Who’s the facial cosmetic king on the mountain? It is all about one’s training and experience!

Who’s the facial cosmetic king on the mountain? It is all about one’s training and experience!

 

What a great question. So, what is the difference between a facial plastic surgeon and a plastic surgeon? Or, using your example, which is better qualified to perform a facelift?

As a consumer, it is confusing to sort this out. However, the answer is simple. It is all about the physician’s training and experience! 

 

Both a plastic surgeon and a facial plastic surgeon have gone through extensive education and training to get where they are today. Even though I’m a board certified plastic surgeon, I know and respect many facial plastic surgeons in my community who do great work in field of facial cosmetic surgery. Likewise, most plastic surgeons are experts in the field of facial cosmetic plastic surgery. The biggest distinction is that plastic surgeons are trained in areas beyond the face in the fields of cosmetic surgery and reconstruction. So there is obvious crossover in the area of the face.

So who is better qualified to do your surgery?  Let’s keep this practical as possible; it is about the individual surgeon. Do your homework and thoroughly check into his/her background. Specifically:

• Find out where he/she went to medical school, residency training, and fellowship training. 
• Confirm that she/he is board certified and by what organization. Investigate that organization-- unfortunately, there are bogus boards out there whose qualifications for membership are shoddy.  The board for a plastic surgeon is the American Board of Plastic Surgery and the corresponding board for a facial plastic surgeon is the American Academy of Facial Plastic Surgery. 
• Find out about the surgeon’s professional experience by asking about his reputation, how many years he’s been in practice, and whether he’s had any medical malpractice suits. 
• Check into state medical board records to discover if there is a history of any complaints, etc. 
• Find out about the actual experience of the surgeon and his/her clinical skills for the specific cosmetic procedure(s) that you are interested in. How many procedures has he performed and over what period of time?   
• Look at before and after photographs and see if you can talk to present or former patients who have undergone this operation.

In summary, it is my opinion that it is definitely not about politics but confidence in your cosmetic surgeon… be it a plastic surgeon or facial plastic surgeon.

 

Thanks for your question.

 

Stephen A. Goldstein, MD