Procedures

Archive for July, 2010

Skin Care Dallas

As more skin care professionals join the battle against aging, the more state of the art weapons are created to add to our arsenal. With advancements in laser procedures, skin care has reached a whole new level. The skin professionals at EpiCenter Dallas are dedicated to bringing you the latest in rejuvenation procedures to help you put your best face forward.

The EpiCenter prides themselves on providing skin care procedures that work. We provide procedures to treat a variety of skin imperfections including sun damage, fine lines, wrinkles, crows feet, rosacea and more. We will work with you to create a skin care plan to treat your skin condition, improving the appearance of your skin.

Our team of professionals is ready to help you achieve healthy glowing skin. Both men and women can benefit from skin care treatments. Don’t hesitate, call and schedule your skin care consultation today!

Posted in Facial Procedures

Dallas Injectable Dermal Fillers – BOTOX, Radiesse, Juvederm

There are some effects of time that we simply can not reverse. However, advancements in cosmetic surgery have added some powerful tools to our anti-aging arsenal. Dallas plastic surgeon Dr. Ricardo Meade offers his a wide variety of rejuvenation options including surgical an minimally invasive options. From surgical procedures such as a face lift to injectable dermal fillers such as Juvederm or Radiesse, Dr. Meade will work with you to create a rejuvenation plan to meet your needs.

Dermal fillers are among some of the most popular rejuvenation products. Dr. Meade recognizes that there is no one dermal filler that is right for everyone. Additionally, some dermal fillers are more effective treating a particular part of the face than others. For these reasons, Dr. Meade offers BOTOX, Radiesse, and Juvederm as treatment options to his cosmetic surgery patients.

If you would like to discuss how dermal fillers can help you achieve a young, rejuvenated appearance, contact our office to schedule an appointment. We look forward to helping you put your best face forward.

Posted in Facial Procedures

Dallas Plastic Surgery Before and After Photo Gallery

Dallas board certified plastic surgeon Dr. Ricardo Meade offers a number of plastic surgery procedures as well as less invasive procedures to help his patients reach their body goals. For some considering Dallas plastic surgery, simply reading about the procedure may not be enough. Some people would like to see plastic surgery results to get a better idea of what kind of results may be achieved.

Our comprehensive before and after photo gallery of real Dallas plastic surgery patients offers potential patients opportunity to see the kinds of results a skilled plastic surgeon like Dr. Meade is able to produce. Feel free to take note of the results you like and mention them at your plastic surgery consultation. Photos are a great way to make sure your surgeon knows just what you are looking for in terms of results.

A consultation with Dr. Meade will help you understand what to expect before, during, and after your plastic surgery procedure. Each patient has different needs and as such a custom surgery plan will be created to ensure optimal results. The best way to enter a consultation is with an open mind as Dr. Meade may suggest a different or additional procedures so that your wishes can be met.

It is important to note that while two people may undergo the ’same’ procedure, the results may be very different.

Posted in Uncategorized

Saline or Silicone Breast Implants

Saline vs. Silicone –

Here’s some information that I’ve put together for my patients considering a breast implant type. It’s very updated and I’ve added a little background information to be as thorough as possible. Nowadays, the amount of information on the internet can be overwhelming so I’m providing you with a summarized, unbiased view that I’ve put together of the facts.

The truth is that silicone feels more natural than saline, nobody questions that. You’ll hear people say they chose silicone over saline for this reason, but you need to know that there are many other factors to consider in addition to this one. That’s just one reason to do silicone and in all fairness you need to know that there are other considerations.

While you’re reading this, remember that both options (silicone and saline) are excellent. THERE IS NO RIGHT OR WRONG ANSWER. They each have pros and cons so NOBODY can tell you that one is better than another. All they can tell you is their opinion which you may or may not select.

This way you can decide which is best for your lifestyle and which is most compatible with what you would want for the long term. Remember that I could pick it for you, but since you’re going to live with it I think it’s only fair for you to know the facts and choose what best fits what you want. Then we can talk about which you chose and why.

After years of waiting, silicone implants are finally back. Since 1992 there has been a ban imposed by the FDA on the sale of silicone gel implants. Women wanting silicone implants, since then, have had to “qualify” for the implants by meeting specific criteria to be included in a study. The ban was imposed due to claims of a connection between silicone gel breast implants and autoimmune diseases, connective tissue diseases and even cancer.

Scientific evidence since that time conducted by the Institute of Medicine and experts from all over the world has shown no such connection to exist. In July of 05’ a letter was sent by the FDA to a silicone implant manufacturer stating that silicone implants could be used if certain criteria were met. And as of November 2006, silicone implants are available to all breast reconstruction and revision patients, as well as women 22 years of age and older seeking cosmetic breast enhancement. A number of conditions came attached to the approval, including studies and follow-up.   So what’s different about these implants? In the 70’s and 80’s silicone implants were made of a more liquid consistency. Since the early 90’s implants are made of what is called a cohesive gel. That is the silicone in these implants is more cohesive or stable in form. If one of these implants is cut the implant for the most part will maintain it’s shape and not leak out. The shells of the implants in the 70 and 80’s were thinner and more likely to leak. It’s almost like they would sweat a little.
The implants today have shells that are made of several layers. This makes the implants feel more firm but help cut down on gel bleed. Gel bleed is the term that describes small amounts of the silicone moving through the shell. Although these implants are firmer than the implants of the past they are still softer in feel in comparison to saline. The so called “gummy bear” implants are also a cohesive gel implant. These are even more cohesive than the standard gel implants and therefore maintain their shape more. Due to the added firmness, the incision must be a bit larger and the shape of the implant is an anatomical shape. These implants are currently being used in Europe, and may have more use in reconstructive type cases.   Some think these are too hard. Originally, implants were designed like this but were discontinued because they were thought to be a little too hard. It turns out that they are experimenting with these again.

Saline implants are the salt water filled implants that have been used in place of silicone implants, since the silicone ban. Now in addition to the choices of size, shape, shell type, incision site, location (above or below the muscle), patients will have to choose between silicone and saline implants.  

They both are thought to last the same amount of years and they both have a very very low incidence of rupturing (popping or leaking). So this shouldn’t be a major consideration in determining a difference.

So what are the advantages and disadvantages of silicone implants? The main advantage of the silicone implants is that they have a more natural feel and less visible rippling (wrinkling in the outer shell – you can see this in the office if you grab an implant). All breast implants have transverse creases which form around the edge know as rippling, saline do this more than silicone. Although silicone implants have this also it is far less evident when compared with the saline implants. This will be particularly important for women who have thin skin, perhaps after childbirth and breast feeding, or for women with extremely small breasts. For women with at least a B cup or with thicker firmer breast tissue rippling will most likely not be an issue because it’ll be camouflaged by breast tissue in most areas. However, the silicone implants will have a softer feel.   One of the disadvantages of the silicone implants are that they come pre-filled. This means the incision sites have to be larger and the surgeon won’t be able to adjust the implants at all after inserting them. For example a 450 saline implant might have a fill range between 450- 540 cc’s. This means the implant can be filled anywhere in this range depending on the type of look and size the patient wants and also to gain symmetry between the breasts. With the silicones the next size up after 450 might be a 500 cc implant. So the surgeon will have less flexibility with the silicone implants.
Lastly, a consideration in the scar tissue formation must be mentioned. The silicone implants have always been thought to cause a more intense reaction and more dense scarring. Nowadays corporate implant studies have shown a similar scar reaction between the two options but I think they have a conflict of interest because they profit more from selling a silicone implant. Nothing against the companies, but those are the facts.
I still believe that the scar reaction is thicker around a silicone implant and many plastic surgeons around the world do as well. This can mean two things. Additional scar could make the exchange sometime down the line (15years?) a little more difficult but that’s not really a big deal – it just means that surgery might last another hour or so and drains could be involved postoperatively. The second thing is that capsular contracture is more likely in silicone implants than in saline. Capsular contracture is a thickening of the natural scar shell around the breast implant and it can be felt to be hard and on rare occasion it can even be symptomatic (painful). The incidence varies greatly according to the studies you read so I won’t even quote any. I think the bottom line comes down to the fact that capsular contracture could happen with both options and it is a bit more likely to happen over the long haul with silicone implants. This being said, the majority of patients don’t develop capsular contracture with either but it’s still a factor to consider. Let’s not focus too much time on something that doesn’t happen the majority of the time.

Statistics can be confusing, so I tried to avoid them. I don’t want it to sound too generic, but I’m trying to keep as truthful as possible by using descriptive terms such as ‘rare’ or ‘usually’ and avoid some of the silly absolutes out there that are inaccurate dogmatic values. With this info, make a list of each and let me know your thoughts, we’ll have a much more fair conversation where you’ve had some time to digest all of these data.

Tags: Breast implants, dallas breast augmentation, gel implants, saline implants, silicone implants
Posted in Uncategorized

Altering The Appearance of Your Nose with Dallas Rhinoplasty – Nose Surgery Dallas

Our nose is not only the focal point of our face, but the main avenue in which air reaches our lungs. Abnormalities in our nose can take away from the beauty and balance of our face and cause breathing problems such as snoring. Dallas plastic surgeon Dr. Meade uses rhinoplasty or nose surgery to improve the appearance of a misshaped nose.

Rhinoplasty is surgical procedure used to correct abnormalities of the nose. These abnormalities may have been caused by genetics or injury. In either case, Dallas rhinoplasty is a very effective surgery in correcting issues associated with misshaped noses. Some of the most common nose abnormalities corrected with nose surgery include addressing bumps on the bridge of the nose or a very round or bulbous tip of the nose or an over all very large nose may be made smaller. Using nose surgery, Dr. Meade is able to reshape your nose, restoring balance to your facial features.

If you would like to explore how rhinoplasty surgery can change your life, contact our office to schedule your confidential consultation. Our staff is ready to answer all of your cosmetic surgery questions.

Posted in Rhinoplasty

Ricardo A. Meade, MD · Dallas Board Certified Plastic Surgeon
Dallas Plastic Surgery Institute · 9101 N. Central Expressway · Suite 600 · Dallas, TX 75231 · (214) 823-1691
Legacy Plastic Surgery Institute · 5425 W. Spring Creek Pkwy · Suite 120 · Plano, TX 75024 · (972) 801-2100

Dr. Meade is a Board Certified Plastic Surgeon that specializes in breast augmentation, tummy tuck (abdominoplasty), rhinoplasty (nose surgery), liposuction and facelift. He serves Dallas, Plano, Fort Worth, Tulsa, Houston and San Antonio.