I recently attended the American Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons Meeting in San Francisco a few weeks ago. It is usually a busy time with lectures starting at 7 am and ending at 6 pm with evening industry programs. Often, there is not much that is really new, but this meeting had a lot going on.
The form stable implants that have been used very successfully for breast cancer reconstruction are now being advocated for augmentation as well. The implants ( the infamous gummi bear ) are firm and are twice as expensive as standard silicone. However, for the patient who truly wants a “did she or didn’t she” look to her breast augmentation, the smooth upper slope of the implant can be just the ticket. Most patient, however, still like a rounded upper pole and want more volume than the gummi bear implant provides.
There are some new fillers ( Juvederm / Restalyne ) out there that can be placed higher up in the skin level to help minimize fine wrinkles, such as around the mouth. There are also some that are designed for deeper volume, such as in the cheek, but have fewer problems than earlier deep fillers.
The usual assortment of machines were on display. Results can be hit or miss, still. But… properly counseled patients who are willing to risk poor return on their investment can get a nice improvement. While I prefer to provide surgical services, there may be a machine out there someday that may deliver on cost and results to my satisfaction.
Micro needle therapy ( MNT ) uses thousands of needle punctures to encourage collagen growth and provide a good environment to deliver medications to the skin, but getting beat up by a roller that looked like an aerator did not have many takers. There are now MNT pens that are easier to use and provide more even results with less trauma. I am investigating how MNT might be incorporated into our facial aging services.
We have had our current web site for at least 6 years and it needs an update. This will allow it to function on mobile devices better. We will be able to change content easier and may even add some video down the road.
We will also be adding a service called SolutionReach. You may have seen it used by dentists and called Smile Reminder. I always thought its use by dentist (and similar ones by optometrists ) was pretty smart, so I was happy that a similar service was being offered to MD’s. We will use the service to provide appointment reminders of course, but it will also be useful to distribute our newsletters, gather feedback surveys, and lots of other applications to improve communication with the office. More on that to follow.
Mark D. Wigod, MD, FACS, providing cosmetic and reconstructive plastic surgery to Boise, Meridian, Treasure Valley and Southeastern Idaho.
