Total Body Makeover

By Dr. Grant Stevens from About Plastic Surgery

"There is no doubt that the total body makeover is the future of cosmetic surgery."

Despite the current hype surrounding "extreme makeovers", plastic surgeon, Dr. Grant Stevens has been combining multiple procedures in one session for over a decade. He tells Sophie Gordon why the total body makeover is the future of cosmetic surgery.

Because of the advances in anesthesia, intraoperative and postoperative monitoring, plastic surgeons are now able to combine surgeries that required two or three separate sessions just a few years ago. Dr. Grant Stevens, has performed over 300 combined surgeries.

He explains, "These complete makeovers have been studied and proven to have no more complications than any individual procedure on its own. In the combined surgeries I have performed, I have never had a patient require a transfusion or hospitalization."

The most common combined procedures of body work are tummy tucks (abdominoplasty), liposuction and breast augmentation, breast lift or breast reduction. "Some patients wish to have breast augmentation along with abdominoplasty. Occasionally, patients undergo abdominoplasty, breast surgery and face lift procedures at once," says Dr. Stevens. "This type of surgery takes approximately five to six hours to perform and requires around ten days of recovery time."

By combining surgery, patients benefit by only one recovery period, and can usually enjoy a reduction in fees. "This means they are only away from their jobs, their commitments and their home for one stretch at a time," explains Dr. Stevens. "Additionally, they can save at least thirty percent of what they would have paid had they undergone separate procedures."

Dr. Stevens has reviewed his experiences of combined surgery and has found no cases that exceeded six hours. "There is some evidence that suggests procedures exceeding six hours may have more complications," he warns.

It is, of course, extremely important to be in excellent physical health before committing to five or six hours under an anesthesia. "The medical contraindications are the same as with any elective cosmetic procedure. No smokers, heart disease, auto-immune disorders, or uncontrolled diabetes," says Dr. Stevens.

He is adamant, however, that if the patient is in good shape physically, he can perform combined surgery on any healthy person regardless of age. "There are very healthy seventy-year-old patients and there are forty-year-old patients who smoke. I'd prefer to operate on an older person in near perfect health than the latter."

Do you find yourself short on time but have high demands? Combined surgery can satisfy this desire for efficiency. "If anyone is considering multiple procedures, doing them at once can minimize costs and save a lot of time," Dr. Stevens reiterates. "There is no doubt that the total body makeover is the future of cosmetic surgery."