Dark Side of Cosmetic Surgery Addiction

The Telegraph reported recently on a Korean woman addicted to plastic surgery has been left unrecognisable after her obsession led her to inject cooking oil into her face.

Hang Mioku, now 48, had her first plastic surgery procedure when she was 28; hooked from the beginning she moved to Japan where she had further operations - mostly to her face.

Following operation after operation, her face was eventually left enlarged and disfigured, but she would still look at herself in the mirror and think she was beautiful.

Eventually the surgeons she visited refused to carry out any more work on her and one suggested that her obsession could be a sign of a psychological disorder.

When she returned home to Korea the surgery meant Hang's features had changed so much that her own parents didn't recognise her.

After realising that the girl with the grossly swollen face was indeed their daughter her horrified parents took her to a doctor. Once again the possibility that Hang had a mental disorder was raised and she started treatment.

However, this treatment was too expensive for her to keep up and she soon fell back into old ways.

Amazingly, she found a doctor who was willing to give her silicone injects and, what's more, he then gave her a syringe and silicone of her own so she could self-inject.

When her supply of silicone ran out Hang resorted to injecting cooking oil into her face.

Her face became so grotesquely large that she was called "standing fan" by children in her neighbourhood - due to her large face and small body.

As Hang's notoriety spread she was featured on Korean TV. Viewers seeing the report took mercy on her and sent in enough donations to enable her to have surgery to reduce the size of her face.

During the first procedure surgeons removed 60g of foreign substance from Hang's face and 200g from her neck.

After several other sessions her face was left greatly reduced but still scarred and disfigured.

And it would seem that even Hang can now see the damage she has done; she now says that she would simply like her original face back.

Vegas Doctor Refuses Surgery to Smokers

A Summerlin-area surgeon is making sure his patients not only know, but see, the negative consequences of smoking on certain cosmetic procedures.

For a face lift, a tummy-tuck or a breast lift, Dr. Samir Pancholi, a board-certified cosmetic surgeon who practices at 8068 W. Sahara Ave., requires that his patients stop smoking four weeks before the procedure and refrain from smoking for four weeks after the surgery.

If they are having a hard time grasping the concept of the dangers of smoking, he shows them graphic pictures of people who falsely said they quit smoking prior to their surgeries.

Patients see dead, black skin and fat around the operated area. They see raised, red scars and deep bruising. They see skin tissue that needs to be removed, sometimes requiring a skin graph to repair. In some cases they see photos of patients who had to be hospitalized and receive antibiotics.

"People are shocked," Pancholi said. "I really do gauge how receptive people are to me showing them the pictures. I show them the pictures if I feel they're not really getting it, or if they feel I'm blowing smoke at them about the seriousness of the situation."

Some 12 million cosmetic surgery procedures were performed at a cost of $12 billion in 2007, with the number of procedures up 7 percent from 2006, the American Society of Plastic Surgeons reported. The number of procedures had doubled since 2000, the society said.

Because of the growing number of procedures, more studies are being done and more is coming to light about the effects smoking can have on certain cosmetic surgeries.

Nicotine from cigarettes restricts blood flow and oxygen to the healing skin, potentially causing the tissue operated on to die.

For procedures like Botox or breast augmentation, Pancholi recommends that patients quit smoking, but doesn't require it because survival of the tissue is not as dependent on blood supply. In procedures like a tummy tuck, where skin at the bottom of the stomach depends on blood flow supply from around the rib cage, the bloody supply is coming from a long distance, requiring no restriction to blood flow, Pancholi said.

Pancholi is not the only surgeon requiring patients to kick the habit. Dr. William Zamboni, professor of plastic surgery the University of Nevada School of Medicine and spokesman for the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, mandates that his patients completely abstain for three weeks before and three weeks after for a face lift, breast reduction or a tummy tuck.

"More than ever are plastic surgeons aware of the dangers of smoking on certain plastic surgeries," Zamboni said. "I don't know exactly the percentage of how many doctors require abstinence of smoking for a time, but I hope that 100 percent of board-certified plastic surgeons make it mandatory. If the patients having those procedures don't quit smoking before and after, they're just asking for trouble."

Even one cigarette puff or walk through a smoky casino could damage the tissue, Zamboni said.

"And if they have family members who smoke, they must go outside," he said.

To be sure his patients have quit, Pancholi requires that a week before the surgery, every patient take a urine test to check nicotine levels.

"You do see people who just can't quit," Pancholi said. "I don't feel comfortable doing the surgery. There are other alternatives that are less risky. They may not provide ideal results, but when it comes to health versus cosmetic, I choose health."

If patients are serious about quitting, but can't seem to do it, even with graphic pictures, Pancholi prescribes medicine like Chantix to help patients quit. Nicotine gum, however, cannot be used because it has nicotine.

The good news about requiring people quit for a period of time is that some who have been trying to quit for years find a motive to help them quit permanently.

"If they can quit smoking for six weeks, they're pretty well off to quit," Zamboni said.

About one in five of Zamboni's patients who are required to quit smoking will quit for good, he said.

"In life, they've never abstained for six weeks, so once they've done that, they realize they can quit," he said.

In general, Las Vegas is a very popular city for cosmetic surgery because of the entertainment industry. Both Zamboni and Pancholi said the most popular cosmetic surgery is breast augmentation.

Television shows focusing on cosmetic surgery and lower costs are a couple reasons cosmetic surgery is growing, but TV doesn't always depict the risks of the procedures, Pancholi said.

"The perils of cosmetic surgery are not presented on television," he said. "Hopefully I can reiterate some of the risks to patients in my office so they understand before surgery and after."

Big Brother Celebrity Sues Plastic Surgeon

Ex-Celebrity Big Brother contestant Pete Burns will get compensation for botched lip injections which left him feeling 'repulsive' and 'suicidal'.

The 1980s pop star sued Harley Street surgeon Dr Maurizio Viel after suffering swelling and blisters caused by the treatment.

Last week the doctor's legal team admitted to the High Court that Pete was not properly warned of potential side-effects of the product called Outline Original.

Dr Viel also failed to observe guidelines about its use in conjunction with other products, and gave an excessive number of follow-up injections.

Pete claims he was forced to sell his musical back-catalogue because he was unable to work, and will also be suing Dr Viel for financial losses.

Auriana Griffiths, from firm Irwin Mitchell, said: "The barrister representing Dr Viel confirmed last week in court that the allegations of negligence set out in the original documents filed at court have been admitted.

"At this stage, the investigation into the value of the case is ongoing and no figure has been agreed."

Botox Jabs May Cause Long Term Damage

The Telegraph has reported about the growing trend in applying botox injections to the bectoral region. The procedure, pioneered by American doctors, involves injecting the botulinum toxin into the pectoral muscles, causing the chest to rise up.

Trends in American cosmetic surgery tend to be transferred quickly to the UK, but British surgeons have expressed concern about the possibility of the "Botox boob job" being carried out by beauticians or nurses, due to less strict regulation than in the US on non-surgical treatments.

"These are the major muscles that you use to ski, turn over in bed, do everything. For me, the risks outweigh the benefits," Dr Nick Milojevic, a Botox specialist at the Harley Medical Group cosmetic surgeons, told the Independent. "You'd need a lot of Botox for this treatment to work, so it would cost around £1,000 per treatment, and it is something you'd need to repeat three times a year."

There are a range of similar treatments already available in the UK, the most popular being the "boob jab," in which a temporary filler is pumped into the breast. Milojevic described the most popular filler, Macrolane, as "one of the most exciting things to happen in aesthetic medicine in years."

Despite the high cost of Macrolane, at around £2,800 for the initial treatment and a £1,400 annual top-up, interest in the procedure has grown exponentially. Nationwide cosmetic surgery chain SurgiCare, which has recently introduced Macrolane, yesterday announced a 135% increase on last September in enquiries about breast augmentation.

However, Nigel Mercer, president of the British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons (Baaps), warned that: "If put in the wrong place, filler can leak out through the ducts in breasts. You can also get granular formation – lumps". He added: "The thought of a nurse performing this is alarming. The Government are shy of regulating this industry, although professionals and consumers are pushing for it."