As a recognized leader in the field of facial plastic surgery, Dr. Ahn is often asked by members of the media for expert commentary on current topics. He is also frequently featured in local newspapers and television outlets covering a wide range of topics in the areas of aesthetic medical care, facial plastic surgery and medical spas. Some of the stories are featured below.

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Volume 2 | Issue 4 Fall 2007
AESTHETIC - WELLNESS - TODAY

Want to look your best for the holidays for a
class reunion or some other special occasion?

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Volume 2 | Issue 3 Summer 2007
AESTHETIC - WELLNESS - TODAY

Whats the best time of year to have
Fraxel® treatments? Any time of year.

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Volume 2 | Issue 2 Winter 2007
AESTHETIC - WELLNESS - TODAY

Results You Can See and Feel! ™
 

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Volume 2 | Issue 1 Summer 2006
AESTHETIC - WELLNESS - TODAY

New Office Designed for "Aesthetic Wellness"
 

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Media Coverage - Press Releases - Speaking Engagements
Testimonials - Academic Interests/Publications

Channel 5, WCVB-TV
New Treatment Helps Reduce Stretch Marks State-Of-The-Art Laser Rejuvenates The Skin

Hopkinton plastic surgeon gives patients hope
By Jessica Scarpati/ Daily News Correspondent
Tuesday, June 6, 2006 -

	Dr. Min Ahn examines Liam Boesel’s scar at The Aesthetic Wellness Center. (Photo by Lisa Cassidy)

CANTON- Unlike most children who would do anything to fit in, Liam Boesel really wanted glasses.

"I thought they looked really cool," said Boesel, now 23, of Canton. "I pretended I didn’t see the (chalk)board in school."

The trick almost worked. The fifth grader at St. John the Evangelist School was brought to an eye doctor, who confirmed the boy had perfect vision.

But something was off. The optometrist noticed Boesel’s left eye appeared slumped. After a CAT scan and biweekly visits to Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, doctors said Boesel wouldn’t start sixth grade with his classmates.

The boy needed surgery to remove a benign tumor growing in his eye socket and pressing against his sinus cavity.

"It explained the migraines I was getting," Boesel said. "They were so bad that I would pass out and throw up all the time."

After eight hours of surgery, doctors had removed the non-cancerous growth by slicing open the 12 year old’s scalp from ear to ear.

The scar that remained resembled a girl’s headband, thickening and becoming more pronounced as Boesel grew.

"I always wore hats," he said. "It was my trademark and nobody knew why."

But after years of insecurity, the St. Anslem college graduate got his "extreme makeover" last month.

And just like on the plastic surgery-themed television show on ABC, Boesel’s doctor took him as a pro bono case and waved the $1,500 cost of surgery.

"We felt it was the right thing to do," said Dr. Min Ahn in his Westborough office. "It was certainly something that resulted from a medical problem and wasn’t anything that was his fault."

Although Boesel still had to pay about $700 in hospital fees, he said at his final check-up last week it was worth every penny if he never again would worry about the stares he used to get at job interviews, pool parties and dates.

"I viewed it as more reconstructive," said Boesel, his hair now trimmed uncharacteristically short. "It wasn’t like I was changing something I was born with."

After the check-up, Ahn, 38, of Hopkinton, said he was happy to see the once quarter-inch thick scar now blend seamlessly into Boesel’s hairline.

"He looks like the Liam he’s supposed to be at 23," said Ahn, a graduate of George Washington University’s medical school who has been practicing for seven years.

"In plastic surgery these days, a lot of people think it’s all botox, liposuction and things on a superficial level," Ahn said. "We did address something skin deep, but we also addressed something deeper."

The tumor was an ossifying fibroma, a bone tumor that is often seen in adults’ jaws or children’s legs. Its cause is unknown.

Because Boesel’s case was unique, Ahn said the surgery to correct his remaining scar tissue was unusual as well.

To align the scar with Boesel’s hairline, a surgical team first stretched skin from his forehead and the top of his skull to move the scar back.

Because hair cannot normally grow through scar tissue, Ahn said he then used an incision normally reserved for brow lifts or hair transplants to allow underlying hair on Boesel’s scalp to grow through the scar.

"Even though it looks pretty straightforward, it was actually fairly technically challenging," Ahn said.

After seeing Ahn’s work on a friend who had smashed his nose half a dozen times, "When he came in here for his first consultation, he was a little bit shy," Ahn said. "He feels more comfortable in his own skin now."

With a smile, Boesel said he hasn’t worn his trademark Notre Dame hat since the days after his surgery.

"I feel great. It’s really cool. I can do little things that don’t seem big to people," he said. "I can get out of the shower, just gel my hair and not worry about it."

WHDH-TV (Channel 7)
October 31, 2005
Botched Beauty

Botched beauty
Air Date: 10/31/2005

Reported by: Dr. Deanna Lites
Producer: Dana Paravati

More and more women want to look younger and more attractive. So they're heading to medical spas; places where you can get facials and massages, and some minor cosmetic procedures. But some women are leaving these medspas anything but beautiful. 7Healthcast reporter Dr. Deanna Lites has more.

The pictures tell a terrible story.

Women who've gone in for minor cosmetic procedures and who've left with major and sometimes irreversible damage...

Dr. Min Ahn says, "I've seen superficial burns, and deeper burns from chemical injury."

Dr. Ahn is a facial plastic surgeon at Aesthetic Wellness Center in Worcester. He's treated many patients after their beauty treatments went bad, including Wendy Bergeron of Worcester. She wanted fuller lips so she went to a medical spa for restylane shots.

She says, "It was uneven. There were a lot of lumps."

And Wendy says her injections were performed by a registered nurse, not a doctor.

Dr. Ahn says, "In the state of Massachusetts, only physicians are allowed to perform filler treatments such as the use of restylane for lips and wrinkles."

Beth Brooks of Holden says, "It's supposed to be relaxing and a nice soothing treatment."

But that wasn't the case. She went to a traditional spa for a hot stone massage. But she says she ended up with these second and third degree burns on her back because the stones were way too hot.

Beth says, "Immediately after there were about 6 red welts on my back."

Two weeks later her back still isn't quite healed, and Beth is taking antibiotics to fight off infection.
"I wish I would just have spoke up," says Beth.

Beth also wishes she would have checked the massage therapist's credentials. That's something Dr. Ahn says is even more important when you're going to a medspa for a medical treatment. He recommends asking a few simple questions. "Is there a physician on site...is that physician board certified, and who is performing the procedure?" he says.

A mistake that Wendy won't make again.

It's important to remember that when it comes to medical spas regulations vary from state to state.

And before you get that chemical peel or botox injection find out if the spa has a medical professional on call after hours in case you run into a problem.

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WCVB-TV (Channel 5)
Asian Eyelid Procedure New Trend in Cosmetic Surgery
December 23, 2005

Asian Eyelid Procedure New Trend In Cosmetic Surgery

Doctors Work To Maintain Ethnic Look

POSTED: 3:42 pm EST December 23, 2005
UPDATED: 7:25 pm EST December 23, 2005

BOSTON - The group of people having cosmetic surgery is becoming more diverse as more and more people look for ways to turn back the hands of time.

NewsCenter 5's Heather Unruh reported Friday that 1.3 million procedures were performed on patients of various ethnicities last year -- an increase of 44 percent since 2004. The challenge for plastic surgeons is creating a younger appearance without altering that ethnic look.

Appearance is important to Mei Ling Hester -- a hairdresser on Newbury Street -- but she said that when she looks at her eyes, they appear tired.

"We all spend money working out and eating healthy, and I think we need to take care of our face too," Hester She spoke with Dr. Min Ahn about a surgery that would better define her eyelids. About half of Asian women are born without eyelid creases, and even those who do have them, like Hester, often lose the crease as they age.

"We're trying to create a rejuvenated look that looks natural. We're not trying to create a westernized look," Ahn said.

About 25 percent of Ahn's practice involves non-white patients. The biggest trend is Asian eyelid surgery, which may have been sparked by the popularity of Korean soap opera actresses who have fuller eyelids.

But the procedure is tricky. It involves placing stitches to create a crease, and doctors must be sensitive to reshaping the lid without getting rid of the Asian appearance.

"We don't want to create an eyelid crease that is too high -- that is more typical in a Caucasian or western individual," Ahn said. "We don't want to remove all of the extra skin that is possible to remove, because it is natural for an Asian eyelid to have a little bit of hooding, a little bit of extra skin."

The procedure costs between $2,000 and $3,000. The result is instant and permanent. Hester envisions a livelier, alert appearance.

"I hope in the morning, I wake up and look nice and fresh for my clients," she said.

Having Trouble? You might need to install the Quicktime Player in order to correctly view these online videos. Click here to download Quicktime Player.

Yahoo! News
Asian Eyelid Procedure New Trend in Cosmetic Surgery
December 23, 2005

Asian Eyelid Procedure New Trend In Cosmetic Surgery

The group of people having cosmetic surgery is becoming more diverse as more and more people look for ways to turn back the hands of time.

NewsCenter 5's Heather Unruh reported Friday that 1.3 million procedures were performed on patients of various ethnicities last year -- an increase of 44 percent since 2004. The challenge for plastic surgeons is creating a younger appearance without altering that ethnic look.

Appearance is important to Mei Ling Hester -- a hairdresser on Newbury Street -- but she said that when she looks at her eyes, they appear tired.

"We all spend money working out and eating healthy, and I think we need to take care of our face too," Hester said.

She spoke with Dr. Min Ahn about a surgery that would better define her eyelids. About half of Asian women are born without eyelid creases, and even those who do have them, like Hester, often lose the crease as they age.

"We're trying to create a rejuvenated look that looks natural. We're not trying to create a westernized look," Ahn said.

About 25 percent of Ahn's practice involves non-white patients. The biggest trend is Asian eyelid surgery, which may have been sparked by the popularity of Korean soap opera actresses who have fuller eyelids.

But the procedure is tricky. It involves placing stitches to create a crease, and doctors must be sensitive to reshaping the lid without getting rid of the Asian appearance.

"We don't want to create an eyelid crease that is too high -- that is more typical in a Caucasian or western individual," Ahn said. "We don't want to remove all of the extra skin that is possible to remove, because it is natural for an Asian eyelid to have a little bit of hooding, a little bit of extra skin."

The procedure costs between $2,000 and $3,000. The result is instant and permanent. Hester envisions a livelier, alert appearance.

"I hope in the morning, I wake up and look nice and fresh for my clients," she said.