Brachioplasty, also known as an arm lift, is an elective outpatient surgery designed to remove excess skin and fat along the arms. This treatment has become more and more popular over the years and offers both women and men an effective way to give the upper arms a more youthful and firm appearance. As with any surgery, there will be scarring after an arm lift procedure. The degree of scarring will vary between patients. Some of the factors that can contribute to the extent of visibility of your scars are:  Skin tone  A history of raised scars or keloids  Sun exposure  The precise location of the scars  The incision for a brachioplasty will be made from the elbow to the… Continue Reading

Any surgical recovery covers a spectrum and it will largely depend on the individual and how prepared they are physically/mentally entering surgery. Overall, we say DIEP flap breast reconstruction recovery is 6-8 weeks. This does not mean that you necessarily need to take that much time off work. Typically around week 3-4 patients are feeling much more like themselves and are beginning to incorporate physical activity back into their lives. During your hospital stay physical therapy will be seeing you daily and this may be arranged following your discharge from the hospital to expedite your recovery. You will need to wear the support bra and abdominal binder for approximately 1 month following surgery as your body recovers and heals. You… Continue Reading

A bilateral (both breasts) DIEP flap surgery on average takes 6-8 hours to perform from start to finish. Following surgery the patient is moved to the PACU (post-anesthesia care unit) briefly prior to being transferred to the ICU overnight. Overnight you will remain in the ICU for close monitoring of the DIEP flap hourly. The following day you will begin physical therapy and your journey to recovery. Typically DIEP flap breast reconstruction patients are staying 2-3 nights in the hospital before being released home. Prior to discharge from the hospital, we will ensure your pain is managed with the pain medications your will take at home and that you feel safe/stable when walking. You will have several JP drains that… Continue Reading

The DIEP flap breast reconstruction is an excellent option for those patients that desire to use their own tissue to reconstruct their breasts following a mastectomy. The incision across the abdomen resembles an abdominoplasty (tummy tuck) incision. However, the breast incision pattern will vary from patient to patient. Most often the biggest determining factor is if the patient has had prior radiation to the chest and the degree of radiation damage. Typically, the more severe the radiation damage is there is a higher likelihood of having a larger skin paddle (abdominal skin) exposed. The most common breast incision patterns with DIEP flap breast reconstruction are a “buried” flap (the entire abdominal tissue is under the mastectomy skin), mastopexy (breast lift)… Continue Reading

A mastectomy or breast cancer diagnosis can be traumatic for both the patient and their loved ones. Fortunately, for many people they have the opportunity to reconstruct their breasts. There are several options for breast reconstruction, but we will be focusing on DIEP flap breast reconstruction at this time. DIEP stands for ‘deep inferior epigastric perforator’, which describes the blood vessels used to keep the flap/tissue alive when it is transferred from the abdomen to the breast. The lower abdomen tissue is obtained via an abdominoplasty (tummy tuck) incision and the tissue is transferred to the breast/chest to reconstruct the breast. It is similar to its predecessor the TRAM flap, however the DIEP flap preserves the abdominal muscles allowing for… Continue Reading

Gynecomastia is a benign medical condition of enlarged glandular tissue of the male breast. There are a variety of factors that can lead to this condition, but the most commonly it is an unknown cause. A surgery can be performed to excise (remove) the glandular tissue through a half circle incision along the areola edge. This incision will disguise well along the areola when the scar fully matures. After the excision of this tissue it will not come back. However, if one gains excessive weight the fat cells of the breast/chest may increase in size. If this occurs, the fat cells may be removed via liposuction, which can be combined with traditional gynecomastia surgery if desired. In conclusion, the excision… Continue Reading

Gynecomastia is the presence of enlarged breast tissue/glands in males. This is a benign condition, which could be cause by a variety of factors including: medication side effects, puberty, steroids, or idiopathic in nature (meaning it occurred for an unknown reason). Fortunately, there is a surgical procedure to remove (excise) this glandular tissue to reduce the outward appearance of breast tissue with males. Depending of the amount of glandular tissue and fat a patient has, this procedure could either be done in an outpatient surgical setting if liposuction is required or in our office. The vast majority of the men that have gynecomastia can have the procedure in our office under local anesthesia. If done in the office, you will… Continue Reading

The board-certified surgeons of Florida Plastic Surgery Group answer common questions about how breastfeeding can be affected by breast augmentation and pregnancy’s effects on tummy tuck surgery. Jacksonville, FL – The Jacksonville plastic surgeons at Florida Plastic Surgery Group say many women who come to their practice seeking options to renew their appearance often have questions about the potential effects that procedures may have on a future pregnancy (or vice-versa). They note that two of the most popular procedures at the practice, breast augmentation and tummy tuck surgery, are of particular concern to individuals who are planning on continuing to build their families. Some of the most common questions about the relationship between those plastic surgery options and pregnancy involve… Continue Reading