Simple Breast Modifications for the New Year

Whether you are frustrated with moderately saggy breasts, abnormal nipples or large areolae, we at the Center For Plastic Surgery can help. Begin the year with a breast surgery. This article will take a closer look at a few surgeries to accomplish this.

Mildly Sagging breasts

Whether you have saggy breasts because of breastfeeding or weight loss, we can help with a breast lift. During a breast lift surgery, we will remove excess skin from the breasts and then lift them so that they sit higher on the chest. The lifts that cane done in the office are those that require minimal internal support. Breasts the have significant droop require internal support of the tissue and, thus require more than local anesthesia and a full OR. Those we refer out.

Large Areolae

The areolae stretch with age, breast feeding and weight gain. reducing these is an easy in office procedure under local anesthesia. Recovery is rapid, though final appearance may not occur for several months.

Unattractive Nipples

Nipples can be abnormally large and show through most clothing or inverted and not visible at all. Both are easy to correct as long as you are not planning to breast feed any longer. This, too, is a simple in office procedure.

There’s no reason why you can’t have better breasts in the new year. If you want to learn a little bit more about the above breast surgeries, schedule your consultation with our Highlands office by calling us today at (828) 526-3783.

Here at our North Carolina plastic surgery practice, we make it a point to make your recovery period as smooth and safe as much as possible. Although healing from surgery varies from one individual to another, there are certain aids that will prove to be very helpful in your recovery, one of which include compression garments.

Compression Garment Purposes

Compression garments help reduce swelling and bruising on the operated area. Furthermore, it helps avoid blood clot formation and make sure that the body part operated on is “molded” the right way.

Every so often, compressions garments should be worn out for 24 hours during the first week post-surgery. In breast and abdominal surgeries such as a tummy tuck and liposuction, you may be required to wear it a bit longer. Lastly, compression garments also have aesthetic purposes as it could make you appear slimmer.

Compression Garment Accessories Specific to Each Surgery

• Breast surgeries – compression bras with breathable fabric, seamless, no underwires, soft cups, and with cushioned or padded shoulder straps

• Arm, abdominal, and leg surgeries –  varying sizes of compression garments may be needed depending on the your body’s gradual reduction in size; garments should be made of breathable fabric, no-show seams, and no hooks for long-term recovery

• Facelift – facial bands, cushioned hats with wrap-around ties

• Eyelid Lift –– large-framed eyeglasses with wrap-around protective coverings to shield sutures from sunlight

Quick and Safe Recovery After Your North Carolina Plastic Surgery

Let us help you figure out ways for a quick and safe recovery after your North Carolina plastic surgery. We are located at 209 Hospital Drive, Suite 202, Highlands, NC.  Call us at 828-526-3783 or fill out this contact form to schedule an initial consultation. We look forward to your visit!

Every so often, plastic surgery is associated with women. However, recent statistics from the American Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery reveal that the number of cosmetic surgeries performed in 2012 amongst men soared up to 106 percent from 1997. Here at our North Carolina plastic surgery practice, we also tailor to the cosmetic needs and desires of men — from male breast reduction to injectables to skin care.

The following are the top 5 male cosmetic procedures in 2012 which are also offered at our Highlands clinic.

1. Liposuction – In some cases, one can’t seem to lose the extra deposits of fat despite regular physical activity and a healthy eating plan. Liposuction amongst males is often targeted towards the flanks, abs, and chest areas. Dr. Buchanan performs several techniques of liposuction, depending on your body contouring needs and preferences.

2. Rhinoplasty – Whether it’s a subtle change or dramatic improvement that males want for their nose, rhinoplasty for men is one of those procedures which could help accentuate the masculine look. Rhinoplasty with Dr. Buchanan is usually an outpatient procedure performed under light general anesthesia and lasts two to three hours, unless extensive work needs to be done on the airway.

3. Blepharoplasty (Eyelid Surgery) – Puffy looking eyelids and the excess skin under the eyes will surely make a man look older. Hence, an eyelid surgery should be in order. In this procedure, Dr. Buchanan will remove fine wrinkles and sagging skin around the eyes. You can combine this procedure with others such as a facelift, forehead lift and/or BOTOX® Cosmetic treatments to achieve other desired results.

4. Male Breast Reduction – Feel confident even if you go topless! Gynecomastia or abnormal breast enlargement in males is now common amongst adolescents and elderly males. This condition is influenced by a variety of factors such as diet, hormones, weight, and medications. Before scheduling your male breast reduction procedure with Dr. Buchanan, it is quite important that the underlying cause of the abnormal breast enlargement will be addressed.

5. Otoplasty – Sometimes, one is born with varying degrees of ear shape problems — from overprojected ears to poorly defined folds. To correct this procedures, an otoplasty or ear reshaping procedure should be performed.

Male Plastic Surgery in Highlands, North Carolina

We invite you to explore your cosmetic options with us! We perfectly understand that men want to look attractive, youthful, and feel great about themselves, too!

Dr. Buchanan has hospital privileges at both Highlands-Cashiers Hospital and at Harris Regional Hospital in Sylva.  The procedures are performed either in his office or at Highlands-Cashiers Hospital.  We are located at 209 Hospital Drive, Suite 202, Highlands, NC.  Call us at 828-526-3783 or fill out this contact form to schedule an initial consultation. We look forward to your visit!

The world was caught by surprise when actress Angelina Jolie revealed in a New York Times op-ed article that she had decided to undergo preventive double mastectomy where both her nipples and breast tissues were removed. The final process involved placement of breast implants, like the ones used in North Carolina breast reconstruction by Dr. Buchanan. This decision was made by Jolie after finding out that she had an 87 percent risk of getting breast cancer.

A Proactive Approach

“My doctors estimated that I had an 87 percent risk of breast cancer and a 50 percent risk of ovarian cancer, although the risk is different in the case of each woman,” the actress wrote. “Once I knew that this was my reality, I decided to be proactive and to minimize the risk as much as I could. I made a decision to have a preventive double mastectomy.”

Quick Facts on Breast Reconstruction

It took Jolie roughly 3 months to go through the entire process. If you’ve been thinking about the same set of North Carolina breast surgeries that Jolie did after learning about breast cancer risks, read on below for some quick facts on breast reconstruction using implants.

• You can choose to whether use silicone or saline implants. Both have their own advantages and disadvantages. Thus, the importance of thoroughly discussing your options and preferences with Dr. Buchanan.

• You can opt to have one-stage immediate breast reconstruction or two-stage delayed reconstruction. The former could be done the same time as mastectomy while the latter is often done when the woman doesn’t have enough skin left to cover the implant.

• The use of implants in breast reconstruction is not suitable for women whose muscles in the breast are removed. The muscles are supposed to hold the implants.

• Breast reconstruction via implants leaves very minimal scarring.

The Center for Plastic Surgery in Highlands, North Carolina

We invite you to explore your cosmetic options with us! We perfectly understand that cosmetic surgery is not just about improving the physical aspect but making you feel better about yourself, too.

Dr. Buchanan has hospital privileges at both Highlands-Cashiers Hospital and at Harris Regional Hospital in Sylva.  The procedures are performed either in his office or at Highlands-Cashiers Hospital.  We are located at 209 Hospital Drive, Suite 202, Highlands, NC.  Call us at 828-526-3783 or fill out this contact form to schedule an initial consultation. We look forward to your visit!

The American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ASAPS) recently released its annual multi-specialty procedural statistics. The figures revealed that there were approximately 10 million cosmetic procedures done by U.S. board-certified plastic surgeons in 2012. Breast augmentation and Botox topped the surgical and non-surgical categories, respectively. In the Highlands-Cashiers area, Dr. Robert Buchanan is a top-notch North Carolina plastic surgeon concerned with not only the results but patient care and recovery at the same time.

Top Surgical Cosmetic Procedures in 2012
With approximately 1.7 million procedures performed, cosmetic surgical procedures rose to 3 percent than that of last year. As lifted from the report, the top cosmetic procedures in 2012 include:

1. Breast Augmentation: 330,631
2. Liposuction: 313,011
3. Abdominoplasty: 156,508
4. Eyelid surgery: 153,171
5. Rhinoplasty: 143,801

Leo R. McCafferty, MD, President of the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery attributed the increase of breast augmentation demand  to the increasing popularity of silicone implants. Recently in February, the Natrelle 410 implant ( a type of silicone implant) by Allergan received FDA approval.

“According to the Society’s statistics in 2006, 383,886 breast augmentation procedures were performed and of those 81% were saline implants and 19% were silicone.  In 2012, 330,631 breast augmentation procedures were performed and of those only 28% were saline implants and 72% were silicone.”

Top Nonsurgical Cosmetic Procedures in 2012
On the other hand, minimally-invasive cosmetic procedures rose to 10 percent than the figures in 2011. Of the 8.5 million nonsurgical procedures performed, the top 5 procedures were:

1. Botulinum Toxin Type A
2. Hyaluronic Acid
3. Laser Hair Removal
4. Microdermabrasion
5. Chemical Peel

“For the past 16 years, the interest in and demand for cosmetic plastic surgery has risen exponentially, a 250% increase in surgical and nonsurgical procedures, and our comprehensive statistics continue to show that,” Dr. McCafferty, MD added.

The Center for Plastic Surgery in Highlands, North Carolina
We invite you to explore your cosmetic options with us! We perfectly understand that cosmetic surgery is not just about improving the physical aspect but making you feel better about yourself, too.

Dr. Buchanan has hospital privileges at both Highlands-Cashiers Hospital and at Harris Regional Hospital in Sylva.  The procedures are performed either in his office or at Highlands-Cashiers Hospital.  We are located at 209 Hospital Drive, Suite 202, Highlands, NC.  Call us at 828-526-3783 or fill out this contact form to schedule an initial consultation. We look forward to your visit!