Nip This Tuck That

OK, I know this sounds obvious but you have to admit that there are plenty of plastic surgery disasters and articles with photos that have shown people including celebrities that had plastic & cosmetic surgery procedures and look worse after the fact…not better. Their Numbers went down and in some cases way…way down.

So, what’s the deal…you ask. Simple, in my 20 years experience as a Beverly Hills Plastic and Cosmetic Surgeon, I have learned to identify the most aesthetically important features of the face and body.

This is not taught to medical students or plastic & cosmetic surgeons in training as counter-intuitive as that sounds. They learn how to perform surgeries like: Face Lifts, Mini Face lifts, neck lifts, Brow Lifts, Eyelid surgery, Blepharoplasty, Rhinoplasty, Cheek Implants, Chin Implant, Lip Augmentation, Hair Transplants, Breast Augmentation with Implants, Tummy Tuck, Liposuction, Botox Injections, Restylane Injections, Juvederm Injections, Evolence Injectios, Perlane Injections, Radiesse Injections, IPL, chemical peels or laser treatments. What constitues beauty may be as foreign to the dermatologist, facial plastic surgeon, cosmetic surgeon or plastic surgeon as martian would be to you. True fact.

You have some plastic & cosmetic surgery or procedure to look more attractive…right? Why is it that this does not always happen? They don’t (both patient and surgeon) know the secrets to the Number System and the palmer code….you need to be the one in charge of your appearance, your life…and Your Number.

My new book “What’s Your Number…the plamer code” is written so that you may understand the most important aesthetic elements, of the face and body, when it comes to your appearance. Then, once you digest that information the book takes you on a journey to personal transformation by allowing you to analyze all aspects of your life both inside and out. Whether you’re interested in a breast augmentation or in the best way to style your hair so you are more attractive…the information is all here in my new book. I figured out what beauty is and how to create in for my plastic and cosmetic surgery patients for 2 decades and now my trade secrets are available to all.

I recently had a patient fly in from out of the country and during her consultation she told me “I want to be a 100 out of 100.” Now, she was referring to her number and 100 is perfect. I spent the rest of the consult showing where her face and body deviated form a score of 100 and the various ways that she could approach that coveted 100. At the very least, My book offers a reliable set of references that we can can all use to communicate our wants, needs and desires. How much more precise was our conversation using my Number System that in the old days when patients would say…”I hate my nose….or My face is sagging…or I’d like larger, fuller breasts.” Now weall can speak the same language….What’s Your Number….and what would you like it to be? Read the book and find out.

Dr Francis Palmer
Beverly Hills Plastic & Cosmetic Surgeon
Creator: What’s Your Number and The Palmer Code

Representing over 18 years of work and research and 18 months to write, my new book is finally here. My experience as a Beverly Hills Plastic and Cosmetic Surgeon and how I discovered the secret to being beautiful inside and out the book is available at Amazon.com and soon will be available on Kindle 2 and in a book store near you.

Featured on ABC’s new hit reality show “True Beauty”, I used the Palmer Code to give the show’s 10 contestants their Face Numbers.

What’s Your Number…the palmer code is a book about personal transformations using the power that’s locked inside each and everyone of us once you learn the secrets. Celebrities, the rich, powerful and famous know how to improve themselves, so why shouldn’t you? If you are interested in plastic surgery like Eyelid surgery, Face Lifts, Brow Lifts, Rhinoplasty, Cheek Implants, Chin Implants, Lip Enhancement, Lip Augmentation, Blepharoplasty, Eyelifts, Breast Augmentation, Breast Implants, Lasers, Chemical peels, Mini Lifts, Botox Injections, Tummy Tucks, Liposuction, Restylane, Perlane, Radiesse, Juvederm plus and Evolence, skin care, Rogaine, propecia, haircuts, haircolor, makeup, choosing the right clothes, doing the right exercises or improving your relationships at home, work and spiritual…this book is a must read.

So the only question remaining is…what’s your number and what would you like it to be?

Francis R Palmer MD

This morning Aol posted this article about the Perfect Female Body Shape Seems there is a debate over appearance versus function..ie. which body shape is stronger, more effecient which is amusing to me because none of those things equate to beauty. Beauty, as a Beverly Hills Plastic and Cosmetic Surgeon with 20 years experience creating human beauty…is quite simply that which the general population regards as beautiful….and is the topic of my new book due out this march.

In my book, I break the beauty’s code and describe it in terms readers can understand and most importantl, acheive for themselves. If you can’t wait to find out how your face or body compares to the ideal beauty ( and Yes, Virginia despite what you’ve been told there are ideal beauties…just look to Hollywood stars for examples….Brad Pitt, Angelins Jolie, Halle Berry, George Clooney, Jennifer Aniston and Jessica Alba just to mane a few)….get Your Beauty Number

Whether you are a celebrity, have had plastic & cosmetic surgery or procedures (Brow Lift, Rhinoplasty, Eye Lift (blepharoplasty), Lip Implants, Cheek Implants, Chin Implant, Breast Implants, Face Lift, Mini Face Lift, Neck Lift, Tummy Tuck, Liposuction, Laser Resurfacing, Restylane, Perlane, Radiesse, Sculptra, Juvederm or Lip Implants or are curious about how to improve yourself.
Francis R Palmer III, MD Voted one of the “World’s Best” Plastic Surgeons
Creator “What’s Your Number” System

Have you ever wonder how much of an improvement you have gotten after doing something to improve yourself? Whether you have just changed your hair color, haircut, hair style, new clothes, new makeup, lost weight, started to exercise, or had a plastic and cosmetic surgery or non-invasive treatment like Botox, Restylane, Evolence, Radiesse, Sculptra, Juvederm, soft tissue fillers, Face Lift, neck lift, Rhinoplasty, Cheek Implants, Chin Implants, Lip Implants, breast implants, tummy tuck, Hair Transplants, Laser treatment, skin care, liposuction or any other treatment and or procedure to improve your appearance? Over 40 million aesthetic plastic and cosmetic surgery treatments and procedures were performed in the US last year and double that worldwide…so there are many, many people concerned about the way they look and are seeking ways to make themselves look better.

Many millions more buy makeup, have their hair styled and colored and exercise all to improve their appearance…but how successful have they been? Until now, there was no accurate way to document the improvement and quantify the degree of change. Welcome to my “What’s Your Number”(R) concept and system which will be fiully outlined in my upcoming book due out this March. You can find out if that hairstyle, makeup, treatment or surgery improved your appearrance and more importantly…by how much. All you have to do is go to “What’s Your Number“ web site, upload a photo of you before and one after whatever you did to improve your appearance and you will get your answer. You can finally be in control of your appearance and be empowered to make accurate decisions when it comes to improving yourself and the way you look.

Dr Francis Palmer, III
Beverly Hills Plastic & Cosmetic Surgeon

The “Celebrity Lift” continues to gain popularity because of what it isn’t.  It isn’t a large incision like the traditional Face Lift Surgeries.  It isn’t the large amount of tissue dissection that occurs with traditional Face Lifts or some of the so-called non-invasive mini lifts that go through incisions inside the mouth and scalp dissecting the entire midface off the facial bones which is a very large dissection indeed.  It isn’t the swelling, bruising and discomfort that many other types of face lifts and Mini face lifts can create.  No, on the contrary,  The “Celebrity Lift” is designed to have limited incisions, limited but highly focused and effective tissue dissection (including the muscle layer) and because of these two factors, the “Celebrity Lift” has a very rapid recovery.  Many of our patients fly home to New York, Chicago, Miami, Houston, Dallas, Sand Diego or to Milan, Florence, Lndon, Paris, Istanbul, Dubai, and all over the world in a matter of days…not weeks.

I like to think of the Clebrity Lift as a way for my patients to look 10 years younger in 90 minutes or less without anesthesia…although that is certainly still an option at our fully accredited surgery center where we perform Rhinoplasty, revision Rhinoplasty, Face Lifts, Eyelifts (Blepharoplasty), cheek implants, chin implants, hair transplants, botox injections, soft tissue fillers like radiesse, Perlane, Restylane and Juvederm, Lip Augmentation, Brow lifts, Breast Augmentation, Breast Lifts, Tummy Tucks, Liposuction, skincare and skin resurfacing using chemical peels.

Dr. Francis R Palmer, III

Beverly Hills Plastic and Cosmetic Surgery “Beauty Tip of the Day” from Beverly Hills Plastic and Cosmetic Surgeon, Dr. Francis R Palmer, III: “Interested in looking more attractive?  Perhaps more youthful as well?  If so and you’re the type that loves getting the latest Plastic and Cosmetic Surgery Procedure…let me share a recent story with you.  A patient came in for some facial rejuvenation….wanted to look more youthful and attractive.  Simple enough request, right?

Turns out that the patient had already spent a small fortune chasing the latest non-invasive laser treatments all over Beverly Hills….with little or no result.  Why?  Simple enough once again.  The patient needed removal of about 2 inches of skin from each side of the face and neck as well as a more youthful shaping of the cheeks in order to accomplish her goal of looking more youthful, feminine and attractive.  No laser, light, chemical or radio frequency treatment available today is capable of delivery these kinds of results.

What was needed was some type of lift….like the “Celebrity Lift” with minimal incisions and then radiesse to shape the cheeks….some fat also needed to be removed from the nasolabial folds to further accentuate the cheeks.  OK…so what’s the morale here?

Again, quite simple.  New technology in Plastic and Cosmetic Surgery doesn’t always mean more effective…ie that you’ll get better results.  When seeking self-improvement and enhancement with Plastic and Cosmetic Surgery Procedures…never loose sight of the aesthetic goals….if there’s a newer, less invasive Plastic and Cosmetic Surgery Procedure (like the Celebrity Lift) that can accomplish those goals…great!  If not, that newer technology is something that you simply…just…don’t need…period!

 Dr. Francis R Palmer, III

 Just finished a very interesting case.  Patient had an upper Tummy Tuck (Abdominoplasty) about 5 years ago by another Plastic Surgeon.  The Tummy Tuck is performed to remove excess skin over the abdominal area and to tighten the abdominal muscles.  She was never really happy with the amount of excess skin that remained after the procedure.  We had removed her Saline Breast Implants, that had encapsulated making the breasts hard and mis-shapen and replaced them with slightly larger ones over a year ago.  Today she was back to flaten out her abdomen with another Tummy Tuck (Abdominoplasty).

 I’m not a big fan of the upper Abdominoplasty because the scar goes across the top of the abdomen but she had already had the procedure perfomed using that incision and approach.  In simple terms, the blood supply to the skin of the abdomen comes from above, below and the sides.  Once an incision was made along the top, that blood supply wass compromised so…if I made an incision from below, as is done in a standard Tummy Tuck (Abdominoplasty), the blood supply would have ben compromised from top and below.  The result could be dead skin and a big mess.  So reluctantly, I made an upper incision for the Tummy Tuck.  This illustrates an important point in my line of work…sometimes you are forced to do things differently then you would like by the patients previous surgical history.  This was just such a case.

 The procedure went very well and she should be happy.  I tacked the upper edge of the skin incisioin to the deep tough tissues of the chest to keep the incision and gravity from pulling it downward.  I also placed multiple quilting sutures that go between the underside of the elevated skin and the underlying muscle fascia (thick tough layer over the muscle).  Placed one dain to drain blood and fluid from under the skin flap that exits on the side of the belly button where it shouldn’t leave a noticeable scar.  Abdominal binder for a couple of weeks and no strenuous activity for 6-8 weeks.  Closed the incision in multiple layers with dissovable stitches.

 The patient had a Laser Face peel elsewhere that left a line of demarcation on the neck, so I used some 30% TCA to feather that edge.  Also used the TCA to perform a lower lid chemical peel.  She’ll go to the after care facility for several days where muscle relaxants will make her comfortable.  I’ll see her postop after my surgery cases tuesday.  I will follow up with her after replacing her Breast Implants a few months back….she had them done years ago by another plastic surgeon and just wanted them slightly smaller and more shapely.

 While I was busy in the OR…Robyn, my wife and Master in Nursing, was busy doing Botox and Restylane injections one after the other.  Warm weather makes people more conscious about their skin and Botox, Restylane, Radiesse and our Francis R Beverly Hills Skin Care Products get very…very…popular!

Read more about Abdominoplasty (Tummy Tucks) here:

http://www.drfpalmer.com/Abdominoplasty.html

Read more about Breast Augmentation with Breast Implants here:

http://www.drfpalmer.com/BreastAugmentation.html

Dr. Francis R Palmer, III

Remember the woman that I wrote about having the chemical peel several days ago?  Well she came in Friday just for a post treatment checkup……she walked through the door and I was reminded why I typically don’t see Laser and Chemical patients within the first week.  I’m afraid they’ll hurt me!  The patient was all different shades of brown with some swelling, partly from the chemical peel ( I mean it’s a chemical burn after all) and partly from the Radiesse that I injected to fill out her cheek area.  She was 3 days post-procedure and has been a great patient, of mine, for some time.  She was happy and not disturbed by what she saw,  but we did have a good laugh when I mentioned….the hurt me part.  Just kidding.  She’ll have soft, beautiful, pink skin 5-7 days after the chemical peel…..Laser would be weepy for 7 days then pink at about 10 days.  Why, because the Laser burns deeper into the skin.

 I tell all of my patients that the skin doesn’t know how we remove the layers of the skin…we could use sandpaper, chemicals, wire brushes/diamond burs (dermabrasion) or a Laser….the skin only knows what type of injury was created by the depth of penetration…or said another way, by the # of layers of skin that were removed.  The more layers removed, the longer the healing time. 

 Over the past 5 years, or so, I have gotten away from deeper peels with the Laser.  I use our Cosmeceutical skin care products (Francis R Beverly Hills…www.frbh.com), micodermabrasion, IPL (Intense Pulsed Light treatments…no downtime) and only seldomly can be convinced, by a patient, to do a 30 percent TCA chemical peel.  Why, because the reality is that you can have great looking skin without deep Lasers and Chemical peels today…you just need the right skin care advice. 

 Here’s a tip:  astringents, AHA acids and even retin-A can irritate the skin…..think red irritated skin’s going to look good?  Really?  Free your mind from the notion that you need to be red, flaky and irritated for beautiful skin, because I believe that to be nonsense.  Instead, Hydrate and rejuvenate your skin using skin care products, like our Ultimate Lift that are designed to increase collagen in your skin.  Your skin will be softer, smoother and more attractive….just think: NO MORE RED OR FLAKY SKIN, EVER!

How cool is that?

  Did an interesting case today.  Full face TCA chemical peel.  I prefer to use 30 percent TCA….thrichloroacetic acid…say that 5 times really fast.  The TCA at that concentration (30 percent) gives a medium strength peel that will give the entire face a fresh look in about 1 week.

 The chemical is applied to clean skin.  The patient can be awake or under anesthesia for about 10 minutes.  The woman today decided to go to sleep.  The TCA is applied with gauge.  As the chemical evaporates, the skin begins to turn a white color.  This never happens with a single application of TCA and never happens evenly.  On the contrary, mutiple applicatipons are required and the face starts to take on a patch-work of pink with shades of white and off-white.  The trick to doing a great TCA peel is to fan the patien…my scrub nurse does the fanning…as I apply the TCA.  This allows a rapid and accurate assessment of when the skin is peeled just right.  The just-done look is when there is an even white color to the entire face.  You have to watch constantly however because that white color will only last a few minutes and then the skin will return back to the patch-work of pink and off white.  If you’re not paying attention, too much acid could be applied causing a deeper peel then desired.

 After the peel is at just the right depth….this is just into the upper levels of the dermis….I place a layer of super fine petroleum medical ointment and the patient wakes up.  The stinging…yes, there is some stinging with a TCA peel.  I mean, it is a chemical burn after all.  The stinging rapidly subsides after several minutes and the patients face will be slightly pink that night.  Keeping the ointment on for the next few days will allow the burn to heal rapidly and prevent the skin from becoming too dry.  The skin turn dark, like you got a suntan, in about 3 days and peels away in about 5 days.  Makeup can typically be applied at about 5-6 days.  There is no weeping or crusting with this depth of peel.  What’s left is soft, smooth beautiful new skin.  Who doesn’t want that.  I encourage our patients to maintain that beautiful skin with our Cosmeceutical Skin care Products Francis R Beverly Hills(R)…skin care that really works… http://www.frbh.com

Radiesse can be used to shape the Cheeks, Chin and Jawline for aesthetic augmentation.

http://www.drfpalmer.com/radiesse-injections.html

Dr. Francis R Palmer, III