Macho Makeover: Men Aren’t Hiding Their Dirty Little Plastic Surgery Secrets Anymore

By Tony Lopez October 3, 2014 12:05

SACRAMENTO (CBS13) — Some men no longer have a dirty little secret—their macho makeover has become a sense of pride.
From their eyes to their thighs, more men are choosing to go under the knife for a little nip and tuck.
Brian Meuser is walking into his mid-40s with his head held high, but that wasn’t the case a few short months ago.
“I don’t want to call it a midlife crisis, because that’s so cliche, but maybe it is,” he said.
And maybe, this El Dorado Hills private investigator thought, he could do something about it.
“I’ve always kind of struggled with my weight a little bit,” he said.
So Brian made the move.
“I don’t shy away from telling people I did it,” he said. “I don’t necessarily wave a flag either.”
He did what more and more men on the United States are doing these days—having plastic surgery.
The American Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery says the number of cosmetic procedures for men has increased by more than 106 percent since 1997.

So what’s behind the surgical spike?

“The numbers started increasing especially when we hit the recession,” said Dr. Shahriar Mabourakh, with the Folsom Plastic Surgery and Laser Center.

“Men were worried about keeping their job they wanted to look a little more youthful to be able to compete in the job market,” he said.
The most common procedures for men include liposuction, treatment for gynecomastia to get rid of fatty tissue around the breasts, rhinoplasty and eyelifts.

Brian opted for liposuction to get rid of his love handles.

“I dropped over two inches across the belly button, above the sternum,” he said. “I dropped a couple inches around the waist.”
I used to call myself pudgy, that’s what it looked like, and it doesn’t look like that anymore,” he said.

But that can come at a significant price, where procedures range from $3,000 and up, depending on what you’re having done.

Most men are able to return to work after three or four days of rest after surgery.

Can a Tummy Tuck Cure Incontinence?

Published on September 5, 2014

Relief from stress urinary incontinence may be an underappreciated additive benefit following abdominoplasty, according to a new study in the September issue of the Aesthetic Surgery Journal.

Researchers studied postoperative changes in 250 women with stress urinary incontinence who underwent cosmetic abdominoplasty. Patients were subgrouped according to postoperative changes in their urinary incontinence symptoms, and the subgroups were then evaluated for common within-group characteristics. Of the 250 patients who underwent abdominoplasty in the study, 40% completed the survey, half of whom reported incontinence preoperatively. After abdominoplasty, 60% of these patients noted improvement in their symptoms, and the other 40% reported no improvement. Lack of previous Cesarean section was a predictor of improvement in stress urinary incontinence symptoms after abdominoplasty.

“There is very little in the literature about this phenomenon” says study author James D. McMahan, MD, a plastic surgeon in Columbus, Ohio.

The impetus for the study was a patient’s candid remarks during a post abdominoplasty follow-up visit, he says. “She said she no longer had leakage after laughing or coughing,” he recalls.

The motto of this story? “It’s always a good idea to listen to your patients.”

Exactly how or why the surgery improves urinary incontinence is not fully understood, but theories exist. For example, “in some of the abdominoplasty procedures where we pull up on the skin, we may get enough of a pull on the urethra to reduce hypermobility and incontinence,” he says.

The next step may be an urodynamic study to further delineate who can expect this improvement following tummy tuck. “If we could better identify who would benefit in advance, and they are considering having a procedure to treat incontinence and a tummy tuck, it may behoove them to have the tummy tuck first and see what happens.”

 

Scientists work on wound dressings that extract specific bacteria

By Jia You 12 November 2014 2:30 pm

BALTIMORE, MARYLAND—Medical engineers have long used nano-sized fibers as sturdy scaffolds for growing tissues. Now, researchers are developing nanofiber meshes that might suck bugs out of wounds and accelerate healing, they report here this week at the 61st annual AVS meeting. Scientists have injected cell-carrying nanofibers into wounds to jump-start tissue repair, but to design a truly smart dressing, they need to know how the material interacts with bacteria. After testing nanofibers of various sizes, researchers found that bugs transfer most easily to nanofibers with diameters that match the bacteria’s sizes. When the scientists placed nanofibers in a petri dish of Staphylococcus aureus, a bacterium involved in chronic infection, the bugs quickly attached themselves to 500-nanometer-wide fibers (as seen above), but hardly onto fibers with larger diameters. When the researchers coated the nanofibers with different compounds and tested them on the bacteria Escherichia coli, also responsible for chronic wounds, the bugs formed bridges on fibers coated with allylamine, a colorless organic compound, but stayed away from fibers coated with acrylic acid. The researchers, who plan to test the meshes on composites that resemble human skin, hope that they will eventually lead to smart wound dressings that could prevent infections. Doctors could stick the nano–Band-Aid on a wound and simply peel it off to get rid of the germs.

Posted in Health, Technology

Cosmetic infidelity: A new way to cheat

By Dr. Anthony Youn, Special to CNN  – updated 6:20 AM EST, Wed November 19, 2014

Surgery can be difficult to hide, especially large operations such as tummy tucks and face-lifts.

(CNN) — “I have five days to recover from surgery and look good before my husband gets home.”

Marina, a 60-year-old Caucasian woman, sits before me to sign the consent forms for her upcoming operations: a 3-D face-lift, upper and lower eyelid lifts and an endoscopic brow lift.

I see on her information sheet that she hasn’t authorized us to discuss her surgeries with anyone else — not even her husband.

“So you’re not telling him about all these procedures?”

“Not unless I have to. You don’t know him. He wouldn’t understand, and he wouldn’t want me to spend all this money, especially on something he thinks is frivolous. So that’s why I need to look good before he gets back. We’ve got five days, Dr. Youn.”

Cosmetic surgery has become a new form of infidelity — for both men and women. As the number of people having plastic surgery rises, more and more feel the need to hide their procedures from their significant others. In fact, we did a survey of cosmetic patients in my office and found that one-third don’t tell their partners about their treatments.

Hard to believe? While surgery can be difficult to hide, especially large operations with dramatic changes such as tummy tucks and face-lifts, less-invasive procedures such as Botox and filler injections aren’t as hard to conceal.

The first step many patients take is to hide how much they’re spending. According to the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, the average cost of Botox is $392, and the average cost of Juvederm is $675 — pretty hefty amounts to cover up.

So how do they do it? Some patients pay with cash. Others split it up and pay half in cash, half in credit. Many of my patients have a certain threshold that they can spend on their credit card before their partner notices the individual charge. This amount usually ranges between $100 and $400. Often the patient will spend up to that amount on a credit card, then pay the rest in cash. Other patients spread small amounts over several credit cards.

Timing the procedure strategically is another way people hide their cosmetic treatments. Many patients, like Marina, have their surgeries done while their spouses are out of town.

They use this alone time to recover, so that when their spouses return, they’re none the wiser. For less-invasive treatments, such as lasers and injections, many patients have the procedures performed on days when their partners have plans after work. This way, they have all night to let the swelling subside. When their spouse sees them the next day, they look normal again.

Some women also take advantage of the fact that their men just aren’t that perceptive. Men are notoriously bad at noticing changes in their spouses. In fact, a 2004 study in the Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin found that women are much better than men at remembering appearances.

I am as bad as any. It can take me days to notice that my wife has changed her hair.

So what happened with Marina?

She underwent all four surgeries, with the hope that she’d look good enough five days later to prevent her husband from noticing the dramatic changes in her face. She stopped by the office to see me several hours before her husband was to return home.

Marina was a hot mess. Her eyes looked like she went 10 rounds with Mike Tyson, her neck was taut as a pair of Spanx, and her lips resembled two Vienna sausages.

“Wow, Marina. You’re still quite puffy and bruised, but give it another week or two and you’ll look fantastic,” I told her. “However, I’m not sure your plan to hide your plastic surgery from your husband is going to work.”

“Dr. Youn,” she deadpanned. “You don’t know my husband.”

He never figured it out.

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Surgeons remove football-size tumor from 11-year-old’s upper body

BY JOSEPH J. KOLB  ALBUQUERQUE N.M

(Reuters) – Surgeons in New Mexico have removed a rare, football-sized tumor from the neck and upper body of a Mexican boy, capping a two-year charitable effort to get the disfigured child U.S. medical attention, a church official said on Tuesday.

The 11-year-old patient, Jose Antonio Ramirez Serrano from Ciudad Juarez, just across the U.S.-Mexico border from El Paso, Texas, was expected to remain at the University of New MexicoChildren’s Hospital for at least a month recovering from Monday’s surgery.

The massive growth, nearly a foot (30 cm) in length and measuring about 4 inches (10 cm) wide and deep, was removed by a 25-member surgical team during a 12-hour operation that ended late on Monday, said Kristean Alcocer, Spanish ministry coordinator for the First Baptist Church of Rio Rancho near Albuquerque.

The boy remained under sedation and in intensive care following the operation, Alcocer told Reuters, adding the boy’s medical bills and related expenses had been paid for through donations.

“We are so thrilled. This has been two years in the making,” said Alcocer, who was part of the effort to bring Jose to the United States for treatment.

The boy had been coping for most of his life with the tumor, which grew on the left side of his neck, shoulder and torso, Alcocer said. Such growths, called lymphangiomas, are malformations of the body’s lymphatic system that create large, unsightly tumors on the skin’s surface.

Church members first noticed the child walking across a street in the impoverished Anapra neighborhood of Juarez two years ago and learned the child’s family had exhausted all medical efforts in Mexico.

“Many promises were made to them over the years, but no one ever came through with meaningful solution,” Alcocer said, adding the family was skeptical about trying to have the growth surgically removed when first approached.

The child was brought to New Mexico in July 2012 under humanitarian visas secured for the purposes of obtaining medical treatment in the United States, Alcocer said.

The boy and his family are permitted to visit the country for up to 10 years under the visas, but his parents travel back and forth from their residence in Mexico, Alcocer said. The boy was staying at the homes of Alcocer and the church pastor as he prepared for the surgery.

(Editing by Steve Gorman and Peter Cooney)Surgeons remove football-size tumor from 11-year-old’s upper body

Promotion Restylane & Dysport 12/1/2014 – 12/30/2014

Plastic surgery practice caters to men with procedures like “Bro-tox”

CBS NEWS November 6, 2014, 1:53 PM

http://www.cbsnews.com/common/video/cbsnews_video.swf

They call it Marina ManLand — a place for men to have plastic surgery in an atmosphere that caters to their particular needs and masculine tastes.

ManLand in Marina del Rey, California, is a man cave for men who’ve just had their tummies tucked or wrinkles smoothed over. It’s the brainchild of Grant Stevens, founder of Marina Plastic Surgery Associates.

CBS Los Angeles reporter Juan Fernandez got a sneak peek before its official opening on Thursday.

The entire facility was designed with men in mind. Treatment rooms go by names like The Lion’s Den, The Bear’s Lair and The Doghouse.

“It’s all about guys,” said Stevens. “It’s making guys feel good about looking great.”

Stevens said he’s seeing more male patients than ever before, so he set up this combination medical office, spa, sports bar and smoking lounge where men could feel comfortable while having treatments.

Like Botox in this office is “Bro-tox.”

“We do Bro-tox, we do fillers, we do laser hair removal,” says Stevens. “We do all kinds of facial things that tighten the face.”

There is also body contouring to remove fat pockets from those hard-to-shape areas. They also do hair restoration for the follically challenged (aka bald).

“I want this to be to an area where men feel comfortable, at ease, where they feel like they’re using their time wisely,” said Stevens.

Some of the rooms even pipe in a new-car leather smell.

Patients seek breast augmentation, wrinkle relaxers, surgeons say

Reported by: Jaime Hayden Email: jhayden@mynews4.com

http://www.clipsyndicate.com/video/playlist/25504/5448954

News 4 looked at what neighbors in northern Nevada are turning to plastic surgery to change. “The typical patient that comes in to see me has been thinking about whatever procedure they’re coming to see me about for years,” said plastic surgeon Dr. Joseph Kiener.

Kiener sees around 15 new patients a week and 80 percent of his surgeries are cosmetic. “People, their motivation is typically that they don’t like something about themselves, and fortunately in my practice most the time it’s the patient that is motivating themselves to come here as opposed to a significant other.”

That is exactly why 60-year-old Janet Baron of Reno said she got a facelift three years ago. “I was taking care of my parents, I had a horrible marriage for 10 years, and I wanted to do something for me.”

Baron said she did not like the extra skin under her chin, but it was more than just changing her face. “I feel better, it’s almost like a new me.”

Now, she said strangers often think her 31-year-old son could be her husband. “Okay that’s kind of cool, he’s really upset, he goes that’s gross, but I go, you have to understand that makes me feel good.”

Although Baron said the selfie phenomenon did not affect her decision to go under the knife. Kiener said social media is playing a role for many, including opting for non-surgical procedures. “Things like Botox, the fillers, laser hair removal, as well as other laser and light based treatments.”

Still, Reno plastic surgeon Dr. Phillip Dahan said the number one cosmetic surgery on women’s wish list is breast augmentation. “The majority undergo breast implant surgery, such as augmentation to enhance the size, shape, projection of the breasts, and even to improve two breasts that don’t match, so to improve symmetry.”

Dahan said Botox, fillers, nose jobs and pec implants are popular options for guys, but men still only represent 10-percent of his plastic surgery patients. “Every now and then I have males that are very concerned that they try to exercise and improve the bulk and tone of the chest muscles and they can’t or they want to take it to another level, so it’s a great operation to do it.”

Kiener said he sometimes has to say no, but it is not easy. “You also have to be the patients advocate and say to them, ‘Well, I don’t think this is a good idea for you,” now the problem with that is that they’re so motivated that you know they’re going to go down to street and see somebody else, so where do you draw the line and that is a very difficult thing to do.”

Kiener said over the last two years he has seen the biggest increase in butt surgery. He also said plastic surgery is most popular among women ages 35 to 50, followed by women ages 50 to 65, and then women between ages 20 and 35.

Cosmetic surgery to fix ear “tribal piercings” on the rise

By ALPHONSO VAN MARSH CBS NEWS November 7, 2014, 1:48 PM
http://www.cbsnews.com/common/video/cbsnews_video.swf

HIGH WYCOMBE, England – Liam Palmer says his dream is to serve in the British Army. But the military won’t accept the 21-year old with gaping holes in his earlobes from ear piercings, followed by stretching the skin with plugs.

“I don’t regret it. [Wearing ear plugs] was just a part of who I was,” Palmer says about his younger counter-culture days of gelled hair, skinny jeans and ear plugs – also known as ear gauges or “tribal” ear piercings.

Doctors says once ears like Palmer’s are stretched past half-an-inch in diameter, they won’t shrink back or close up. Cutting away the excess skin is the only way to fix them. So Palmer had cosmetic surgery to reshape his earlobes. Plastic surgeon Adrian Richards says the procedure involves removing the excess stretched ear tissue and using internal and external stitches in the earlobe to recreate a more normal shape.

Surgeons numb the ear for the approximately 40-minute operation, but the patient stays awake. Cosmetic techniques can vary, but doctors say patients end up with a well-hidden scar along the natural contour of the reconstructed earlobe.

Palmer isn’t the only one going under the knife. Richards, who performed Palmer’s operation, says he’s seen a surge in the number of surgeries in the past year due to the negative stigma surrounding what he calls “flash tunnels.”

“We’ve had guys in the Army threatened with discharge if they don’t have their ears repaired,” says Richards, director at Aurora Clinics. He says he sees about ten new patients a month asking about the procedure, ranging from a golf pro to clergy members, school teachers to soldiers.

The U.S Army announced a crackdown on piercings larger than a standard earring on its troops in May. The Army’s website highlights a new regulation banning soldiers from, “willfully mutilating the body… including… ear gauging (enlarging holes in the ear lobes greater than 1.6mm).”

Earlobe reconstruction surgery is more prevalent in the U.K. than in the United States, says Dr. Michael Edwards, president of the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery. But he says surgeons in cities like Los Angeles and Seattle are carrying out the repair procedure. “Patients realize [ear gauges] are not becoming in terms of job hunting or work – sort of like tattoos,” Edwards says.

Edwards says the surgery can range from $1,500 to $3,000 in the United States. In the U.K., the operation can average a little over $3,000.

After the surgery, Liam Palmer told CBS News he hopes changing his appearance will pay off. “This is for the Army, [I am] one step closer,” he says. Palmer’s bandages will come off in about a week. Then, he says, it is up to him, to make the cut to make his military dream come true.