Plastic Surgery and Its Variations Print
Written by Dr. Raju Raj Pandey, Consultant Plastic Surgeon Sunday, 22 March 2009 04:06   
In last edition I described the historical perspectives of plastic surgery. Plastic surgery dated back to more than 600 B.C. and the term plastic surgery was described by Greek meaning by molding or to give shape. 

It is not only the specialty alone but the subject is link with multispecialties. It doesn’t have any protocol to deal with; however, is consistent with wide spectrum of its application. It is very important branch which reconstruct the damaged structure and bring it to almost normal. It not only corrects the problem but also enhances the quality of the structure. It rejuvenates, increases the self-esteem and quality of life.

Plastic surgery as a subject is having wide applications. It is divided into various subspecialties. Burn and burn related problems are well managed with plastic surgical techniques. Acute burn is the major problem in our society due to the habit of open fire cooking in our village. The children are the major victims. Similarly kerosene and gas cooking also causes major burn in urban societies. Plastic surgery deals with the problem and reconstructs related to burn deformities.

The other subspecialties is maxillofacial surgery which deals with the cleft lip and cleft palate. Similarly all other congenital maxillofacial problems are corrected with the different techniques.
To close the major wounds are sometimes very difficult. Plastic surgery is immense in the closure of those types of wound. The specialty is dealing with varieties of the wound and wound related problems. Many different flaps are designed to close those wounds as skin grafts only might not be enough to close the wounds.
Transplantation surgery is one of the recent medical breakthrough. Face transplant are carried out in many countries. French surgeons were the first to start with. Similarly fingers and limb transplantation are routine in many centers. The success rate of penile transplantation is also reported.

The plastic surgery will never complete without the description of Aesthetic surgery. Eyelid surgery (Blepharoplasty) is very popular in Japan and Korea to make the double eyelid fold. Nose surgery (Rhinoplasty) is both popular in eastern and western countries. Augmentation Rhinoplasty is popular in countries like Japan, Korea, China and Thailand to augment with Silicon mostly. Reduction Rhinoplasty is more popular in western countries. Face lift is very common in old age groups. Breast surgery is also very popular. Both augmentation mammoplasty (Silicon Breast) and reduction mammoplasty are popular in the society. Tummy  Tuck (Abdominoplasty) and liposuction are another very commonly done procedure to those who are seeking to decrease their abdominal girth. Laser surgery is the latest development in plastic surgery and are very important means to treat some kinds of problem like hemangioma, naevus etc.

To summarize plastic surgery is very unique with its multifunctional application. 

 
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