Reasons to choose a progressive surgeon

Choose a facial plastic surgeon who is forward thinking and progressive.

It always amazes me when I hear from patients stories of how certain procedures and surgeries are done elsewhere in an antiquated, dated manner.

Today I saw two patients in consultation for rhinoplasty. Both had been hesitant to even have a consultation because they had heard stories from friends about how difficult and painful the recovery can be. In particular, their friends described how the doctor used packing in the nose that caused a significant amount of pain not only for the week after surgery but especially when it had to be removed.

I told them that packing is unnecessary in rhinoplasty surgery and frankly is an antiquated technique. Instead, the surgeon can use certain suturing techniques that do the same thing as packing but without the pain and discomfort. In addition, they do not need to be removed.

The patients both asked why the doctors still used packing. My answer is that many doctors are still stuck in their conservative ways where they do things simply because that is how they were taught.

This is unfortunate, as the patient ultimately suffers because of the doctor’s lack of progressive thinking. In my opinion, forward thinking surgeons are always looking to improve on their techniques, not only to improve outcomes but also to minimize patients’ recoveries. In fact, if the surgeon is not always looking to improve, frankly he or she is falling behind quickly.

Choose a surgeon who is always looking to improve. Otherwise you may be stuck with dated techniques, poor outcomes and harder recoveries.