Dr. Rhys Branman's Cosmetic Surgery Blog

Double Divas and Double Ds?

February 28, 2013 - Rhys Branman, MD

Molly and Cynthia on the television show Double Divas produce custom bras for women who are hard to fit, and they are the experts. The show is out of Atlanta on Lifetime TV and the show is hilarious! It's full of gossip and sassy southern common sense. The episodes have names like "Cups Runneth Over" and "Get Your Girls Out There." These gals talk about marriage, divorce, self esteem, everyday problems, and mostly how to make a bra fit! I would like to see what Molly and Cynthia have to say about the latest from Men's Health! A recent tweet...

Smaller Implants?

February 27, 2013 - Rhys Branman, MD

Smaller breasts are in? It seems many women are swapping out their double Ds for double Cs these days. What started in Hollywood about a year or so ago is becoming a trend. Smaller breast implants are in. One surgeon in Florida says he is seeing at least two dozen women a year who want to trade in their larger implants for smaller ones. Doctors in Hollywood are noticing the same trend. Some women are considering smaller implants because they believe it makes their breasts appear more natural and youthful. It is important to remember that even a smaller implant...

The Price of Breast Augmentation

February 26, 2013 - Rhys Branman, MD

Generally speaking breast augmentation can run from $5,000 to $10,000. The price depends upon the surgeon, the facility, the implant, and the type of surgery. You have many choices with breast augmentation including size, shape, composition (saline or silicone), and type of placement (how the surgery is performed). That's a lot of variables. The price includes the cost of the implants, which can range from $1,000 to $1,300, and the facility fee of $800 to $1,200, as well as the fee of anesthesia and a qualified anesthesiologist's fee of $600 to $800 and the surgeon's fee that averages $4,005 for...

What Do Patients Want?

February 25, 2013 - Rhys Branman, MD

Last year the ASAPS (American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery) reported that although apparently patients were choosing to save money on cosmetic surgery procedures, because of the economy, these patients preferred longer lasting results. In two surveys it was discovered that many were putting off facial surgery in favor of non surgical procedures such as BOTOX®, longer lasting dermal fillers, and microdermabrasion. But what the surveys also revealed was that many cosmetic surgeons are not in touch with what patients really want. Patients want a treatment to last! Even during a tough economy, patients tended to choose procedures that lasted...

Will Zocdoc Find Your Doc?

February 22, 2013 - Rhys Branman, MD

In a well-written article for USA Today, full of sassy turns of a phrase, Michael Wolfe sang the praises of a new Internet service that he predicts will do to medicine what Amazon did to books. The product is ZocDoc. Apparently, ZocDoc is a new paging system that allows the "consumer" to find a doctor with an open appointment in his or her area immediately! 700,000 people have registered on Zocdoc already. ZocDoc was conceived when co- founder Cyrus Massoumi ruptured an eardrum on a plane and could not find a doctor when he landed. The customers of ZocDoc are...

Breast Lift and Breast Augmentation Combined

February 20, 2013 - Rhys Branman, MD

A study performed between the years of 2005 and 2009 concluded that breast augmentation at the same time as a breast lift is indeed safe. Mastopexy, or breast lift, is often sought by older women who have experienced the effects of gravity, and women who have had children and breastfed. However, women who had smaller breasts to begin with often request breast augmentation too. The study reported by the journal of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery has released the results this January. The study compared women who underwent the combination of the two procedures with women who only had breast lift...

We Use Only US FDA Approved Botox

February 18, 2013 - Rhys Branman, MD

In November 2012, the Food and Drug Administration wrote a letter to at least 350 medical practices that may have purchased drugs that were either contaminated, unapproved or counterfeit. These medications included BOTOX® that was not approved by the FDA. Counterfeit or unapproved botulinum products that do not have the proper FDA warnings and Medical Guide on the packaging are certainly trouble. BOTOX® should always be bought from the manufacturer, not a foreign supplier, as many of suspected the medications were. Apparently a company called Canada Drugs, a company that also used the names Quality Specialty Products (QSP), A+ Health...

Botox VS Dysport

February 15, 2013 - Rhys Branman, MD

Like BOTOX®, Dysport® is a neuromuscular wrinkle blocker; it blocks the nerve impulses to tiny muscles that cause wrinkles in the face, allowing them to flatten out and become less visible. BOTOX® and Dysport® are both botulinum toxin type A proteins, so essentially they are the same thing. BOTOX® is made by the Allergen Company and Dysport® by Medicis Aesthetics. BOTOX® was approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2002. In 2009, Dysport® was also approved, however, it has been in use in Europe, South America and New Zealand since the 1990s. In fact, in Europe, Dysport® is...

Breast Augmentation Creams and Supplements

February 13, 2013 - Rhys Branman, MD

Nope, they don't work. RealSelf.com, the Mayo Clinic and Dr. Susan Love all agree. Let's take these sources one by one. Dr. Susan Love reports that consumerlab.com stated, "There is no evidence that any of the current dietary supplements marketed for breast enhancement are effective or that the science they use to support their claims is credible." Dr. Love has been a reliable source of information about women's health for decades. She has written extensively on menopause, breast cancer, and other women's issues. In fact, the Dr. Susan Love Research Foundation has a marvelous blog called Act With Love to...

Little Rock Cosmetic Surgery Center Reports on a New Breast Cancer Study

February 11, 2013 - Rhys Branman, MD

A new study that was published in the journal Breast Cancer Research and Treatment has shown that there may be a correlation between waiting to have children and a reduced risk of getting the worst kind of breast cancer. The rare and aggressive form of breast cancer called "triple-negative" occurs most often in African American women. In previous studies, indications have point to a reduced chance of breast cancer in women who have had a child and breast fed. Particularly estrogen positive breast cancers. Breast feeding also seems to reduce the risk of this especially virulent form of breast cancer,...

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