The world of plastic and cosmetic surgeries can be a confusing one, particularly for those of us who aren’t experts in the fields of science and medicine. To clear up any confusion, expert plastic surgeon Mark Kahout shares the top 4 mistakes he sees people making when choosing plastic surgery.
By Mark Kohout.
1. Going overseas.
The surgery performed overseas can be good or not. Some results I have seen from operation in Thailand, middle east or Malaysia have been very good. Many I have seen, the results are poor and there appears to be very little responsibility taken by the original surgeon, show is essentially unreachable in the overseas institution.
There are often language barriers that prevent the treating surgeon from understanding exactly what result you want to achieve.
The consultations with surgeons in Thailand, India and middle east tend to be much shorter than what is common in Australia, so the opportunity to ask questions is less.
In case of complications or undesirable results, you have virtually no recourse from the surgeon or the treating hospital: you are essentially on your own, trying to deal with a distressing situation with no support.
2. Not doing research.
The most important things to consider are the surgeons qualifications, training and experience.
When you ask a plastic surgeon to perform your surgery in Australia, you can be assured that this surgeon is well trained as a surgeon. All members of the Australian society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) have been trained as surgeons first, for between 1 and 4 years and then for a minimum of 5 years as plastic surgeons. You can therefore expect extremely high standards of training and care.
In contrast, cosmetic surgeons, in general, have not had the same level of training in surgery, or in plastic surgery. Some do not even have formal surgical qualifications. One significant difference may be the aftercare that can be provided by either group. If, for instance, there is a problem such as bleeding or infection, plastic surgeons tend to have more expertise in managing these situations.
We have all heard of surgery gone wrong overseas or domestically, that plastic surgeons have been called on to fix or correct. I believe this should give the prospective patient greater peace of mind.
As a general rule, cosmetic surgeons do not charge less than plastic surgeons. In fact, some charge significantly more than I do. Each surgeon, whether cosmetic or plastic, charges whatever they feel is an appropriate amount. Also as a general rule, the prices charged do not bear a direct relationship to training or expertise. Prospective patients need to familiarise themselves with each surgeons credentials and decide.
I think there is confusion around the differences between plastic and cosmetic surgeons, however, this is changing and I believe that more and more people looking at plastic surgery are placing value and significance on the extra training plastic surgeons receive. It is actually quite a good deal: more surgical training that usually does not cost any more.
3. Expecting too much from the surgery.
Unrealistic expectations are a common problem. Many people will expect an exact replica of a photo of a model or a celebrity. Whilst such a photo can be used as a template, an exact replica is not possible. It may not even suit your face in any case.
Similar expectations apply to scars – we would all like all operations to be completed without scars, however, medical science has not yet solved the problem of scarless healing. So in the meantime, all plastic surgeons strive to make operation scars as inconspicuous as possible, by hiding them in skin creases, making them shorter, hiding them in hairlines or bikini lines and improving their quality with medications, gels and lasers. However, some scars are inevitable.
Perfect symmetry is also a common expectation. For instance, achieving breasts of perfectly symmetric size and shape is expected, but may not be achievable if you start with different breast size (which is almost universal), different droop levels or differently positioned nipples. Surgery always tries to improve on the Symmetry, but perfection is not a realistic goal.
4. Underestimating the surgery.
Even relatively small surgery like breast augmentation, ear correction, which takes around one hour to perform in a day surgery, requires down time and recovery. There is a common misunderstanding that life continues uninterrupted after a procedure like this and I spend quite a bit of time during consultation to stress the recovery process. You need to take things easy for a good week after surgery, which obviously impacts of your social, family and work life. Not resting or going back to exercise too early, increases the post-operative risks such as bleeding, or pulling stitches apart.
By Dr. Kohout
