The panel agreed that patients should no longer be told that they should get an MRI three years after getting silicone breast implants and every two years following.

“FDA continues to believe, as does the panel, that MRI is the gold standard for evaluating breast implants for silent rupture,” Dr. Maisel said, chief scientist for the FDA’s Center for Devices. “But there was consensus among the panel that the requirements for ongoing MRI should be removed.” (Source: NY Times)

Currently, the FDA recommends women who receive silicone breast implants get MRI to detect “silent rupture”or when the silicone implants sometimes rupture without women being aware. According to the latest FDA brochure on silicone breast implants an MRI should be obtained at 3, 5, 7, and 9 years after breast augmentation. It is known that many patients ignore the requirements because MRI is expensive. In addition, some plastic surgeons quote clinical results of silicone breast implants demonstrating a 1.1% rate of shell failure at 6 years.

During the panel hearings, William P. Adams, Jr., MD, vice president of the Aesthetic Surgery Education and Research Foundation presented current research being conducted comparing MRI to high resolution ultrasound in the detection of breast implant shell failure.

Dr. Maisel promised that the FDA would study whether to follow the panel’s advice on MRI recommendations.

Mentor MemoryGel Silicone Breast Implant

Scottsdale – This November will mark the 5-year anniversary since the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) allowed silicone gel-filled breast implants back for use in the U.S. market. As part of the plan for allowing use of silicone breast implants, a post-market approval study was required from both U.S. breast implant manufacturers.

The FDA‘s General and Plastic Surgery Devices Panel of the Medical Devices Advisory Committee conducted a panel hearing on silicone gel-filled breast implants on August 31, 2011 to assess the progress of these studies. This included testimony from breast implant manufacturers, plastic surgeons and the public.

Mentor Worldwide and Allergan Inc., used the two-day meeting to update the FDA on the status of those trials. Both companies admitted they lost track of large numbers of women after implantation. Mentor’s study enrolled more than 40,000 patients but after 3 years had a follow-up rate of 21%. Allergan enrolled more than 39,300 women with a follow-up rate of 60% after 2 years.

Much of the testimony centered on how to improve silicone breast implant study compliance. After two days of discussion the FDA panel reaffirmed its position that silicone-gel breast implants are “safe and effective for their intended use,” an FDA official said (Source: MSNBC). Agency officials are looking for ways to improve long-term follow-up of women who receive them and said the current studies would continue.

“Women should feel assured that the FDA continues to believe that currently marketed silicone breast implants are safe,” said William Maisel, MD, MPH, chief scientist in the FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health. “The current post-approval studies will continue. The FDA is committed to seeing them completed and making sure the follow-up rates improve.”

Well, here’s how the story goes…. The Telegraph reports ….. Pippa Middleton’s butt was the second-most-famous phenomenon to emerge from her sister’s wedding to Prince William. Certainly, I noticed almost all the nurses and doctors who are fans of the royal family talking about a certain revealing dress during the wedding. It looks like because of her recent derriere notoriety, she was entered in the “Rear of the Year”.

Despite her attributes, Pippa lost…. well, I should say, she got second place.

It turns out that in England, 50-year-old British television presenter Carol Vorderman’s butt was really famous. Sometimes it’s no fun to come in second place….  Anyway, poor Pippa lost the “Rear of the Year” title in the U.K.

For those who want to get noticed, whether or not you are in the running for a “booty award”, maybe considering a Brazillian buttock lift will add that extra zing to put you over the top!

This imaging technique is the first web-based 3D preview technology for plastic surgery based on physical properties of the body. Crisalix , a pioneer in the field of medical imaging software has developed an online system for reconstructing the cosmetic surgery patient’s body in 3D from 2D images!

Crisalix aims to develop new technologies in the field of plastic and aesthetic surgery to improve surgeon-patient relationships and the patient’s overall experience with plastic surgery of the breasts.

Anyone can download the app and use it to find information on the most popular cosmetic surgery operations. Here are some of the highlights about this new app:

• You can access information about The Society, including:
• Choosing surgery
• Procedures
• Patient safety
• You can Find a Plastic Surgeon search feature all while on the go!

In addition, you can also browse a comprehensive glossary of plastic surgery terms. Remember that the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery is made up of Board Certified Plastic Surgeons who specialize in aesthetic plastic surgery.

Trying on my new ASAPS White Jacket!

Scottsdale – I just returned from the annual meeting of the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery held this year in Boston, MA.

I really feel the meeting was a great success for board certified plastic surgeons who attended this educational meeting.

When I was there, I was able to see some cool new products and enjoyed learning about what other top plastic surgeons are doing in their practice.

Whenever I go to this meeting, I leave feeling all “pumped up” about the new advances which are happening in the U.S. and all over the world, really!

I am excited to tell my blog fans that I will be blogging soon about new and exciting state-of-the-art plastic surgery techniques which seem really promising!

I hope to continue to bring the latest advancements for my plastic surgery in Arizona patients.

These can be improved with resection of the procerus muscle, which originates from the surface of the upper lateral cartilage and nasal bones and whose fibers inset into the skin of glabellar region. Procerus muscle resection is typically performed as part of a facial plastic surgery to rejuvenate the forhead.

As far as the procerus muscle, the only known function for this tiny muscle upon contraction is to pull the forehead downward and the root of the nasal tip upward, causing wrinkling.  

Botox® can also temporarily (3 to 4 months) reduce the wrinkles in the area.

Other facial muscles can also be treated simultaneously. For instance, the  corrugator supercilii muscles originate along the medial orbital rim and insert into the skin of the medial eyebrows. When these contract they effectively pull the medial brow downward, resulting in vertical wrinkling, which are also known as the “11′s”.

Another important muscle treated during forehead lift surgery, is the frontalis muscle in the forehead itself, which elevates the eyebrows. This muscle inserts on the skin of the forehead, causing transverse forehead wrinkles.

An important piece of information on this website is the Cosmetic Surgery Guide, which you can download and print out at home. Here is a quick summary of the important points made by this document:

• Any licensed physician can perform cosmetic surgery.
• You will need to do a lot of research to find out about your doctor’s training.
• Ask about training.
• Ask about board certification.
• Learn the steps to you desired plastic surgery procedure.
• Ask about informed consent.

Because any licensed physician can perform cosmetic surgery, it is up to you to be an educated consumer! I also recommend that in addition to following the list above, you look up your doctor’s standing with the Arizona Medical Board before making your final decision to proceed!

Another great document on the AZMD website is the Physician Checklist. I recommend you download and print this form out too! It is easy to fill out and will help most patients to keep their information well organized. The form will help you determine who is board certified by an ABMS board and who is not, it has a section for you to write down a surgeon’s training and a section about a doctor’s standing with the medical board.

We recommend all patients consult with at least 3 surgeons before making their final decision to proceed. Good Luck!

I saw this story while I was perusing Plastic Surgery Practice. According to the statistics released, the demand for plastic surgery procedures increased almost 9% last year. The Society, which has collected multispecialty procedural statistics since 1997, says the overall number of cosmetic procedures increased 155% since the tracking of the statistics first began. Impressively, almost 9.5 million cosmetic surgical and nonsurgical procedures were performed in the United States in 2010.

The most frequently performed surgical procedure was breast augmentation and the most popular nonsurgical procedure was injections of botulinum toxin type A (including Botox and Dysport).

“These numbers mirror what we have been hearing across the country this past year,” says Felmont Eaves III, MD, ASAPS president. “Patients who put off surgery because of uncertainty in the economy and the job market are coming back for tried and true procedures. Growth in demand will likely continue as the recession eases and baby boomers and their offspring begin to explore surgical and nonsurgical options.”

Cosmetic surgical procedures increased almost 9%, with over 1.6 million procedures in 2010. Surgical procedures accounted for 17% of the total numbers of procedure performed.

Now that silicone breast implants are FDA approved, more and more, patients seem to be requesting above the muscle placement. In discussing breast augmentation surgery with a plastic surgeon, patients should consider all options for incisions and location, either above or below the pectoralis muscle. A discussion if the subfascial breast augmentation should be included in this discussion.

What is a subfascial breast augmentation?

It turns out that when considering the location of the breast implants in an “above” the muscle location , there are 2 places where we can place the breast implant. The first is the standard sub-glandular location, which is right underneath the breast itself.  The second option, involves the surgical elevation of the pectoralis muscle fascia. This fascia is made up of layers of collagen and can add some additional volume for coverage of a breast implant.

A subfascial augmentation may offer a faster recovery for some patients and might be associated with less pain when compared to a below the muscle breast enhancement. Patients who work out a lot or compete in muscle building competitions may also benefit from a subfascial breast surgery.