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Dangers of Plastic Surgery Axia College of University of Phoenix  Anyone who has looked at themselves in the mirror can find something wrong with themselves. Whether it is weight, wrinkles, chest size, or even the amount of hair found. However, the question remains, is plastic surgery an option' Even though less than 1 out of 200 surgeries has had complications, plastic surgery can lead to pain, physical complications, and death. Plastic surgery started in 800 B.C. in India and was later used in European medicine. According to ancient Indian Sanskrit, “The Hindu author Sushruta wrote about the reconstruction of earlobes and noses using skin from other parts of the face like the cheek and forehead,” (History, 2004). This practice moved slowly until 1827, where “Dr. John Peter Mettauer performed the cleft palate operation with his own specially designed tools,” (History, 2009). This operation made history for being the first major plastic surgery in North America (“History,” 2009). During World War 1, plastic surgery grew sizably and “presented physicians with scores of severe facial wounds and burns, changing the history of plastic surgery” (History, 2009). Because of the challenges presented in World War 1, plastic surgery has developed over the years. The American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ASAPS) states that plastic surgery has increased to 457% since 1997, with “nearly 11.7 million surgical and nonsurgical cosmetic procedures performed in the United States in 2007” (Cosmetic, 2007). Among these procedures include the top five procedures: liposuction (456,828), breast augmentation, also known as breast implants (399,440), eyelid surgery (240,763), abdominoplasty, also known as the tummy tuck (185,335), and breast reduction (153,087) (Cosmetic 2007). Unlike women receiving 91% of procedures (10.6 million), men as well contributed to the rise of plastic surgery with 9% (1.1 million) growing since 2006, 17% (Cosmetic, 2007). With every medical procedure, there are side effects. Although complications are slim, they can still occur during surgery. The anesthetics that cause the patient to lose consciousness during surgery, and can irritate the throat and lungs blocking the air ways (Dangers, 1997). If this is not caught in time, the lack of oxygen can cause damage to the brain and death if not treated. While under anesthetics, aspiration may occur. Aspiration is “when a patient vomits or has excessive mucous secretions during surgery” (Dangers, 1997). Inhaling these fluids can cause infections like pneumonia. If this is not treated, the patient may die from suffocation due to vomit. Another problem that may occur while under anesthetics is blood clots. The blood clot may become lose and block blood flow by entering into a vein. This could lead to a heart attack, stroke, and death (Dangers, 1997). The most common side effect is blood loss. Excessive blood loss can cause a drop in blood pressure which could lead to a possible heart attack. Following blood loss is malignant hyperthermia, this can occur when the patient’s blood pressure, body temperature, and heart rate increases. If this is not immediately treated, it may also lead to death (Dangers, 1997). Lastly, medical error can occur. In one case, 38 year-old Tracey Jordan took her doctor’s advice on getting her tummy tucked, liposuction, and a breast reduction to help her back pain in February 2007. The surgery went well; however, in recovery Tracey collapsed and died. The doctors explained the reason for her death was due to a mix-up in medication. Tracey was given bupivacaine instead of what the doctor subscribed, lidocaine, which “is 10 times more toxic than lidocaine,” (Kita, 2008). Just because surgery is over does not mean the dangers are over. Some after surgery risks might lead to more surgical procedures. Scaring is the most frequent complaint with plastic surgery. For most surgeries, the surgeon tries to hide all incisions. For example while doing a facial procedure, the surgeon would hide the incision in the hair line and the crease of the breast for breast procedures (Hykra, 2005). Like with any open wound, there is always the chance of infection setting in. This may occurs with slow healing. When this happens, antibiotics are given to avoid serious illness. After surgery, some might encounter some changes in the texture, tightness, and smoothness of the skin (Dangers, 1997), showing on the skin: puckering, dimples, scars, divots, general irregularities. Another side effect of plastic surgery is gape or loose stitches. This side effect can cause pain, bleeding, or even a hernia. An additional side effect is swelling involving a clear fluid buildup under the skin; this swelling is called Seroma (Dangers, 1997). If the swelling does not go down, some patients may need a tube inserted into their skin to drain the fluids. Next, a tingling and numbness can transpire especially around the breasts and genital region. Skin death may also occur around the area which may cause the skin to be removed. Immediately after cosmetic surgery, some patients may experience temporary paralysis, finding it hard to move and/or speak. After several hours, when the painkillers wear off, the patient should regain movement and his or her verbal skills (Dangers, 1997). November 10, 2007, Donda West, Kanye West’s mother, died in Los Angeles due to complications of plastic surgery. “The death of a patient is always tragic and devastating for all involved, particularly the patient’s family and the medical team. However, we don’t want to unnecessarily frighten the public. While this situation is rare, the decision to have a plastic surgery procedure is serious. No-risk surgery doesn’t exist,” said Richard D’Amico, MD, ASPS president (Plastic, 2007). Most of all, finding the right doctor is the most important step in avoiding all the unwanted side effects. While researching doctors, the patient should always look up the doctor’s background. Make sure he or she is properly certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery and has excellent credentials (Dangers, 1997). After finding the right doctor, the patient should be completely open with the doctor informing him of all medical conditions and answering all questions no matter how personal they may seem. These questions may involve not only smoking habits, drinking, and drug abuse, but also the use of prescription and nonprescription medications, over-the-counter drugs, herbs, diet pills, and supplements (Dangers, 1997). Another way to avoid complications is to follow the doctor’s instructions before, during, and after the surgery. Lastly, the patient should always attend the follow-up appointment after the procedure. In September 2003, Julie Rubenzer went to Kurt Dangl, a private oral surgeon and dentist in Sarasota, FL for a breast augmentation. Dangl advertised on his Web site as being “board-certified” even though he was not. Two hours into the surgery, Dangl sat up Rubenzer to adjust the implants. According to Dangl’s assistant, Matt when she was laid back down, she went into cardiac arrest. After her heart had stopped, Dangl refused to do chest compressions. “He was afraid it would mess up her surgery,” (Sherr, 2004). When her fingers turned blue, Dangl allowed CPR until her heart started again. When paramedics arrived, Rubenzer was already in a coma due to the lack of oxygen to her brain. Julie Rubenzer never woke up (Sherr, 2004). As one can see, doing all the research before getting plastic surgery is critical. One must ask themselves, is it truly worth it'   References A Board Certified Plastic Surgeon [no author]. (2009). History of Plastic Surgery. Retrieved January 5, 2009, from http://www.aboardcertifiedplasticsurgeonresource.com/plastic_surgery/history.html American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery [no author]. (2007). Cosmetic Surgery National Data Bank Statistics. Retrieved December 10, 2008, from http://www.surgery.org/download/2007stats.pdf American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery [no author]. (1997). Dangers of Plastic Surgery. Retrieved December 10, 2008, from http://www.righthealth.com/topic/Dangers_On_Plastic_Surgery/overview/fNaturalStandard'fdid=bottomline_ungraded_plasticsurgerycomplications.xml§ion=Summary Hykra. (August 24, 2005). Dangers of Plastic Surgery. Retrieved January 3, 2009, from http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/8404/dangers_of_plastic_surgery.html History of Plastic Surgery. (2004) Retrieved January 28, 2009, from, http://www.plastic-surgery.net/history-plastic-surgery.html Kita, Natalie. (October 30, 2008). Bad Plastic Surgery. Retrieved January 16, 2009, from http://plasticsurgery.about.com/od/faqsgeneralinformation/a/bad_ps.htm Medical News Today [no author]. (November 14, 2007). Plastic Surgery Complications and Deaths Are Rare, Despite Highly Publicized Death of Donda West. Retrieved January 16, 2009, from http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/88720.php Sherr, Lynn. (April 16, 2004). Plastic Surgery Deaths Investigated. Retrieved January 16, 2009, from http://abcnews.go.com/Health/Cosmetic/Story'id=124296&page=1