight hours and summer months, and can be screened out by glass
• UVC, at 320 to 400 nm – which does not affect our skin because it is mostly absorbed by the ozone layer
  

How Sun Damage Occurs

The mechanisms of how it occurs are not yet fully understood. But it is agreed that some processes seem likely:

• Collagen destruction. The skin’s dermis, middle layer, has a supportive matrix of collagen and elastin fibers (two types of connective tissue common in the body). UV rays speed the breakdown of collagen and cause accumulation of elastin in the skin. Elastin produces enzymes which normally help to rebuild collagen, but in sun-damaged skin there are extra enzymes which break down some of the collagen and disorganize others, causing wrinkles to form
• Free radicals. Oxygen molecules normally have two electrons but UV rays create some with only one. These are free radicals and they need a second electron, so they scavenge one from some other molecule. Then that molecule has only one and must scavenge. This process activates the same enzymes produced by elastin and helps destroy collagen. It also changes the RNA and DNA (genetic material) in skin cells, causing cancer.
  

There are other processes that are less well-understood. One involves chemicals that suppress the immune system and certain enzymes which would otherwise repair damaged DNA. Another blocks an immune system mechanism called apoptosis that would normally destroy damaged cells, preventing them from becoming cancerous. Instead, they survive, continue to divide and potentially do become cancerous.

Treatments We Offer

Sun-damaged skin can be treated by somehow stimulating it to create new and firmer collagen. This can be done with dermal fillers, chemical peels and laser resurfacing. These treatments cause the skin to regenerate itself with tighter and more youthful-looking structure. You can also temporarily smooth the skin surface with BOTOX® injections.

Please contact our office in Dallas, Texas if you would like to have a free consultation with cosmetic surgeon Dr. Rai.

Each year the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ASAPS) collects statistics from cosmetic surgeons nationwide as to how many of the various procedures have been done. They then analyze and tabulate them and put them up on their website.

The statistics for 2008 show an interesting switch between breast augmentation and liposuction. Previously, liposuction was the most popular cosmetic procedure but is now taking second place to breast augmentation. In 2008, there were:

• 355,671 breast augmentation procedures, down 11 percent from 2007
• 341,144 liposuction procedures, down 25 percent from 2007
  

They both went down compared to 2007, as did many other procedures although not all. Overall, cosmetic surgeries sank by 12 percent over 2007 and the ASAPS President, Alan Gold, MD, considers that the slumping economy is the reason. He expects that when the economy improves there will be a spike in cosmetic surgeries, as people get the surgeries done that they previously delayed.

He also stated that with the slumping economy, some older workers must stay on the job for longer, competing with younger workers. They therefore want to look younger to compensate for the widespread ageism bias.

The other three cosmetic surgeries in the Top Five were:

• Eyelid surgery (blepharoplasty), down 19 percent
• Nose surgery (rhinoplasty), at about the same number as in 2007; and
• Tummy tucks (abdominoplasty), down 20 percent
  

Top Non-Surgical Cosmetic Procedures

BOTOX® tops this list, as it always does, although it was down 11 percent from 2007. The others were:

• Laser hair removal, down 9 percent
• Dermal fillers using hyaluronic acid (Restylane and others), down 13 percent
• Chemical peels, up by three percent
• Laser skin resurfacing, up 12 percent
  

At The Cosmetic Surgical Center in Dallas, Texas we offer many financing options and we also work with CareCredit, a financing company which gives low- or no-interest loans and many choices as to payments and timeframes.

Please call or email cosmetic surgeon Dr. Rai if you would like to schedule a free consultation.

When we breathe in, we take in oxygen which moves from the tiny air sacs in the lungs into arterial blood. When we eat, the digestive system breaks down the food into nutrients and waste products and the nutrients are absorbed into arterial blood.

The heart pumps arterial blood throughout the body and oxygen and nutrients are thus taken to all organs including the skin. The skin is our largest organ. Its cells absorb the oxygen and nutrients and this supports and enhances life.

Breathing Smoke In

Cigarette smoke contains a long list of harmful substances. Carbon monoxide is one, and it is highly toxic. The safest homes have carbon monoxide detectors because this gas is odorless and colorless. Sometimes people commit suicide by closing themselves in the garage and running their vehicle’s engine. The carbon monoxide from the exhaust kills them.

Carbon monoxide is absorbed by the blood 200 times faster than oxygen, which causes it to displace oxygen. The entire body is then starved for oxygen and gradually poisoned by carbon monoxide.

Cigarette smoke also contains many more harmful substances:

• Arsenic
• Cadmium
• Prussic acid
• Nicotine
• Butane
• Ammonia
• Hydrogen cyanide
  

These poisons put a heavy burden on the liver which has to absorb and expel them. The skin becomes yellowish-gray, losing its healthy glow.

Loss of Vitamin C

Cigarettes use Vitamin C at the rate of about 35 mg per cigarette. The body cannot produce Vitamin C and depends on food or supplement intake for adequate supplies of it.

One of the jobs Vitamin C does is to preserve the skin’s collagen which provides support for the skin surface, keeping it smooth. Lack of Vitamin C hastens the breakdown of this collagen support matrix so that the skin subsides into the gaps and wrinkles become visible. Some are even called “smokers’ lines”.

In view of all these serious disadvantages of smoking, you would be doing yourself a great favor if you gave the habit up. Why not use that money instead on some good face care products or even on a facial or a series of facial filler treatments? Please contact our cosmetic surgery office for a free consultation.

In 2007 a Chinese newspaper got together with over 20 Chinese media groups and a medical group which offers cosmetic surgery. They set up China’s first campaign to help women who have been somehow disfigured but were too poor to pay for any reconstructive or cosmetic surgery. The campaign was called the China Rose Movement.

The Chinese Women’s Development Foundation is a national non-profit organization. In March, 2008 it joined this group and helped set up the Rose Fund to help disfigured women obtain plastic surgery.

The causes of disfigurement can be heredity or traumas such as fires or automobile accidents. In the past year over 3,000 Chinese women have applied to it for funds although just 70 have received them and gone on to have successful cosmetic surgery.

For their second year starting this month, the Rose Fund will focus on providing support for female college graduates who have lost their jobs because of disfigurement and are too poor to pay for any corrective surgery. The president of China’s largest washing machine company, Little Swan, has pledged 100 positions for women who obtain plastic surgery through the Rose Fund.

Financing Assistance in the U.S.

In the U.S. insurance companies will pay for reconstructive surgery after an accident or trauma but not for cosmetic surgery done purely for improving one’s appearance. Some procedures have aspects of both those rationales, such as rhinoplasty which can improve the nose’s appearance at the same time as it improves breathing. In those cases you must contact your insurance company to see what their policy is. Many will pay for a certain percentage of the cost.

At The Cosmetic Surgical Center we will always work with you to help cosmetic surgery costs fit comfortably into your budget. We work with CareCredit, a third-party financing company which gives a quick response. They offer no-interest and low-interest loans with many timeframe and payment options.

We ourselves offer “lay-away” plans and will help you deal with your insurance company or with CareCredit. Please read more on our Affordable Cosmetic Surgery Financing page.

If you would like to schedule a free consultation, please contact our cosmetic surgery office today.

The American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) recently did a study of 186 pairs of identical twins to see if they could learn something about genetic factors vs environmental factors in aging.

The researchers had the twins fill out comprehensive questionnaires and they obtained digital photographs of each twin. An independent panel examined the photos and recorded their perceptions of the age of each one.

When researches paired up the rated ages with the questionnaire information they found that despite having identical genetic predispositions as to aging, the twins had different apparent ages according to various environmental factors:

• Divorced twins looked about two years older than their single, married or widowed siblings
• Chronic use of antidepressants was linked to increased facial sagging – perhaps because of the reduced use of facial muscles
• Extra weight among twins younger than about 40 gave an older look compared to their sibling
• Extra weight among twins older than about 40 gave a younger look compared to their sibling
  

Researchers were intrigued by those last two items. They concluded that it gave some scientific support to the idea that added volume in an aging face reduces the appearance of aging. In other words, facial fillers are effective in giving you a younger and more refreshed look.

At the Cosmetic Surgical Center, we offer several facial fillers. Restylane is excellent for smoothing the nasolabial folds and plumping up the lips. Sculptra is very good for filling out hollowed cheeks and temples and also for the nasolabial folds.

To learn more about the different ways of rejuvenating the face, please contact our cosmetic surgery office today to schedule a personal consultation with Dr. Rai.

Aging, pregnancy, and breastfeeding all take their toll on the breasts. The skin is stretched when the breasts grow larger for childbirth and milk production. In a younger woman it will usually shrink back again when milk production stops, and the breasts will have their previous youthful appearance.

But with age, skin gradually loses its elasticity. This is why tummy tucks are popular cosmetic surgery procedures – the abdominal skin does not shrink to fit a slimmer contour after pregnancy or weight loss. A tummy tuck will remove the excess skin and give a new smoothness to the abdominal area.

When the breasts grow smaller after breastfeeding and the skin does not shrink to fit, the breasts have less support and therefore sag. There are also connective tissue fibers which attach the breast tissue to the chest, and these are stretched during pregnancy and breastfeeding. They also may not shrink afterwards. A breast lift is designed to correct the sagging that results.

Sagging breasts look flatter and in some cases a woman wanting breast enlargement actually does better with a breast lift. When the sagging is corrected the nipple and areola are moved to a higher position on the breasts, which gives the breasts a more youthful position. They will often look larger without any implant.

In other cases a better outcome is obtained when the two procedures are combined. The breast lift incisions are used to insert the implant so there is no extra scarring. The implant may not need to be very large – it depends on what sort of appearance you want to have.

To learn more about breast surgeries for cosmetic enhancement, please call or email our cosmetic surgery office for a free consultation.