Nip This Tuck That

There was a large article in todays’ Wall Street Journal about the dangers of having Plastic and Cosmetic Surgery and other elective surgical procedures in non-accredited office/surgery centers. It’s true that you should be aware of the environment in which your plastic and cosmetic procedure will take place.

California, New York, Texas and I believe Florida have existing regulations that all out patient surgical facilities must be accredited. Our Beverly Hills surgery center has such an accreditation and has for many years…but in other states this is voluntary and certainly in other countries the rules may be quite different. So, what’s the big deal you ask. Here are some of the most important points regarding the subject:

1. There are certain anesthesia criteria that require a well-trained anesthesiologist or nurse anesthetist administer your anesthesia. Without this rule, your anesthesia maybe administered by an office nurse or the surgeon himself….
2. The proper resusitation equipment is required with accreditation that otherwise may or may not be available.
3. Accreditation is another way to make sute that the doctor is trained and experienced in the procedure that you are going to have. With economic pressures today, there are dentists, oral surgeons, gynecologists and all forms of doctors performing plastic and cosmetic surgery…so you may want an outside agency deciding who is and who isn’t tained to do your procedure.

So the next time you’re considering a plastic and cosmetic surgery procedure and you don’t live in a state with mandatory accreditation of outpatient surgery centers, come to Beverly Hills where you can be confident and secure that your surgery will be performed in an accredited facility.

Dr Francis Palmer
Beverly Hills Plastic and Cosmetic Surgery
What’s Your Number…the palmer code book

Much has and continues to be written about Aesthetic Medicine which I call the Business of making people more attractive. This includes Plastic and Cosmetic Surgery treatments and procedures: Rhinoplasty, Face Lifts, Neck Lifts, Brow Lifts, Eyelid Surgery (Blepharoplasty), Cheek Implants, Chin Implant, Lip Augmentation, Hair Transplants, Breast Implants for Augmentation/Enhancement, Tummy Tucks, Liposuction, Buttock/Arm/Back/Thigh Lifts, Botox, Dysport, Restylane, Juvederm, Perlane, Radiesse and IPL treatments. All are designed to do specific things to create aesthetic improvements and within each treatment or procedure is an endless variation of how it is performed.

You, as an informed consumer must determine what it is that you’d like to improve. What would you like to look better? Your eyes, face, neck, lips, nose, breasts? After that is decided, what would you like that area to look like? Your lips more full, your nose thinner with a more shapely tip, your face with less jowls while appearring more naturally youthful, your breast fuller and more shapely?

There are many decisions to be made before you have an aesthetic treatment or surgery and I encourage you to become as much of an aesthetic expert as possible so that you can recognize sound aesthetic advice from that which is flawed. Why? Because, in my opinion, after performing Plastic and Cosmetic Surgery for 20 years, the number one complication is the lack of aesthethic judgement of the patient and the surgeon. This is the main reason that people are unhappy after their treatments or procedures….in many cases what was chosen as the way to make that person more attrcative, was doomed to fail from the outset because the treatment or procedure was incapable of creating the proper aesthetic change to make that person more attractive.

How can that happen? Very easilly I’m afraid….we as plastic and cosmetic surgeons are not taught the aesthetics of beauty. We are taught procdures and surgeries that do things but we all do them slightly differently and in different situations, so there’s a great deal of variability despite what anyone else tells you. For example, a patient 25 years old wants cheek implants to make her more feminine. Some surgeons would suggest fillers and place the filler in different areas to shape the face differently. Some would look good, some ok and some would make the face appear odd and mis-shapen. I have seen this when patients have a second consult with me after having fillers elsewhere. Other surgeons may use any one of hundreds of sizes and shapes of cheek implants that will have similar effects. I use and have used 2-3 sizes of 2 thicknesses and have for over 15 years. Why? Because I don’t believe the other many sizes and shapes make the face more attractive…which at the end of the day is the goal!

For each treatment and surgery this can and does occur. You must understnad what does and does not make your face and body more attractive…which is why I’ve written a book on the subject. The culmination of 20 years work, over 4 years in the writing. What’s Your Number…the palmer code shows you, the consumer what you need to know about the beauty aesthetics of your face and body. You can use this book as your beauty source and guide as you make decisions about when and if your ready for plastic and cosmetic surgery. The celebrities that look their best understand these principles and seek the very best plastic and cosmetic surgeons who embrace and understand these concepts…

Dr Francis Palmer
Beverly Hills Plastic and Cosmetic Surgery
What’s Your Number…the palmer code book

The cost of Rhinoplasty or nasal surgery is a very commonly asked question. The answer is…as you might expect not simple. The cost of your Rhinoplasty can and will vary based on the following factors:

1. A Revision Rhinoplasty will be more difficult to perform, takes a higher skill level to acheive the desired aesthetic result/avoid un-wanted complications and as such will cost more than a Primary or first time Rhinoplasty.

2. Rhinoplasty will cost more as more areas of your nose require modifications. The nasal bone width, the bridge, the mid-nose section, the tip and the nasal septum. If your nose requires just tip reduction/modification the cost will be less than if more or all areas of the nose require manipulation. Even within each area, of the nose…say the nasal bones…can require different degrees of adjustments. Rasping the bones will be less expensive than bone osteotomies that are required for more dramatic reduction in the width and/or height of the nasal bones (often referred to as breaking the nose).

The nasal tip is similar as a retrograde tip-plasty will be less expensive than an open tip-plasty with cartilage modification which is less than cartilage manipulation plus placement of an ear graft for further support and tip definition…and on and on it goes. I hope you can appreciate that there are almost an endless combination of things that can be done to manipulate the nose during a Rhinoplasty, so until you have an in depth consultation and analysis of your nose during consultation with an experienced Rhinoplasty Surgeon…you really can’t get an accurate Rhinoplasty price.

3. The more experience and higher profile your Rhinoplasty Surgeon, the more your Rhinoplasty cost will be. Rhinoplasty is the most difficult plastic and cosmetic surgery procedure to perform, in my opinion and as such it’s paramount that you get the most experienced Rhinoplasty Surgeon you can afford…even if that means that you have to travel out of state or to another country. Failure to do so may set you up to have another Rhinoplasty…a revision this time which is guaranteed to be more difficult and therefore more expensive than the last…so get the best plastic & cosmetic surgeon you can find to do the job the first time.

Here’s my 4-step guide on How to Choose Your Rhinoplasty Surgeon.

By the way, you can use this guide when selecting a plastic and cosmetic surgeon for Face Lift, Neck Lift, Brow Lift, Forehead Lifts, Hair Transplants, Eyelid Surgery (Blepharoplasty), Cheek Implants, Chin Implants, Lip Augmentation, Mini Face Lifts, Breast Implants, Liposuction, Tummy Tucks, Buttock Lift, Botox, Juvederm, Restylane, Perlane, Dysport, Radiesse, IPL or a Chemical Peel.

Dr Francis Palmer
Beverly Hills Plastic and Cosmetic Surgery
What’s Your Number…the palmer code book

Seems China is leading the way with many things these days and Plastic and Cosmetic Surgery is certainly no exception. In China, Plastic and Cosmetic Surgery is seen as a way to secure a better job, that coveted promotion, to get a spouse and almost everything else desired in life. There are even special beauty pagents dedicated to women who have had plastic and cosmetic surgery.

I have learned, over the years, that just because something is performed a great deal does not automatically make it something that’s worth while. In other words, the plastic and cosmetic surgery in China, Brazil, Portugal and all he medical tourism destinations that are popping up all over the place.

The number one rule and I don’t care where you are having your Face Lift, Rhinoplasty, Breast Augmentation, Cheek Implants, Chin Implant, Eyelid Surgery (Blepharoplasty), Otoplasty, Lip Plumping procedures, Liposuction, Tummy Tuck, Brow Lift, Hair Transplants, Botox, Radiesse Injections, Evolence or Juvederm…is that the plastic and cosmetic surgery procedure(s) must make you more attractive. In other words…they must increase Your Face and or Body Number. How can you be sure that this happens…because it certainly doesn’t all the time as evidenced by celebrity plastic surgery disasters and plastic surgery nightmares where people look worse after their surgery…in some cases much, much worse. You can be certain by understanding the core elements of what constitutes beauty of the face and body as outlined in my new book “What’s Your Number…the palmer code.

The Palmer Code is not theory, but fact as I have used these principles to make people more attrcative with plastic and cosmetic surgery for almost 20 years oon two continents. It is my operating manual for improving the appearance of anyone..regardless of culture, gender or age.

So, in my opinion, the people of China who embrace plastic and cosmetic surgery as a means to accomplish a life’s goal must learn what constitues real beauty as outlined in The Palmer Code less they spend time and money chasing an illusion and wasting their most precious resource…..their hidden beauty potential.

Dr Francis R Palmer, III
Beverly Hills Plastic and Cosmetic Surgeon
What’s Your Number….the palmer code book
Follow me on Twitter

As readers of my blog, you are concerned with issues that effect your appearance whether that’s a Rhinoplasty, Face Lift, one of our own “Celebrity Lifts“ featured on “The View”, Breast Augmentation/Implants, Eyelid Surgeryto remove the tired look from your face, Cheek Implants, Chin Implant, fuller lips, Liposuction, Tummy Tuck, Botox Injections, Restylane, Radiesse, Juvederm, Evolence, IPL treatments for brighter, healthier looking skin or any combination thereof.

To say that your appearance is not important seems, to me, as inane because people wash their face, style their hair, use makeup and select clothes everyday in an effort to look good if not their best. The questions is…..do these things, including plastic and cosmetic surgery and treatments always improve your appearance?

If you follow the aesthetic principles contained within my new book “What’s Your Number…the palmer code” which represents nothing short of my operating manual for making people more attractive in the OR for almost 20 years….you will be more attractive whether you use makeup or have plastic and cosmetic surgery.

AOL has a review of my book…enjoy!

Dr Francis R Palmer, III
Beverly Hills Plastic and Cosmetic Surgeon
What’s Your Number…the palmer code book
Follow me on Twitter

In my opinion, the most glaring deficiency with most face lifts and facelift procedures is their lack of aesthetic effect to the cheeks and the middle portion of the face….including the nasolabial folds (that bit of fat and skin that goes from the nose to the corners of the mouth).

As the face ages, tissues shift downward and inward creating these folds and lessening the aesthetic beauty of the cheeks, from which this tissue has fallen. The result is the face becomes elongated, aged and more masculine in apperance. That’s right..whether you are a woman or a man…your face becomes relatively more masculine in appearance as you age. Increased length and angularity are the key components to this un-aesthetic transformation for women are should be the key components to correct with any facial rejuvenation using plastic and cosmetic surgery oir procedures.

OK…so you’re asking. “I’ve looked at my face and compared it with a photo of my face when I was 20 or 30 and I see what you say and I’m a believer…what now?” Glad you asked….first I suggest you learn the aesthetics of facial beauty found in my new book “What’s Your Number….the palmer code. Then be certain that any soft tissue filler like Restylane, Juvederm, Evolence, Radiesse, Perlane or Sculptra is done with the intention of creating the facial aesthetic features that will make your face appear youthful, attractive and natural looking.

The exact same thing can be said about face lifts, that in my experience for over 20 years of performing all variations of face lifts, neck lifts or mini face lift procedures….if the procedure does not result in the creation of a more aesthetic cheek and mid face area…..as outlined in my book…..the surgery will not, can not make your face as naturally beautiful, whether you are a woman or a man, than if this one aesthetic goal is accomplished.

That’s what I learned after years and years of performing and analyzing face lifts and their results.

My new book is not limited to the aesthetics of face lifts but goes into the overall aesthetic features of the face and body and how these may be acheived. Certainly the celebrities have a history of hit and miss when it comes to looking better after their plastic and cosmetic surgery…some look horrid, others, weird and some look fabulous.

Is it chance? Is it luck? NO….it’s simply whether, or not their plastic and comsetic surgeon acheived the aesthetically correct and important features of the face or body. If so…they look great! If not…could be a disaster. This goes for Eyelid surgery, Browlifts, Rhinoplasty, Breast Implants, Lip Augmentation, Tummy Tucks, Botox or anything that you do to improve your appearance…even your hairstyle and the kind of exercises you do. Lern how to get the best result….learn The palmer Code and Your Number.

Dr Francis R Palmer, III
Beverly Hills Plastic and Cosmetic Surgeon

Interestingly, I was doing a Celebrity Lift recently when the anesthetist told me she felt that the big, Face Lifts and Neck Lifts were making a come back as people became disillusioned with the garden variety mini face lifts, endoscopic face lifts and thread lifts that are being advertised and sold all over the media today. I’m sure you’ve seen the ads, comercials and billboards for this type of face lift procedure.

Not surprisingly, garden variety anything, including plastic & comsetic surgery and a face lift is sure to dissapoint. Do you start out asking for a garden variety procedure, Rhinoplasty, Eyelid surgery, Breast Augmentation, Liposuction, Lip Augmentation, Cheek Implants, Chin Implant, Botox, Radiesse, Perlane, Tummy Tucks or IPL treatments? I bet not…because garden variety that’s the same everywhere as these procedures are advertised gives the impression that they are nothing special….not exactly awe imspiring is it?

You, you face and body are unique and if you’re looking for a natural, beautiful and youthful appearance…do you really believe average or garden variety will deliver that to you? I was not surprised by the anesthetist and I thought that more average stuff doesn’t it make it extra-ordinary…it’s still average, you just have more of it. Who’s looking for that.

I have always believed that truly inspired plastic and cosmetic surgery procedures like our “Celebrity Lift” are technologically advanced, aesthetically inspired and therefore yield the types of natural…youthful…beauty that you are looking for. The return to the big, pulled, long scars, long recovery face lifts of old would be like you going to work in a horse and buggy…great in its day, but it’s definitely time to move on.

Dr Francis R Palmer, III
Beverly Hills Rhinoplasty Surgeon

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

AOL posted a report this morning that eyelid surgery was the most searched surgery on the internet. The article goes on to list the top 10 surgeries that people search the internet for more information and then made some comments about each surgery including eyelid surgery.

The article mentioned that eyelid surgery was a plastic and cosmetic surgery procedure. So far, so good but then made what I consider to be a typical ineperienced comment based on conjecture and not facts…the article stated that “eyelid surgery can make you look 10 years younger”. Really? According to whom? That certainly has not been my experience as a Beverly Hills Plastic and Cosmetic Surgeon for almost 20 years. I have performed many eyelid surgeries or in the true context of this article eyelifts better known medically as Blepharoplasty.

Eyelid surgery, eyelifts or Blepharoplasty is designed to remove the signs of aging from the eyes. Excess skin and fatty tissues are removed during the eyelid surgery (eye lift) and the result is a less tired more youthful eye area….but it’s incredibly inaccurate to say an eyelid surgery or eye lift will make the entire face more attractive and especially 10 years younger. The eyes just don’t have that kind of aesthetic power and these continuing misconceptions are the primary reason that I wrote my upcoming book describing beauty and personal transformation due to be released this March.

There are features on your face that if made to approach their ideal shape and proportion, can make you look 10 years younger…but it surely isn’t the eyes and eyelid surgery…..it’s the Cheeks! Shaping the Cheeks with Cheek Implants, soft tissue fillers like Radiesse, Perlane or Juvederm Plus combined with our Celebrity Lift that removes excess skin while tightening underlying muscles all through limited incisions all with a plastic surgery procedure that takes less than 90 minutes can make you look 10 years younger…featured on ABC’s The View.
Eyelid Surgery (eye lift, blepharoplasty) makes the eyes look less tired and is something that should be considered if your eyes are looking tired because of loose (extra) skin or excess fat that appears as bulges aroung the upper and or lower eyelids. Women have the added burden of needing their eyebrow position evaluated before any eyelid surgery is planned or performed. If the eyebrows are in a lower than aesthetic ideal position, this will give a false impression that there is excess skin along the upper eyelids. Should an inexperienced plastic and cosmetic surgeron then remove this excess upper eyelid skin with eyelid surgery the results could be far from aesthetic or pleasing….(how to choose your plastic & cosmetic surgeon). The eyebrows can be dropped into a lower than pre-op position and/or the eyelids may not close leading to severe dry eye and or corneal ulcerations. The proper plastic and cosmetic surgery procedure in this scenario would be a Brow Lift. The take home message here is:

1. Carefully consider all advice you obtian on the internet regardless of its source and especially when it comes to beauty and how it’s affected by plastic and cosmetic surgery. Be sure you understand the aesthetics of beauty as outlined in my new book.

2. Do not expect results that a particular plastic and cosmetic surgery procedure be it eyelid surgery (blepharoplasty), face lift, cheek implants, breast implants (augmentation/enhancement), Rhinoplasty, Brow Lift, Tummy Tuck, Botox, Radiesse, Perlane, Juvederm, Lip Implants (augmentation), Liposuction or chin implant surgery. Do the right surgery for the correct aesthetic reasons.

3. There is simply no substitute for experience and quality. Remember, it’s your face and your body so travel if you must, save if you have to but get the very best as second best is not an option. You’re worth it. Now you know what the celebrities know….

Francis R Palmer, III, MD
Beverly Hills Plastic and Cosmetic Surgery
Creator “What’s Your Number” System