In patients with larger breasts, one manner in which the breast can be reconstructed is with tissue from the lower abdomen. When the breast is ptotic, the nipple areola complex may not remain viable at the time of the mastectomy. Often a tissue expander is used at the time of mastectomy to let the skin heal before proceeding with DIEP…
Standard breast lift patterns are used to reconstruct the breast following lumpectomy. Often the tumor will be outside of the confines of the aesthetic mastopexy patterns and the pattern is adjusted. Post-operatively, xeroform gauze and Bacitracin ointment are placed on the wound edges. The xeroform gauze is removed after two days, by the patient, in the shower. It is common…
Many patients with breast cancer either choose or have cancers that are amenable to successful treatment with lumpectomy and radiation. This tends to be performed in an outpatient setting. Patients are instructed to wear a sports bra for 6 weeks after surgery. A high protein diet is important to facilitate healing after IORT or to get the wounds healed in…
Patients will frequently ask if it is possible to undergo mastectomy reconstruction if they have had previous lumpectomy and whole breast radiation. There are different options for patients who undergo previous radiation therapy. If there is ample tissue present on the abdominal wall, the lower abdomen can serve as the donor site for tissue to be transferred to reconstruct the…
Abdominal wall reconstruction and hernia repair are common procedures. Patients who have hernias from prior procedures or from genetic defects in the abdominal wall typically have high satisfaction rates with their reconstruction. Not only can the abdominal wall reconstruction improve pain associated with a hernia, it also improved the abdominal contour. After the intestines are returned to the abdominal wall,…
Rhinoplasty is a common procedure to soften up the features of the face. Quite frequently these small changes to the face can have a great impact. One of the more common reasons that patients request a rhinoplasty procedure is to remove the dorsal hump from the nose. Removing this dorsal hump and slightly improving the contour of the nasal tip…
Breast cancer can be treated with lumpectomy or mastectomy, depending upon the size of the cancer, location, size of the breast, and genetic positivity for cancer syndromes. Oncoplastic reconstruction of lumpectomy defects involves reconstructing the patients breast with their own breast tissue. Typically the breasts are made smaller and placed into a better position. This improved position often facilitates radiation…
In patients who have undergone radiation therapy, breast reconstruction with mammary prosthesis may be challenging. Often implants may become repeatedly infected or possibly extrude from the body. When repeated infections occur or if implants extrude from the body, these patients are often not candidates for implant based breast reconstruction. The most common donor site used for breast reconstruction is the…
Rhinoplasty is a commonly performed procedure. There are many reasons why a patient would want to undergo a rhinoplasty operation. One of the more common reasons is to soften the appearance of the nose. Often several small changes can add up and lead to a significant change. Small changes to the profile or nasal tip can make the overall appearance…
There are two broad categories of breast reconstruction for mastectomy. There is expander-implant reconstruction and autologous flap reconstruction. Tissue expander and implant reconstruction is often selected in patients who have not undergone radiation therapy. At the time of mastectomy, a tissue expander is placed at the location of the mastectomy pocket and often in conjunction with an acellular dermal matrix…
