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The demand for certain procedures in cosmetic surgery changes from year to year, and techniques develop.
To keep up with new trends, the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ASAPS), the leading national organization of board-certified plastic surgeons who specialize in cosmetic surgery, publishes its predictions for cosmetic surgery for the coming year, publish their predicition of trends yearly, and of course also for 2011.

These predictions are based on patient questionnaires as well as interviews with surgeons who are chairing the countries leading academic Plastic surgery departments.
They are also influenced by publications in relevant scientific literature.
This expose is a very valuable predictor both for patients and surgeons working in the field of aesthetic surgery.

These forecasts have shown to be very reliable in recent years.

For me the most interesting trends for cosmetic surgery in Spain trends are the following:

1. The society foresees that demand for facelifts and other facial rejuvenation surgery will increase.
This is a relativeley easy prediction since growing age in the overall population will always fuel facelift surgery numbers.
Recent techniques with less invasive procedures have made the procedure regain popularity.
Non-surgical facial rejuvenation procedures will also see some growth, and I believe they will continue to do so in the coming years.

2. Our population is more and more aware of the dangers and health consequences of obesity, and the number of patients seeking plastic surgery procedures for body contouring after dramatic weight loss (abdominoplasty, lower body lift, upper arm lift, etc.) will rise in 2011.

We have seen a steady increase in such surgeries in the last years, with specific demand for combined body contouring procedures (so called „mummy makeover“).

In this kind of surgery, an abdminoplasty(tummy tuck) is usually combined with a breast surgery procedure, usually breast augmentation with or without breast uplift.
Other combinations are possible and frequent.

Recent publications have clearly shown this to be a safe procedure for a skilled surgcial team and patient satisfaction rates tend to be signifcantly higher as compared to single stage procedures.

In our own publication of 132 cases,the second largest series published worldwide so far, we have seen the difference in patient satisfaction to be nearly 15 % in favour of the combined group.
With weight loss procedures on the rise, this trend will likely continue both in Europe as well as in the U.S.

3.Breast implants, the second most popular cosmetic surgery in Spain (and worldwide), will continue to grow.
This year many baby boomer women who have aging implants and/or breast ptosis will replace their implants and have breast lifts.
In my department, we have also seen a marked increase in demand for non-implant breast augmentation, mainly Macrolane and fat transfer.
Our Macrolane (non surgical injectable breast augmentation) numbers have doubled in the last six months and we believe this trend will continue.

4. To my assessment buttock augmentation with fat transfer (“Brazilian butt lift”) will be one of the most popular procedures in coming years.
In our department , we currently see a dramatic increase in demand for this kind of surgery, which relies on transplanting fat , usually from flanks and thighs, to augment the buttocks.
The procedure has seen great advances enhancing the survival of fat grafts in recent years, and will continue to do so in the future.
Recent advances in fat transplant technique have made the procedure more predictable and reliable.
It requires a lot of experience in tissue transfer to do the procedure correctly, but I think that the rates of patient satisfaction are really worth it.
I think that the secret of success in this procedure that patients somehow have the feeling to “kill two birds with one stone, since harvesting of the fat, which is done by liposuction with special cannulas, results in some good toning of abdominal and hip areas.

5. As the popularity of non surgical and minimally invasive procedures continues to grow, surgeons and manufacturers will develop new techniques and products that advance the science, produce even better results and lessen recovery time.
This will of course continue in 2011.
In our department laser liposuction is currently an innovative technique which we develop with great enthusiasm.

The quality for Plastic surgery research has steadily increased in recent years and will continue to do so in 2011.

Reproducible data and quality documentation will increase consumer safety and satisfaction.
Patients will be able to rely on reproducible data and less on self declared „artists“.

Following the trend in increased consumer sophistication patients will increasingly want to know if the latest procedure and device being touted on the internet and TV talk show really works and if it is safe.
By incorporating evidence-based medicine into the core specialties of plastic surgery, we will make it easier for both doctors and patients to determine fact from fiction.
This will raise quality in cosmetic surgery in this and coming years.

Currently, we observe an impressive increase in demand for so called “mommy-makeover” surgery. Mommy makeover is the usual terminology for the combination of two body contouring procedures, most popular are the combination of breast augmentation/uplift surgery and tummy tuck (Abdominoplasty).

In my opinion, individuality is the key to success in any kind of aesthetic surgery, and also for breast augmentation.
There is no one-size-fits-all implant. There are different types of implants for breast enlargement that come in different sizes.
Preferences vary amongst patients one patient may like what the other one may not.

In the South of Spain, I work in an environment where patients will spend half of the year on the beach, and good implant size correction is of utmost importance.
Most of our patients are eager to have scar free minimally invasive breast augmentation surgery, and natural fat transfer breats augmentation has become one of our most frequently performed operations.

Fat transfer breast augmentation is our procedure of choice for all patients who are suitable, this means who have at least one problem zone fat tp spare.
Removing this problem zone together with the breats augmentation does significanlty increase patient satisfaction.

However, not all patients wanting breast augmentation have such extra fat.

When using implants, I generally use cohesive silicone gel implants. Cohesive means that the gel is stable, and no evacuation of fluid can occur.

I do not regard saline implants as indicated for any breast , at least not in my practice.

There is no substitute for accurate measurements. The size of an implant is just one aspect, but form and projection are equally important for a perfect result.

Another important factor is skin laxity or looseness. To achieve successful augmentation, you must have enough tissue to cover the breast implant. It is also important to make sure your breasts are even.

My experience, and other surgeons seem to share this, is that patients tend to rather err on the conservative side, meaning that it is very common that patients go for bigger implants later rather than for smaller ones.

There are many types of facelifts.
Every surgeon may have different preferences, but more importantly not every facelift is the same.

The vast majority of facelifts in my department are done with the so called scar sparing (MACS) technique (although not every facelift candidate is advisable for this).

Not only my, but I think the ideas of the majority of Plastic surgeons have changed in recent years , and the trend is going to less invasive procedures and most importantly, have changed from mere stretching to an understanding of volume loss.

When patients come to my Marbella practice for a facelift consultation, I normally ask them to bring me a photo showing themselves at closer range 10-20 years ago.
One nearly always sees that over the years they have lost volume in the midface (a normal effect of aging). There are some exceptions of this rule, but really not that many.

Every aging face does also show frequent areas of skin sagginess (mostly skin and jowls).

We do therefore work a lot with volume restoration in the face together or instead of a facelift.
All patients seeking facelift surgery benefit from that, sometimes together with a facelift, but sometimes even instead of facelift.

In cases of marked nasolabial folds I prefer to restore facial volume with fat grafts (the Bod Jet hydrosurgery technique has made this a very quick and reliable procedure) instead of surgical facelift.

Patient satisfaction with that is very high, and togheter with endolaser (Smartlipo) treatment this combination can make surgical facelift indeed unnecessary.

If an additional surgical facelift is required, volume restoration with fat grafts makes the result significantly better, and helps to keep scars shorter.

Should you require some more extensive information on this procedure, either in the Department of Plastic Aesthetic and Reconstructive Surgery at Hospital Quiron Malaga or in Cirumed Clinic Marbella please contact us.
Facelift marbella, marbella facelift, facelift spain

The working mode of the Voluma facelift is reshaping of ptotic facial soft tissues.
In short terms, the technique works in the following way:

Usually I take a fat graft , usually from the abdomen. Fat grafts have historically been a very troublesome and lengthy procedure, requiring extensive centrifugation of grafts.

The Body Jet technique, which uses a waterbeam irrigation suction system to harvest such fat grafts, has changed this dramatically, and has converted fat grafting into a very swift and straightforward procedure. With the Body jet technique graft take rates are excellent.

In areas of saggy skin, mostly the nasolabial folds and the neck, we add the Smartlipo technique, which is able to add some significant skin retraction of about 25%.

The whole voluma facelift procedure takes about one hour and is done under local anesthetic.
Pateints can go home immediately afterwards. There are no scars.

In my current practice, about 50-60 % of patients wanting a facelift are suitable for this technique, and , in fact, I find that satisfaction rates of these patients are somewhat higher than with „conventional“ facelift techniques with scars.

Should you require some more extensive information on this procedure, either in the Department of Plastic Aesthetic and Reconstructive Surgery at Hospital Quiron Malaga or in Cirumed Clinic Marbella please contact us.

This is an interesting idea that, to my knowledge, still enjoys certain pouplarity in the United States.

The idea sound appealing, because the concept is to use the cesarean incision to perform the abdominoplasty in one go. Nevertheless, our experience with combining a ceasarean with abdominoplasty in the same session is slightly controversial.
It may be done, but the rates of certain complications are , although not uniformly confirmed in scientific literature, slightly raised.

We do routinely use laser scalpel dissection technique in abdominoplasty surgery which improves scar quality and makes the procedure less traumatic.
Laser dissection does also reduce blood loss during the procedure and therewith makes abdominoplasty surgery safer.

For certain patients with very large birth weightsthe combionation is still be an option, because their muscle distension seems to be quite extensive.

On the other hand, scientific literature clearly opines that there is no higher incidence of grave complication such as deep-vein thrombosis when perfoming an abdominoplasty together with a cesarean section.

Whether to the tummy tuck together with the cesarean section or not is something that I indivisually discuss with my cooperating gyneoclogist depending on each individual case. It is, and will remain a controversial topic in the future, and best restricted to patients who have finished their family planning.
Classical abdominoplasty complications, especially seroma, are definitely raised in comparison to sole abdominoplasty.

We do noy have a clear protocol neitehr approving or disregarding this procedure, but decide case dependent together with our cooperating gynecologists.

For more information visit our Homepage:
www.beautymedicine.es/abdominoplasty

Dr. Ramin Pakzad, Clinica Ginecologica Banus