Keith gadson

What are stretch marks and what can you do to get rid of them?
Stretch marks are a type of scar to the skin, sometimes referred to as "striae" by doctors. They are caused by a tear in the dermis, or the deeper layer of skin, often from abrupt stretching of the tissue. This rupture of the collagen and elastin leaves a permanent scar when it heals, and from the surface, this develops into a visible stretch mark as we know it.

When they first appear, stretch marks are very dark in color, often purple or red. They can be raised above the skin and slightly puffy and itchy. The good news is that the appearance of stretch marks improves with time. Over a year, the color fades from red to a pale color, and the marks flatten or appear slightly depressed below the level of the surrounding skin.

Who is at risk for stretch marks?
Everyone has the capacity to develop stretch marks, but those with extreme hormone levels (such as pregnant women) or individuals with a family history of stretch marks may be more susceptible. I have heard many women call them their "tiger stripes," a physical representation of just what their abdomen did to accommodate their growing baby.

Outside of pregnancy, many teens develop stretch marks during puberty in response to their growing and changing body. Extreme muscle building and fluctuations in body weight may also cause stretch marks to appear as the body contour changes. The prolonged use of some medications which can thin the skin, like corticosteroids, may also cause stretch marks to appear.

How can you get rid of stretch marks?
Unfortunately, like a scar anywhere else on your body, stretch marks are permanent. But a scar massage may help to improve the appearance of your stretch marks if started early in the progression. Applying pressure to your scar or stretch mark may quicken the maturation of your scar and help to improve its appearance. Massages are recommended at least once daily as soon as the stretch mark or scar appears. After one year, the scar is typically fully mature.

If your stretch marks are red in appearance, there is limited research to show that the ingredients hyaluronic acid and tretinoin may have a small benefit in improving the pigment of your stretch marks. Vascular laser treatments may improve the redness or pigment changes in your stretch marks. While some of these modalities may help improve the appearance of your stretch mark, none of them will make it completely go away

Is there anything you can do to prevent stretch marks?
The quick answer to this question is maybe. Keeping the skin well hydrated and avoiding excessive weight gain may be your only chance to prevent permanent damage to the skin. While research has yet to find the perfect product to prevent stretch marks, controlling changes to our body and weight may be our best bet to keep our skin looking healthy and smooth.

Why facelifts are growing more popular with younger people
Facelifts are commonly seen as a cosmetic procedure only reserved for those 60 and older. However, in recent years, the surgery has gained popularity among younger people.

Nearly 6,000 facelifts were performed in the United States. in 2019 on patients under the age of 54. In fact, this age group accounted for 34% of all facelifts performed last year. As younger people continue to gravitate towards facelifts, it's important to understand why.

The benefits of getting a facelift early
A lot of facelift patients tend to let aging take its course until their 60s or 70s and then decide to get a facelift. While the surgery provides amazing results, the amount of tissue repositioning and adjustment it requires leads to a lengthy recovery period. For younger people, a quicker recovery time is expected as well as a more youthful aging process.

In addition, when patients over the age of 60 get facelifts, they typically try to reverse aging by 20 years at once. Doing this can lead to dramatic results compared to those aiming for only five or 10 years. Because younger people do not go back in time as far, their results tend to look more natural.

Best anti-aging options for younger people
When it comes to aging, thinking about your skin and how it will evolve is an important thing to consider while you're young. Those under the age of 30 should already be taking care of their skin in simple ways such as applying sunscreen every day and avoiding lengthy exposure to direct sunlight. By avoiding UV damage, you dramatically slow the development of fine lines, wrinkles, age spots and sagging skin.

Once the first signs of facial aging start to appear in your 30s, nonsurgical, injectable options like Botox® or Dysport® are a great way to minimize wrinkles and fine lines. It is commonly known that these injections relax the muscles for months at a time, but something important to note is that they also prevent the muscles from contracting, which minimizes wrinkles from worsening. This is a great option for those looking to slow their aging process.

Once patients reach their 40s and 50s, that is typically when getting a mini facelift is recommended. Compared to a standard facelift, a mini facelift is a less invasive procedure than a full, extensive surgery. In addition, the mini facelift typically requires half the recovery time of a traditional facelift and may be performed in-office with local anesthesia. The results of a mini facelift are natural-looking and the recovery period is milder which makes this procedure ideal for patients who want to maintain a youthful look.

Planning for the future
With so many different facelift options available for all types of skin concerns, it is easy to understand why the procedure has caught the attention of younger people. Every person's anatomy and aging process is unique and requires different types of anti-aging treatments and procedures.

However, starting to plan for the future at a young age is a smart option and can lead to a more youthful and natural aging process. If you are interested in learning more about how to maintain a youthful look, scheduling an appointment with a board-certified plastic surgeon is a great place to start to learn more about what plan works best for your body.

Tips for choosing a facelift surgeon
According to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, over 120,000 people opt for a cosmetic facelift every year. A facelift can restore the contours of your face, take years off of your appearance and nicely complement other cosmetic procedures you may be considering.

Getting a facelift, also referred to as a rhytidectomy, can be a huge decision and one that should be given careful consideration. One of the most important decisions you can make when undergoing a facelift is choosing your plastic surgeon, in whose hands you will be placing your safety and appearance.

Try googling "Seattle facelift surgeon" for example can help you find an initial batch of plastic surgeons near you but you'll want to thoroughly vet them much further. Here are some tips!

Tips for choosing the right facelift surgeon for you
Look for appropriate credentials
Any plastic surgeon you consider should be certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery, the only plastic surgery board recognized by The American Board of Medical Specialties. Additionally, look for someone who is also a member of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS). Both ensure that your surgeon meets extremely high practice standards.

Research their expertise
Look at photo galleries of a surgeon's work before scheduling a consultation. Doing so will give you an idea of how much experience he or she has with performing facelifts.

It will also help you determine his or her "style" - facelifts are as much about artistry as they are about technical skill, so it's important for you to choose someone who can achieve the look you want.

Trust your gut
You should meet any potential plastic surgeon face-to-face and have an honest conversation about your goals and expectations. During this conversation, pay attention to how the surgeon and staff make you feel. They should be professional, attentive, compassionate, knowledgeable and pleasant.

You should feel comfortable and confident when you leave your appointment. Trust your instincts.

Find out about hospital privileges and accreditations
Understand where the surgery will be performed, and ask about the accreditations of the facility and the qualifications of your care team.

Accredited operating suites will be outfitted with all of the necessary equipment to handle a medical emergency so that you can feel safe and cared for throughout the procedure.

Review testimonials from other patients
Read patient reviews and testimonials – these can be incredibly helpful in getting a more complete picture of what your experience will be like.

These surveys can give insight into important factors such as how the surgeon treats his or her patients, how trustworthy other patients feel the surgeon is and how pleasant or accommodating the office staff are.

The right plastic surgeon makes all the difference
Getting a facelift can be an amazing, life-changing event. Choosing the right plastic surgeon for your procedure can make a significant difference in the experience you have and in achieving your aesthetic goals.

The positive impact of telemedicine in plastic surgery
During the current global COVID-19 pandemic, plastic surgeons from across the nation are utilizing telemedicine to care for their patients. Prior to the pandemic, few providers offered video conferencing options to patients. Now, government and private insurance providers have relaxed regulations making the usability of this technology possible on a wide scale.

Long-term, it is reasonable to suggest the positive impact of telemedicine in plastic surgery will continue. In addition, ensuring patients have access to advanced professional care at a decreased cost can increase patient satisfaction.

It is safe
The immediate benefits of telemedicine directly relate to the current pandemic. Video conferencing abilities make it possible for providers and patients to connect for consultations and follow-up visits without meeting in-person. This greatly reduces the risk of COVID-19 exposure to office staff, patients and providers without delaying patient care.

Indeed, studies have shown that treating patients via telehealth technologies is just as reliable as in-person in terms of identifying complications and addressing post-operative wound healing issues.

Expanded reach to patients in rural areas
Patients in rural areas often lack immediate access to advanced health care and plastic surgery options. Telemedicine changes this. Now, patients from across the globe can connect with the doctor of their choosing (regardless of their location) to discuss treatment options.

The ease and availability of telemedicine also provide patients with easier means of seeking a second opinion. We have seen this benefit firsthand in our practice with patients seeking advanced breast reconstruction procedures like the DIEP flap.

Fewer travel costs for patients
By implementing telemedicine options for patients, travel costs can be greatly reduced. Travel for initial consultations prior to surgery and their associated costs may be eliminated via video conferencing options.

In addition, obtaining a second opinion regarding a medical diagnosis or treatment is greatly facilitated through telemedicine options, especially for patients living in rural areas. Rather than the patient traveling to two separate clinic locations, they can meet with both medical teams from the comfort of home with no additional travel costs.

Downsides to telemedicine
As with any new practice, there are still some downsides to telemedicine. Patient privacy being one of them. Online hackers and platform security issues are a threat to patient privacy, but many online telemedicine platforms are improving their systems and security measures.

Although in-person interaction with patients can never be replaced, the benefits of telemedicine should be embraced and implemented when necessary.

Benefits of having plastic surgery in the winter
Men and women turn to plastic surgery for many different reasons. A common reason, however, is to boost their confidence by enhancing and defining the appearance of their body contours.

Most of these patients link this desire to the summer months when they can show off their physiques in bathing suits, shorts and sundresses. Unfortunately, plastic surgery is something of a multi-step process in that it requires planning, a surgical date and a recovery period. This recovery period can last anywhere from a couple of weeks to a couple of months.

To ensure that your recovery will not interfere with your summer plans, consider scheduling your plastic surgery procedure during the winter so that you have plenty of time to heal. By planning ahead, you can enjoy the warm, summer months participating in something you love, not spending it recovering inside on the couch.

Scars fade
While scarring is an inevitable part of plastic surgery or any other type of surgery, the scarring is always at its worst initially after the procedure. Even after the wound heals, scars will be red, raised and swollen.

While it can take years for all of the discolorations to fade to their final appearance, a significant amount of scar healing happens in the first few months. By choosing to have your surgery during the winter, you are giving your scars ample time to heal and fade before summer, when you may want to show off your figure and expose the areas where scarring is present.

This timing can be especially beneficial for procedures such as tummy tuck surgery, breast augmentation and liposuction.

Swelling disappears
Just as scars can take months to lose their initial redness, swelling can be present for the same amount of time. Most swelling subsides after a few weeks, but the rest of it can take up to six months to fully dissipate. The presence of this swelling affects the overall quality of your results and hinders the appearance of your final contour.

Plan for your surgery early so that all of the expected swelling is gone before summer.

Cold weather allows for easier concealment
Even after you have been cleared to return to your normal activities and routines, you may still experience the visible effects of the recovery process. Winter allows for easier concealment of these recovery effects. Long sleeves, loose sweaters and scarves all enable you to hide the treatment areas until you feel ready to show off your results.

Botox to the jawline – what you need to know
Your facial contour is your first impression. A sharp jawline can give a face the structure it needs and help you look strong and healthy. And in the world of selfies and social media, we are spending more time analyzing our facial structure and improving our appearance.

Some of this is genetic. Even in youth and at ideal body weight, some faces never have the well-defined jaw they desire. Others have a strong facial contour, but with age or weight changes, they begin to lose that chiseled look.

So what does botulinum toxin do?
Botulinum toxin is used cosmetically to paralyze the facial muscles. In the jaw, we can use neurotoxins in the masseter muscle. This is one of many muscles that helps us chew, and you can feel it as a deep prominence along your jawline when you clench your teeth down. It is also a muscle that is sometimes tight in individuals who clench their jaw or grind their teeth at night.

Injections of botulinum toxin to this area will act to weaken the masseter muscle. Functionally, this improves the pain that some people experience in their jaw and also alleviates uncomfortable night grinding. From a cosmetic perspective, this will also work to slim the muscle and create a more narrow lower face and sleeker jaw appearance. It will take a face that is more rectangular in appearance and create a more heart-shaped or inverted triangle type shape.

What else can be done to treat this area?
There are a variety of noninvasive procedures we can offer to treat this part of the face. Botulinum toxin to the masseter muscle will slim the lower face and jaw. Products such as dermal fillers can be used to build up the jaw bone and chin and create an even more chiseled and sculpted look. This can create very crisp angles to the jaw and chin if your native anatomy just isn't as pronounced as you'd like it to be. These fillers are done deeply atop your bone and can last as long as one to two years. Often multiple syringes are needed to achieve the desired look.

If it's a double chin in your selfies that is bothering you, addressing the excess fat in that area can also create a sleeker facial appearance. Kybella is a product that can be injected into the fatty area of a double chin to literally melt away fat and improve facial appearance. Sometimes multiple treatments are needed to achieve the desired results, but the effects are permanent and well worth it for the improved look.

What should you do next?
If you are interested in improving the appearance of your facial contour, meeting with a board-certified plastic surgeon is your first step to a chiseled jawline. Your surgeon will perform a careful facial analysis and present with you non-invasive as well as surgical options to achieve your goal.

Three contouring options for your post-quarantine body
You have learned how to make a sourdough starter, you are eating cake for breakfast and your local gym is shut down, so no workouts for you. While you may have heard about the "freshman 15" when you were in college, the "quarantine 15" is the same idea.

Reports from physicians across the country are showing that quarantine orders have contributed to changes in dietary and exercise habits and are causing people to gain weight. If quarantine has been hard on you, there's still plenty of time to get in shape in 2021, and some body contouring options that can help you feel your best in what we all hope is a more joyous and satisfying post-COVID world.

Change your dietary and exercise habits
Before considering any body contouring procedures, you want to break your quarantine habits. Get back to eating healthy and start a regular exercise routine. Even if restrictions are keeping your gym doors closed, you can get out for a daily walk or start an online exercise program you can do from home. Getting back into a healthy routine will help you lose any additional pounds, as well as help your body contouring results last longer.

Top three body contouring options
Body contouring, or body sculpting, involves surgical and non-surgical procedures that address the changes to your body after weight loss. This can include sagging abdominal skin, stubborn fat that resists dietary changes and exercise, as well as altering the shape of breasts. There are three body sculpting procedures in particular that can be ideal for addressing the quarantine 15 and giving you back the look you want.

Liposuction
Liposuction is a body contouring procedure that targets pockets of stubborn fat that refuse to drop no matter how many crunches you do. While lipo is not designed for weight loss, it is an ideal body contouring procedure for someone close to their ideal body weight and looking to remove unwanted fat. Liposuction is not limited to the abdominal area and can target fat in the thighs, hips and buttocks, upper arms, back, inner knees, chest, calves and ankles.

For your lipo procedure, you can expect to receive anesthesia. Your surgeon inserts a thin cannula through a small incision to loosen the excess fat. Once broken up, this fat is suctioned out of the body. After your procedure, you will likely wear a compression garment to help reduce swelling and compress your skin to the new contours created. While you may notice some immediate results, it can take several months for all the swelling to subside and your final results to show. Your liposuction results can be long-lasting if you maintain a healthy diet and regular exercise routine.

Tummy tuck
A tummy tuck, or abdominoplasty, is a surgical procedure that addresses sagging skin, weak muscles and pockets of fat in the abdominal area. With traditional tummy tucks, you leave the hospital with a drain in place to remove excess fluids that build up. A drainless tummy tuck avoids your body's lymphatic system, enabling you to naturally drain this fluid after your tummy tuck. In many cases, a drainless tummy tuck will also include liposuction.

With a tummy tuck, you can expect to take at least 2 weeks off from school or work for your recovery, but if you are working from home during quarantine, this is the perfect time. Once your swelling and tightness subside, you will see a flatter and firmer waistline and the body contours you were looking for. Just keep eating healthy and following a regular exercise routine and you can enjoy that slimmer waistline for years to come.

Mommy makeover
If you really want to address body changes and give yourself some new contours, a full mommy makeover may be the way to go. This personalized surgery combines a variety of different body contouring procedures, such as a tummy tuck, liposuction, breast augmentation, breast lift, and/or breast reduction. Your surgeon will discuss your goals and help you determine which procedures to include in your mommy makeover. Recovery times for a mommy makeover will vary depending on your general health and which procedures you include.

Good candidates for a mommy makeover will have completed their family with no plans for additional children, as childbirth could undo all the work your plastic surgeon does. Maintaining a healthy diet and regular exercise program helps you keep your results for years to come.

What you need to know about arm lifts
Public figures like Michelle Obama and celebrities like Jennifer Aniston are admired far and wide for their sleek, toned arms. It's no wonder – having slim, sculpted arms can make a huge difference in how you feel about yourself. Unfortunately, even with a healthy diet and regular exercise, it can be difficult to get rid of stubborn arm fat.

But increasingly, people have been turning to plastic surgery to help them achieve the beautiful, red carpet-worthy arms they dream of. In fact, plastic surgeons performed over 18,000 arm lifts in 2019 alone.

What can an arm lift do for your appearance?
Everyone has seen the dreaded "batwing." It's the excess fat and/or loose skin on your upper arms that jiggles when you wave and adds inches to your arms when they're resting at your sides.

No matter how trim you are, it's possible to have this "batwing" effect happen to you. This is because it's not always about muscle tone. If you have loose skin or stubborn fat deposits, diet and exercise cannot fix that.

An arm lift, or brachioplasty, can tighten, lift and smooth the skin and tissues of your arm for a more sleek and sculpted shape. It can also remove fat deposits that aren't responsive to exercise.

Are you a good candidate for an arm lift?
The best arm lift candidates meet the following criteria:

Have a stable, relatively healthy weight
Have significant amounts of loose upper arm skin
Have no serious medical conditions
Have realistic expectations for the procedure
It is important to remember that an arm lift is not an alternative to weight loss and exercise, so be sure to ask a qualified, board-certified plastic surgeon about what your results will likely be.

What can you expect during an arm lift?
An arm lift is an outpatient procedure that typically takes just a couple of hours.

During the surgery, you will be placed under general anesthesia. The surgeon will make an incision either on the back or inside of the arm. Excess fat may then be surgically removed, or the surgeon may use liposuction. He or she will discuss this with you beforehand.

The surgeon will also tighten the underlying tissues and shape them into more aesthetically pleasing contours. If there is a lot of excess skin, the surgeon will remove it in a way that minimizes scarring as much as possible.

Finally, he or she will smooth the remaining skin over the new contours of your arm and close the incision.

What will your recovery be like?
You will have some bruising and swelling following the procedure, but you will begin to see noticeable improvement right away. There may be lingering discomfort for a week or two, but it will fade as you heal.

Your surgeon will give you specific care instructions, and you will have a compression garment to wear to minimize swelling and speed recovery. You should refrain from strenuous activities, especially those that include bearing weight or lifting your arms.

There will be an incision scar, but your surgeon will ensure that it is as small and unobtrusive as possible. Full recovery usually takes about two weeks.

Choosing a plastic surgeon
When you're deciding on a surgeon to perform your arm lift, be sure to choose a plastic surgeon who is board-certified and operating out of an accredited medical facility. These factors will ensure that you are getting the best, safest and most advanced care possible.

You can achieve your ideal arms with plastic surgery
When diet and exercise can only get you so far, an arm lift can be a great way to get the smooth and sexy arms that you've dreamed of.