Timing of Plastic Surgery After Pregnancy

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Timing of Plastic Surgery After PregnancyOne of the major reasons that patients come to Yager Esthetics is to repair the damage done to the body by pregnancy. Stretch marks, hanging skin, loose muscles, loss of a waist and curves, sagging breasts, loss of breast size, and a change in body shape due to fat redistribution are among the most common complaints. While all of these can usually be fixed, it is important to know WHEN is the right time after giving birth.

There are many factors to consider, including breast feeding, if you are planning another child, if you had a c-section, and if weight loss is needed. Each factor goes into my decision making process, and each patient is different. Even child care needs have to be arranged prior to surgery.

For an uncomplicated pregnancy, vaginal delivery, no breast feeding, and a weight no more than 20 lbs over the patient’s goal with good child care plans and no future children desired, liposuction and fat transfers need to wait 3 months for the hormonal levels to regulate, as it can affect fat metabolism. For a breast surgery, you must wait at least a month after milk stops being able to be expressed. For a tummy tuck, 3 months is safest.

After a c-section, assuming no infections, the above listed times still are a good guideline. If you are breast feeding, and want a breast surgery, you need to stop and wait a month after milk is expressible. For nonbreast surgery, you need to either stop, or if you want to continue, you must pump and store milk prior to last 2 weeks, as the milk that comes out after surgery will have medications from surgery and pain control, and is not safe to give to a baby.

It is always best to be as close to your ideal weight as possible prior to surgery, with a max of 20 lbs over. If you lose significant weight after surgery, a tummy tuck might not be as tight, breasts may lose volume, as well as the buttocks.

If you want more children, it is sometimes smart to wait until after the last for a tummy tuck or breast surgery, as these are the spots that change the most. It is not harmful to you or your baby to be pregnant after a tummy tuck or breast surgery, but you may experience a cosmetic change. Liposuction is certainly safe and easy as well.

Hopefully this helps. There is a way to get back your pre-baby body!

Top Ten Skin Care Tips For Latinas

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Many of my patients ask about skin care. At Yager Esthetics, we have the ySpa, a unique medi spa specializing in Hispanic skin. Latinas are known for taking immense pride in their physical appearance, and Latin skin is known for having a naturally dark tone that is resilient against signs of aging. That is people like Jennifer Lopez, Salma Hayek and all the beautiful women you see on websites always look so beautiful for their age. Below, I list the top ten tips I give to my latin patients.

Top Ten Skin Care Tips For Latinas1. Before you treat a mancha, you must treat the cause of the dark spot. If they are caused by acne, you must control the acne first so they won’t come back. Likewise if they are caused by a medicine or hormonal imbalance.
2. Even though your skin is darker, skin cancer can occur. Get regular checkups with London dermatologists who specialize in Hispanic skin and be smart and avoid excessive sun.
3. Sun block is essential every day, even if it is wintertime or it is cloudy. Make sure you use a daily product with SPF of at least 25, and reapply if you are outdoors.
4. Acne has many causes, and a skin care professional such as a dermatologist or plastic surgeon is sometimes needed to find the right regimen. Antibiotics, creams, and light therapies, as well as some lasers and peels can be effective, but make sure the doctor is used to treating Latinas. There are some home treatments that you can do to help with skin texture like micro-needling; just make sure to get the best derma roller you can find to get desired results.
5. Rosacea, sometimes called adult acne, is less common in Hispanic skin, but it does occur. It is usually in sensitive skin, and a redness with bumps is present. Sometimes prolonged steroid cream use can produce this condition, so use care with these products. Look at places like the Victorian Cosmetic Institute and see if they will work for your skin type.
6. Always clean your cell phone with alcohol before putting it against your skin, as it can lead to pimples and irritation in that area. You can alternatively use Bluetooth.
7. Latinas need much less retin-A then Caucasians. A green pea size is more than enough for your face if your doctor indicates.
8. Always use water based makeup! The oil based formulations can clog your pores and lead to pimples and dark spots.
9. Stay hydrated. Drinking enough water is essential to good skin health, as if your body is dehydrated, it keeps the water it has for essential functions and makes the skin even drier. This even makes cellulite worse.
10. Do not use your friends or families skin care products, especially if they are by prescription.
Even if it works for them, it may be harmful to your skin.

Hope you find these helpful!

The Dangers of Silicone Injections

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By now, most people are aware that silicone injected into your body is not the safest option. The illegal practitioners working out of apartments and the back room s of spas and salons know enough to lie to the public and say it is Botox, or collagen or Biopolymer.

The danger not only comes from the people that you hear about on the news using silicone from Home Depot to plump up peoples buttocks, but from medical grade silicone as well. But WHY is silicone so bad to use in your body?

There is only one type of silicone that is FDA approved as safe to use in the US, and it is for an eye disorder. There are a very few doctors in the US who use silicone for cosmetics, but only in tiny microdroplet amounts in the face. The body can tolerate tiny amounts of medical grade silicone carefully placed, but this is not what is being done.

Large volume silicone is poorly tolerated in liquid forms, and serious complications can occur even years later. Pockets of infection, lumps, migration of the material to other areas, discoloration of the skin, redness and swelling that come and go for years, and chronic pain are not infrequent. But why do people continue to have these silicone injections?

In most people, problems do not occur, especially right away. By the time they notice the error, they have already sent dozens of friends for the treatment. The big danger is that the problems that do occur are sometimes extremely difficult, if not impossible, to correct. Sometimes these problems can open you up to a life of chronic pain and leave you looking for painkillers, therapies and other pain relievers much like “CBD olie kopen” (remedies from the Netherlands) to help you find relief in your daily life.

My advice is to be smart, and only have a licensed doctor inject you with anything. Make sure you see the bottle or syringe, so you are sure of what it is, and the location is clean and professional. You only get one face and body, so protect it.

Why Do I Have To Stop Smoking Before Plastic Surgery?

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As a doctor, of course I believe that no one should ever smoke. There is no debate that smoking is harmful to your health and can cause cancer, emphysema, birth defects if you smoke while pregnant, and also trigger asthma. If you’re considering quitting smoking, take a look at SlickVapes to see how vaping could help you transition between being a smoker and a non-smoker. Making the switch might also benefit cannabis smokers too. The more common methods of getting high are through a bong and a spliff. However, these are not the only ways to do it. Using a cannabis vaporizer is an alternative method. You can find the best battery for your vape online. It can also reduce the number of harmful toxins and carcinogens released too.

As a board certified plastic surgeon, specializing in cosmetic plastic surgery, to stop smoking at least 3 weeks prior to your surgery is critical for obtaining the best esthetic results. I find that by explaining the reasons why smoking is harmful makes my patients more willing to quit.

The chemicals in cigarette (and marijuana) smoke can shrink small blood vessels, and lead to poor circulation. Any surgery that tightens skin such as facelift, breast lift, or tummy tuck, damages blood flow to the skin. Normally, healing will still occur due to the small vessels. In smokers, there is less of a reserve, and skin can literally die or fail to heal properly. As you might imagine, have a hole on your face, breast or stomach is not attractive.

Smoke also retards wound healing in general, and can affect scar quality. This is true even with second hand smoke, and I tell my patients whose spouses smoke to stay away from them while they smoke during the healing process. It is best then to wait a little while before choosing to indulge in that og kush you have saved, if you’re so inclined.

Smokers also are at a higher risk of anesthesia complications, as they sometimes do not have proper lung function. Anesthesia requires exchange of gases through the lungs, and poor exchange can lead to poor outcomes.

Cosmetic plastic surgery is not life saving or is it ever an emergency. Because of that, at Yager Esthetics we need to reduce your risks as much as possible. Stopping smoking is so important in this process, and we encourage everyone to do so. Be safe and smart- lying to your doctor about not smoking can increase your risks even more, as the tightness of the pull during surgery is different for smokers as well.

25,000 Patients Later- Yager Esthetics

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This April, I had the honor of seeing my 25,000th patient.  The enormity of that number humbles me, and makes me grateful to each of them.  It also validates the need that existed in 1997 for a highly qualified Board Certified Plastic Surgeon within the Hispanic community of New York.

I started in 1997 with 1500 sf of space and one Hispanic woman employed. Today, Yager Esthetics is 6000 sf and has 20 hispanic women working, despite the economic downturn.  We have the newly created ySpa, a unique advanced skincare spa and laser center dedicated to treating Hispanic skin.  Visia Skin Complexion Analysis is offered to scientifically select the skincare treatments that will work for you without having to guess and perhaps waste your money.

I have also been fortunate to create the Y Gallery, a free art space within Yager Esthetics for Hispanic artists to display their work.  We have sold paintings for the artists, and host events to meet them.

As a recognized expert in latin beauty, I am always flattered to be featured on Spanish television to offer medical advice for the community regarding plastic surgery and safety issues.  I enjoy meeting the media personalities I have watched for years at home.

So, to the 25,000 of you who have made appointments to see me, I thank you for your trust, and promise to always do my best by you.  To those who have not had the experience, I look forward to meeting you soon.