From tips for looking awesome poolside to need-know-facts about who to choose for your cosmetic surgery, we’ve rounded up some of our favorite recent articles from the world of beauty.

“How to Ensure Your Plastic Surgery is Safe,” American Society of Plastic Surgeons

When it comes to your cosmetic procedure, the most important decision you will make is who you choose to perform it. A recent article posted by ASPS will help guide you in making a safe choice.

“Breast Implants vs. Breast Lift—Picking the Right Procedure for you,” American Society of Plastic Surgeons

Despite what many think, breast implants are not a “cure all” when it comes to concerns about your breast appearance—and sometimes a breast lift or combination lift with augmentation is the best solution for providing you with results you’ll love.

“4 Solutions for the Most Common Skin Problems,” Oprah.com

Do you dread hitting the beach and letting every stretch mark or cellulite dimple hang out? Don’t let common skin concerns put a damper on your vacation and follow these tips from Queen O.

The post Hot Topics in Health, Beauty, & Cosmetic Surgery appeared first on Clark Plastic Surgery.

Day 1 – 4

Post Op Appointment: Day after surgery

The first few days after surgery are when you will experience ‘downtime.’ The first 24 – 48 hours is the most important and the most uncomfortable for some. During this time you will have some swelling, pain and it will be sore. This is also the time that requires the most pain medication and you will need a caretaker to help you. Some bruising may appear and you may have fluid retention due to the surgical process. Larger implants and subpectoral (under the muscle) implant placement may also cause greater discomfort. Applying ice packs during the first few days does help to reduce inflammation and pain. I tell my patients they can shower if they are up for it 48 hours after surgery.

Day 4 – 7

Post Op Appointment: Day 8 Stitches Removed

Usually by day 5 you will start to feel a little better, you will have more mobility and most of my patients are off of pain medication by Day 7 when I see them to remove stitches. You will be sent home with in a post-op surgical bra. I like my patients to wear the surgical bra that we send you home in and then you can start wearing a sports bra that hooks in the front or back post op day 5 – 7.  At one week I make an assessment whether the patient needs a breast band to wear over the top of the breasts.  Usually, my patients that have a bit of constricted lower breast will wear the band around the clock for one month.

 Days 9 – 21

The majority of the initial capsule formation occurs during this period and the majority of the swelling should begin to subside. You may have occasional pain at night but the majority of my patients are off pain medication by now. You can resume light daily activities around Day 9. If you have a desk job you should probably be able to go back to work at this time. For those with more strenuous jobs, you may want to wait another week as you don’t want it to affect your result.

 Days 21 – 44

Post Op Appointment: Day 44

When I see you for your six week post op appointment I will give you clearance to resume your daily life. Most people want to know: When can I start working out? Around your six week appointment. Start with light aerobic activity and work your way back into it. I will also let you know you can begin wearing normal bras at this time but hold off on an underwire bra until it feels comfortable, especially with the inframammary incision.

Again, I can’t emphasize enough how each person and each breast augmentation is different so I treat everything and everyone on an individual basis. I have patients that are up and about after under the muscle surgery with 250 cc implants after 3 or 4 days.  It just depends on you!

I hope that you feel like you have a better understanding of the recovery time for after a breast augmentation surgery. If you have any other questions, please feel free to leave me a comment and I can address it in another blog post.

Dr. Christa Clark

The post Recovery After Breast Augmentation appeared first on Clark Plastic Surgery.

In this blog post I will quickly detail the costs associated with Breast Lift surgery for women in Sacramento.

The main reason why Breast Lift surgery is more expensive than Breast Augmentation is TIME. It takes more time to reshape a woman’s breast then just placing an implant under the muscle. I typically will spend 2 – 4 hours performing a mastopexy augmentation versus 90 minutes on a breast augmentation. There are two types of breast lift techniques that I utilize: the anchor pattern and the lolli-pop pattern.

Based on the time that it takes to perform the lift here are the fees associated with this procedure:

• Anesthesia Costs $800.00
• Operating Room $2,000.00
• Surgeons Fee $6,800 – $7,300
• Silicone Implants are $1,641.00 or Saline Implants are $620.00

Total Range for Mastopexy Augmentation $10,220.00 – $11,741.00

Other costs outside of this would be any prescriptions that I order or any other lab work that might need to be done.

I hope that I have answered one of the most common questions about Mastopexy Augmentation surgery. If you have any other questions, please feel free to leave me a comment and I can address it in another blog post.

Dr. Christa Clark

The post Breast Lift (Mastopexy Augmentation): Cost appeared first on Clark Plastic Surgery.

Typically I see women that are candidates for two very common procedures in plastic surgery:

• Breast Augmentation
• Breast Augmentation with a Lift

Today I will be addressing breast augmentation with no lift. Without a lift, Breast Augmentation is a straight forward method of altering your breasts. It takes about 90 minutes and it is performed here in my AAAASF certified operating suite.

• Anesthesia Costs $500.00
• Operating Room $1,500.00
• Surgeons Fee $3,300.00
• Silicone Implants are $1,641.00 or Saline Implants are $620.00

Total for Silicone Implants $6,941.00

Total for Saline Implants $5,920.00

Other costs outside of this would be any prescriptions that I order or any other lab work that might need to be done. Then of course – you just might want to buy yourself some new bras when you are recovered – but that I leave up to you!

I hope that I have answered one of the most common questions around Breast Augmentation. If you have any other questions, please feel free to leave me a comment and I can address it in another blog post.

Dr. Christa Clark

The post Breast Augmentation: Cost appeared first on Clark Plastic Surgery.

The benefits of Retin A are:

• Reduce, lessen and prevent fine lines & wrinkles
• Increase the amount of new collagen formed
• Lighten and improve age spots
• Skin appears more even and ‘dewy’

The way that Retin A works is by increasing the cell turnover within the skin, stimulating collagen production and exfoliating the top layers of skin to reveal fresher, younger looking skin underneath. It comes in a variety of strengths: the 0.025% cream is the ‘starter’ strength, the next step up is the 0.05% and the highest strength is the 0.1% strength. When you first start on Retin A there can be some side effects like redness, irritation or perhaps even some peeling. Once your skin adjusts to the product this should subside over time.

I personally use Retin A every night and wholeheartedly endorse it! Clients in our clinic are asking every day  “what can I do to make my face look better?” and really I think one of the easiest and cheapest things to do is to add Retin A into your nightly skin care routine. Come in – schedule a consult with myself or Maureen, our amazing Aesthetician, to discuss how to incorporate Retin A into your skin care routine and start seeing the benefits today. See you soon.

The post Benefits of Using Retin A appeared first on Clark Plastic Surgery.

The post This Patient’s Story: No More Senior Discounts? appeared first on Clark Plastic Surgery.

According to ABCNews.com who on March 3^rd caught up with ASPS members for a perspective  on the trend toward smaller cup sizes for breast implants. The plastic surgeons unamiously agreed that while region and culture hold definite influence, a shift toward a more natural look now seems to be more common amoung women seeking breast augmentation.*

Overall women realize they want their breast to look natural, and they want to be comfortable with them for the rest of their lives. What was that chant from grade school? “Itty Bitty Titty Committee”… something like that.

Dr. Clark

*Reference: ASPS April/May 2015 Plastic Surgery News

The post Small Breast Implants Trending According to American Society of Plastic Surgeons appeared first on Clark Plastic Surgery.

The society reports nearly 16 million cosmetic procedures were performed in the United States in 2014, including both minimally-invasive and surgical procedures. That’s an increase of 3 percent since 2013. In addition, nearly 6 million reconstructive surgery procedures were performed last year, up 1 percent.

It is interesting to note the top 5 non-surgical procedures were:

1. Botulinum Toxin Type A (6.7 million procedures up 6 percent from 2013 to 2014)
2. Soft tissue fillers (2.3 million procedures up 3 percent from 2013 to 2014)
3. Chemical peel (1.2 million procedures up 7 percent from 2013 to 2014)
4. Laser hair removal (1.1 million procedures up 3 percent from 2013 to 2014)
5. Microdermabrasion (881,905 procedures down 9 percent from 2013 to 2014)

The demand for surgical procedures remained relatively steady overall, with just a 1 percent increase over 2013 to 1.7 million procedures performed in 2014.

The top 5 surgical procedures were:

1. Breast augmentation (286,254 procedures, down 1 percent)
2. Nose reshaping (217,124 procedures, down 2 percent)
3. Liposuction (210,552 procedures, up 5 percent)
4. Eyelid surgery (206,509 procedures, down 4 percent)
5. Facelift (128,266 procedures, down 4 percent)

I find that in my practice, many patients seek minimally invasive options to fight the war on aging.   By doing so they are able to prolong the waiting time until their best option is to have surgery.  There are so many great procedures available today to enhance your look naturally, without looking ‘forced.’

Can you guess what one of the greatest increased surgical procedures last year was? I will give you one hint: the booty! Buttock augmentation via fat transfer (aka the Brazilian Butt Lift) increased just 15%,  however the demand for buttock implants increased 98%. I guess it is “All About the Bass” these days for some women.

I wonder what the trends for 2015 will hold? Leave your comments below and let me know what you think.

Reference:

*American Society of Plastic Surgeons

The post These Were the Top Cosmetic Procedures of 2014 appeared first on Clark Plastic Surgery.

Along with general details about the procedures I offer, I’ll keep the blog regularly updated with other information, including:

• Tips, tricks, and advice about health and beauty
• New treatments and procedures available at my practice
• News about practice events and personnel changes
• Special offers, deals, and discounts available to my patients

I also want this blog to be a place for candid interaction between you and me, so I invite you to reach out. If you’d like to learn more about a particular surgery or medical spa procedure, leave me a comment! I’ll do my best to address it in an upcoming post. Thanks for reading!

The post Welcome to My Blog appeared first on Clark Plastic Surgery.