Last month in Chicago, at the annual meeting of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons and The Plastic Surgery Foundation, we had the opportunity to unveil a groundbreaking new facial rejuvenation process, the culmination of years of research and development.  This process, which was the winner of the Plastic Surgery Foundation’s “Shark Tank” competition, should allow us to harness the regenerative power of adult stem cells to safely and effectively alleviate the signs of facial aging with a simple, minimally invasive procedure.

Many commercially available cosmetic products and serums promise to give you rejuvenated, younger-looking skin, and while they may achieve some degree of superficial success by moisturizing and filling in surface imperfections, creating the illusion of a smoother, more even skin tone, they largely fail to address the underlying causes of facial aging.  As we age, skin begins to lose volume and elasticity so that sagging folds and wrinkles begin to appear.  This process can, to some degree, be counteracted by stimulating the production of collagen and elastin, which is exactly what many over-the counter cosmetic products claim to do.  However, these vital proteins are produced deep in the skin’s dermis, and these deep layers of skin are completely protected by the stratum corneum, the skin’s outermost layer.  The stratum corneum exists, in part, to prevent any foreign substance from being absorbed into the body, and so, for any topically applied products to affect real and lasting change, they must be able to penetrate past this protective covering and into the deepest layers of the dermis.  Most can’t, and this is why most topical serums so often fail to live up to their claims.

Our new facial rejuvenation system is based on the idea that collagen and elastin production can be stimulated by exposing the deep skin tissues to stem cells.  The human body is composed of about two hundred different kinds of cells: skin cells, muscle cells, fat cells, blood cells, nerve cells, etc.  Each has a highly specific structure and function, but all started out as rapidly reproducing, unspecialized stem cells.  These stem cells form a sort of building material for the body.  They are present in large concentrations within developing embryos, but also exist throughout the adult body, particularly in the fat and blood marrow, where they can be activated when the body needs to produce new tissue to heal from an injury.  In fact, it has been proven that adult stem cells taken from the fat and bone marrow, along with the growth factors they release, can greatly accelerate wound healing and improve collagen production.  Theoretically, they can also re-stimulate the skin’s natural growth processes, effectively counteracting the signs of facial aging, like wrinkles and sagging, by regenerating fresh and vital new skin.  However, these complex proteins are simply too large to get through the stratum corneum, and can only function if exposed to the deeper tissues where the natural process of skin regeneration occurs.

The AcCellerate skin rejuvenation system is a patent-protected process that revolutionizes skin resurfacing by combining it with the most promising applications of stem-cell rejuvenation.  It works by isolating stem cells from the tissue harvested during a patient’s liposuction procedure.  The patient then undergoes a laser skin resurfacing procedure that effectively removes the outermost layers of the stratum corneum and leaves the inner dermis exposed.  A concentrated serum composed of the patient’s own active stem cells and growth factors is then immediately reapplied to the exposed dermis.  Stem cells taken from the patient’s own body are safer and far more effective than similar cells taken from other sources and can potentially achieve excellent long term results.  Moreover, the patient can also enjoy the added benefit of liposuction to remove unwanted fat.  Look for more information about the development of this exciting new technique in the coming months.

If you have any questions about any of the treatments that I offer, please contact us today to schedule a consultation.  Additionally, Atlanta Plastic Surgery, P.C. provides a variety of options for financing, including CareCredit^SM, to assist you.  Don’t forget to connect with me, Dr. Hunter Moyer, on Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ for the latest plastic surgery news.

Body modification with tattoos and body piercings has become an increasingly accepted and popular mode of self-expression.  However, as younger people transition into more professional environments, they often find that these affectations have become a hindrance.  Fortunately, cosmetic plastic surgery techniques can often minimize or even eliminate these once-permanent alterations.

Like any other injury to the skin, piercings can lead to scarring.  Nose piercings, in particular, can often leave behind a small dimple on the skin or even a raised scar after they have been removed.  Dimples, or indentations in the skin, can usually be treated with soft tissue fillers like Juvéderm®.  These injections of hyaluronic acid, a substance that is produced naturally in young and healthy skin, can give the area more volume, smoothing out the skin surface and restoring a more even appearance.  Raised scar tissue, on the other hand, is best treated with chemical peels or laser skin resurfacing, which remove the surface layer of dead and damaged skin cells and allow new, refreshed skin to take its place.  However, in some cases, the scar may need to be cut out so that the nose may heal more completely.

Ear piercing has long been an almost universally accepted form of body art, but earlobe stretching, or “gauging”, which involves gradually enlarging the hole to accommodate progressively larger jewelry, has been met with more resistance.  Employers and professional associations often look negatively on stretched ears, and even the United States Army has a prohibition against enlarging the holes in the ear lobes greater than 1.6 mm.  Repairing these large holes and distorted tissue requires the use of scar revision techniques.  The scar tissue often needs to be completely removed from around the hole, and then the area must be sutured or fitted with a skin graft, depending on the size of the surgical wound.  Compression bandages, silicone-based creams or corticosteroids are often used after the procedure to minimize the formation of new scar tissue.

A similar form of reconstructive otoplasty, or ear surgery, is used to correct damage caused by trauma, as in cases of cauliflower ear.  Relatively common among boxers, wrestlers, and martial artists, cauliflower ear results when repeated trauma to the ear has caused blood clots to interrupt the usual blood supply to the cartilage.  Ultimately, this interruption causes the cartilage to die and contract in on itself, forming a shriveled up outer ear.  During reconstructive otoplasty, cartilage can be folded or trimmed to reshape the ear and create a more balanced, aesthetically pleasing appearance.

If you have any questions about any of the treatments that I offer, please contact me today to schedule a consultation.  Additionally, Atlanta Plastic Surgery, P.C. provides a variety of options for financing, including Care Credit^SM, to assist you.  Don’t forget to connect with me, Dr. Hunter Moyer, on Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ for the latest plastic surgery news.

Most people would like to look and feel younger, but are unsure exactly where to begin.  While the majority of people understand that maintaining a healthy lifestyle complete with balanced nutrition and regular exercise can help maintain your physical vitality, many often ignore the vital role of sleep in revitalizing the body.  The most recent scientific research suggests that adequate, healthy sleep can not only reduce the effect of general aging on the body, but can also improve the results of cosmetic plastic surgery procedures by strengthening the body’s natural recuperative processes.

Although it may seem as though sleep is a time when the mind and body are shut down, this is not the case.  Sleep is actually an extremely important part of the body’s natural cycle, during which a great deal of restoration and strengthening occurs.  The deepest stage of sleep is the only time that the body releases the growth hormones essential for cell repair and regeneration.  This is one of the reasons growing children require more sleep than adults.  However, if a given period of sleep is too short, or if the sleep cycle is frequently interrupted, the body has less time to repair and replenish itself.  Specifically, collagen and elastin, two protein fibers that give the skin its elasticity and help keep it hydrated, are replaced at a slower rate as the skin ages.  Without these regenerative proteins, the skin’s texture, thickness, and elasticity diminish.  While it is impossible to completely stop the aging process, adequate sleep gives the body more time to replenish these growth factors, and plays an important role in preventing premature skin aging.

Because sleep plays such an essential role in the body’s major restorative functions, like muscle growth, tissue repair, and protein synthesis, getting enough rest is vital to recovering from plastic surgery procedures.  Prolonged lack of sleep can disrupt your immune system, leaving you more prone to infection.  Long-standing sleep deprivation has been associated with increased heart rate, an increase in blood pressure and, higher levels of certain chemicals linked with inflammation, all of which can contribute to an increase in swelling and may put an unhealthy amount of strain on the heart.  Lastly, many plastic surgery procedures, like tummy tuck or liposuction, are significantly less effective on patients who are overweight or obese.  However, studies conducted at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute of Stanford University have shown that sleep-deprived people have reduced levels of leptin, the chemical that makes you feel full and increased levels of ghrelin, the hunger-stimulating hormone, in their bodies.  This is believed to be just one of the factors that accounts for the results of the Nurses’ Health Study, the largest and longest study to date on adult sleep habits, which found that women who slept five hours or less were 15 percent more likely to become obese when compared to women who slept seven hours a night.

If you have any questions about any of the cosmetic plastic surgery treatments that I offer, please contact us today to schedule a consultation.  Additionally, Atlanta Plastic Surgery, P.C. provides a variety of options for financing, including Care Credit^SM, to assist you.  Don’t forget to connect with me, Dr. Hunter Moyer, on Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ for the latest plastic surgery news.

The holiday season is rapidly approaching.  It’s a time of year filled with parties and social engagements, when we can get together with friends and family that we may not have seen in years.  However, those years do not always treat our faces kindly.  Botox® Cosmetic relaxes wrinkle-causing facial muscles between and around the eyes and along the forehead, reducing the appearance of crow’s feet, frown lines, and wrinkles for up to four months and giving you just the boost you need to step into the holiday season looking your best.

Join us on Tuesday, November 11^th, 2014, for Evening Aesthetics, a Botox® event hosted by Dr. Hunter Moyer and Atlanta Plastic Surgery, P.C.  Enjoy drinks and hors d’oeuvres while you chat with board-certified plastic surgeon Dr. Moyer about the latest news in plastic surgery techniques and technology.  Most importantly, take advantage of our exclusive Botox® offer.  This evening, Dr. Moyer will be personally administering Botox® Cosmetic injections for the low promotional price of only $10 per unit.  So bring a friend and enjoy an evening of beauty with Dr. Hunter Moyer!

Evening Aesthetics will be held in our spacious and beautifully appointed Cumming office, located at 1400 Northside Forsyth Drive, Suite 390, from 7:00 PM to 10:00 PM.  Although the event is free and the invitation is open to all, space will be limited, so be sure to RSVP by November 6^th, 2014 to Rebecca Brock at (404) 256-1311 or RBrock@atlplastic.com.  If there is insufficient time to complete everyone’s injections, those in attendance will be extended the promotional price on their next visit.

We look forward to seeing you at the event!  If you have any questions about any of the treatments that I offer, please contact me, Dr. Hunter Moyer, today to schedule a consultation.  Additionally, Atlanta Plastic Surgery, P.C. provides a variety of options for financing, including CareCredit®, to assist you.  Don’t forget to connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ for the latest plastic surgery news.

There are many changes that occur in the face as time and gravity begin to take a toll.  However, there is also a wide array of facial rejuvenation techniques that are designed to treat these signs of facial aging and keep you looking younger, longer.

If you have questions about any of the treatments that I offer, please contact us today to schedule a consultation.  Additionally, Atlanta Plastic Surgery, P.C. provides a variety of options for financing, including Care Credit^SM, to assist you.  Don’t forget to connect with me, Dr. Hunter Moyer, on Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ for the latest plastic surgery news.

In the past year, according to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, over 1.6 million cosmetic plastic surgery procedures were performed in the United States.  Nearly a third of those procedures were either breast augmentations or liposuction treatments.  However, despite their incredible popularity, many are still unclear as to what, exactly, these two procedures entail.  Specifically, many come into my office wondering if they are a good candidate or what they can expect during downtime.

Breast Augmentation
Breast augmentation surgery involves using breast implants or fat to increase the size of the breasts or restore breast volume that has been lost after weight gain and loss, or pregnancy.  Breast augmentation is designed to increase fullness and projection of your breasts and can also improve the balance of the figure.

Am I a good candidate?  Breast augmentation is a very personal procedure and you should do it for yourself, not to please someone else.  Optimal candidates for breast augmentation surgery are physically healthy, have realistic expectations and breasts that are fully developed, and are dissatisfied with the size, shape, volume or symmetry of their breasts.

What can I expect from the recovery period?  After breast augmentation, the breasts will be wrapped in an elastic bandage or support bra to minimize swelling and support the breasts as they heal.  Once you are evaluated and cleared to leave the hospital, you will be given specific instructions that include how to care for your breasts following surgery, medications to apply or take orally to aid healing and reduce the risk of infection, and when to follow-up with me.  You may be instructed to wear a support bra around the clock for the first week or two, and given other important post-operative care instructions.  Be sure to follow all instructions carefully in order to achieve the best possible breast augmentation results.  After a post-surgical recovery period of 24 to 48 hours, you will likely experience soreness and swelling for a few weeks and should reduce your level of activity accordingly.

Liposuction
Liposuction slims and reshapes specific areas of the body, such as the thighs, hips and buttocks, abdomen, waist, and back, by removing excess fat deposits that have proven resistant to diet and exercise and improving your body contours and proportion.  Liposuction can also be performed on small, precise areas like the upper arms, inner knee, calves and ankles, or even the cheeks, chin, and neck.

Am I a good candidate?  Ideal liposuction candidates are healthy adults within 30% of their ideal weight who have firm, elastic skin, good muscle tone, and no life-threatening medical conditions that can impair healing.  Because cigarette smoking can cause problems with blood flow and healing, non-smokers generally enjoy better results and a decreased risk of complications.

What can I expect from the recovery period?  Once your liposuction procedure has been completed, a compression garment may be used to cover the areas that have been treated.  These help to control swelling and compress the skin to your new body contours.  You will be given specific instructions on how to care for the surgical site, what medications you may need to apply or take orally to aid healing and reduce the potential for infection, any specific concerns to look for at the surgical site, and when to follow up with me.  Your final liposuction results may not be evident until the swelling has fully dissipated, a process that may take several weeks.

If you’re interested in any of the cosmetic procedures that I perform in Atlanta and Alpharetta, please contact us today to schedule a consultation.  I also provide a variety of options for financing, including Care Credit®, in order to assist you.  Don’t forget to connect with me, Dr. Hunter Moyer, on Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ for the latest plastic surgery news.

Many people would like to look slimmer or more toned, and even if you exercise regularly and maintain a healthy diet you may find yourself troubled by localized fat deposits that seem to cling to specific areas no matter what you do.  Often these areas of concern can be addressed with liposuction, a body contouring procedure that suctions out stubborn fat deposits and provides a more slender and shapely physique.

It is important to note that liposuction is not an effective treatment for obesity, nor is it a substitute for proper diet and exercise.  Liposuction does not have the ability to tighten skin that has been stretched by fat deposits or to remove cellulite, the dimpled skin that typically appears on the thighs, hips and buttocks.  In fact, the removal of fat deposits with liposuction can, in some cases, leave sagging skin behind, particularly in more mature patients whose skin has lost some of the elasticity of youth.

The abdomen is an area commonly treated with liposuction in both men and women, as it can stubbornly hold on to fat deposits and is notoriously difficult to exercise effectively.  When the body first begins to store fat, it does so in areas where it can do the most good, protecting and serving the nutritional needs of the vital organs in the abdomen.  Only then does it go on to store fat in the less vital areas, like the arms and legs.  However, when losing weight, the body more readily gives up fat cells in the less vital areas first and stubbornly holds on to fat in the vital core.  That’s why it can be so difficult to lose weight in the abdomen and hip areas.  Only once fat has been nearly eliminated from everywhere else in the body will the fat in the abdomen even begin to be released.

Liposuction can provide benefits to the extremities, such as the upper arms and thighs, as well.  Such procedures may sometimes require more than one treatment to achieve the desired results.  However, they are less invasive than procedures like arm and thigh lifts, and so produce less scarring and require less down time.  In some cases, fat can be removed, via fat transfer techniques, from the hips, flanks, or thighs, and then re-injected into areas that may require augmentation or greater definition, such as the buttocks or even areas of the face.

If you’re interested in liposuction or any of the other cosmetic or reconstructive procedures that I perform, please contact us today to schedule a consultation.  Atlanta Plastic Surgery, P.C. provides a variety of options for financing, including Care Credit®, in order to assist you.  Don’t forget to connect with me, Dr. Hunter Moyer, on Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ for the latest plastic surgery news.

When any foreign object is introduced into the body, it is the body’s natural reaction to form a kind of coating, or “capsule,” of scar tissue around it.  In the case of breast implants used during either breast augmentation or breast reconstruction, this natural immune response can be helpful.  As long as the capsule remains soft, it helps to keep the implant stable and in the correct place.  Some implants are even equipped with a textured surface in order to facilitate this process.  At times, however, these capsules can become thick and hard, a phenomenon called capsular contracture.  When this occurs, the breast grows increasingly firm and rigid, eventually shrinking or taking on an abnormal shape and becoming extremely painful to the touch.  The most accurate estimates suggest that the condition occurs in somewhere between 9 percent and 15 percent of breast implant recipients, making it one of the most frequently occurring breast augmentation complications.

Once capsular contracture occurs, breast revision surgery is often performed to alleviate the symptoms.  During this procedure the breast implant is usually removed, along with the enclosing capsule or tissue, and replaced with a new implant in a slightly different location (below the muscle if the previous implant was above the muscle, for example).  While this does alleviate the problem in the short term, it does not guarantee that the capsular contracture will not recur, and so a great deal of research is being devoted to determining ways that capsular contracture can be prevented.

Recently, a growing number of studies have suggested that the rate of capsular contracture can be significantly reduced by placing an acellular dermal matrix (or ADM) between the implant and the natural breast tissue.  I have performed extensive research on this subject and effectively utilized this material in many breast enhancement procedures.  Originally developed as an alternative to skin grafting in burn patients, an acellular dermal matrix is composed of skin from which the cells have been removed, leaving behind a sterile framework or “lattice” of tissue that the patient’s own cells can grow into and eventually replace.  Ideally, this material allows the body to integrate itself into the surface of the implant as it heals, to create a natural and pliable connection rather than a thick capsule of scar tissue.

If you have any questions or are interested in a breast procedure that I offer, please contact us today to schedule a consultation. Connect with me, Dr. Hunter Moyer, on Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ for the latest plastic surgery news.

As the face ages, skin and tissue begin to lose their elasticity and start to sag, causing wrinkles and folds.  This can be particularly noticeable around the eyes, where sagging skin can make eyelids appear heavy and the eyes small, creating the appearance of boredom, disinterest, or general fatigue.  In some cases, the drooping eyelids can even impair vision by obstructing part of the visual field.  These concerns can be addressed with blepharoplasty, or eyelid surgery, which can improve the appearance of the eyes by creating a more aesthetically pleasing natural contour, or correct many functional issues that might arise.

Blepharoplasty trims the loose, sagging skin which creates folds and removes excess fatty deposits that can appear as puffiness in the eyelids or bags under the eyes.  Depending on each patient’s specific aesthetic goals, eyelid surgery can be performed on the upper and lower lids, either individually or in combination for maximum rejuvenation.  Additionally, many of the upper eyelid procedures that I perform can be done in my office in about an hour.  Eyelid surgery is considered a cosmetic facial procedure that can accomplish more than just subtle facial rejuvenation.  In fact, many younger patients are seeking out the procedure as well.

Statistics compiled by the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) reveal that eyelid surgery has been steadily growing in popularity among patients under thirty for the past five years.  These patients have, presumably, experienced little of the sagging and loss of skin laxity that accompanies aging, but are still interested in the benefits that blepharoplasty can provide.  Some have speculated that this steady growth is, in part, the result of the rising popularity of blepharoplasty among younger patients of Asian descent who desire wider, more alert looking eyes that still maintain the subtle crease, downward-angled epicanthic fold, and flared outer edge that has been considered aesthetically pleasing.  Whether or not this is the case, it definitely seems clear that blepharoplasty can have wide ranging cosmetic results that go beyond merely minimizing the effects of aging.

If you’re interested in any of the cosmetic procedures that I perform in Atlanta and Alpharetta, please contact us today to schedule a consultation.  I also provide a variety of options for financing, including Care Credit®, in order to assist you.  Don’t forget to connect with me, Dr. Hunter Moyer, on Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ for the latest plastic surgery news.

Over the course of a person’s life, there are many things that can cause the body to shift and change, however few can cause changes that are as wide-spread as those caused by pregnancy and childbirth.  The rapid gain and loss of weight can tax the skin’s elasticity to its limits, leaving areas of stretched and sagging skin in the breasts, abdomen, and even in the arms and thighs.  Many women would love to have their body look the way it did before their pregnancy, and acknowledge that it may require more help than just diet and exercise can provide.  Phillip Haek, MD, the president of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, noted that “in the past we saw a lot of women in their 50s getting these types of procedures, but today we are seeing young mothers in their 30s coming in for procedures such as tummy tucks and breast lifts.  They don’t want to wait years to reestablish how they used to look.  They want their pre-baby bodies back now.”  That may explain why the mommy makeover is becoming increasingly popular.

Mommy makeover is actually a combination of procedures performed to restore a woman’s body to its pre-pregnancy state.  Typically, it includes one or more body contouring procedures, such as liposuction, tummy tuck, thigh lift, or even arm lift, as well as breast procedures including augmentation, lift, or reduction.  While liposuction is frequently used to remove small areas of localized fat deposits, it can do nothing for the stretched and sagging skin that significant weight loss frequently leaves behind.  Both arm lifts and thigh lifts remove excess skin and tighten the tissue that remains, leaving their specific target areas with smoother, shapelier contours.  More significantly, a tummy tuck not only removes excess skin, but can also tighten the muscles of the abdominal wall.

Many women experience significant stretching and sagging of the breasts due to breast feeding and often opt to restore their youthful figures after pregnancy with a breast lift.  This procedure, also known as mastopexy, raises the breasts by removing excess skin and tightening the surrounding tissue to reshape and support the new breast contour.  A breast lift can be combined with a breast reduction, for those women whose breasts have grown beyond a comfortable size.  For women who wish to retain the fullness of the upper breasts, I frequently use an auto-augmentation technique where the lower breast tissue is moved from underneath the breast and sutured higher up on the chest rather than thrown away.  This allows the breasts to be lifted without losing their volume.

If you’re interested in cosmetic or reconstructive procedures that I perform, please contact us today to schedule a consultation.  Additionally, Atlanta Plastic Surgery, P.C. provides a variety of options for financing, including Care Credit®, to assist you.  Don’t forget to connect with me, Dr. Hunter Moyer, on Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ for the latest plastic surgery news.