Patients who undergo plastic surgery today need to be sure to complete their homework before undergoing their procedure. There has been a recent uptick in the number of revision surgeries conducted on plastic surgery patients whose initial surgeries were botched. Some plastic surgery patients have experienced infections, serious scars and gangrene from their original procedures because the doctors that performed the surgeries lacked proper training and experience. The story of one 40-year-old mother’s plastic surgery resulted in one large breast instead of two and a medical practice suit.
The 40-year-old mother went in for a simple procedure to replace a pair of leaking breast implants. The simple procedure ultimately resulted in a medical malpractice suit. The woman said, “It looked like I had one big breast instead of two. And the pain was terrible.” On top of the botched breast implant procedure, the same doctor operated on a scar near the woman’s eyes without her permission. The scar operation resulted in an undesired eye life and left the woman unable to completely close her eyes.
The doctor who performed the woman’s plastic surgery was not board certified in plastic surgery, and the woman’s experience is one example of many doctors who perform plastic surgery but do not have the skill or training to complete the operations said Dr. Anthony Youn, a board-certified plastic surgeon and msnbc.com contributor. “It’s like the Wild West out there,” said Dr. Youn.
While there are no statistics on plastic surgery medical mistakes, plastic surgeons report encountering more patients that need revision surgeries. What can patients do to minimize the risk?
The chief of plastic surgery at Albany Medical Center recommends that patients check their doctor’s credentials. Patients should be sure the doctor is board certified in plastic surgery by the American Board of Plastic Surgery and not just board certified in a different practice area. Patients should also ask about the type of procedures the doctor has completed in the past, and patients should ask to see pictures.
Source: today.msnbc.com, “Case of ‘uniboob’ a startling reminder to pick plastic surgeon with care,” Diane Mapes, Sept. 27, 2011
