Dr. Baker has truly been a blessing for me. Another local surgeon literally disfigured my face during surgery (she wasn't paying attention and left a hugely visible scar on my cheek). It was so bad that I couldn't even cover it with make up. Dr. Baker came highly recommended and then came to my rescue! He is patient, kind and extremely professional as I was clearly horrified. He revised the initial scar so that I don't look like a monster anymore. There is a reason Dr. Baker practices at one of the most prestigious hospitals in the country.
After years of "bird lips" and unhappy injection outcomes, I finally have the change I sought! Dr. Baker did my procedure with Lidocaine injections, and I felt nothing -- we chatted all through the 30-minute procedure, and when I asked for music, he brought in his I-Pad -- my every wish was accommodated. =D I took two doses of pain medication during the balance of the day, and I kept ice packs on my top lip for a couple of hours, off-and-on. I took Tylenol II the next day, and went to work. My pain has been nothing to speak of -- a little sore, but nothing with which I can't deal. Each morning, my nose and top lip are quite large, so I use small ice packs for an hour while I wake up to reduce them, and with a creative make-up application, I go right on to work. My excitement outweighs any discomfort! Updated on 15 Oct 2015: Updated on 15 Oct 2015: Here my stitches are [barely] visible; Dr. Baker put a waterproof surgical glue over the stitches, which can be seen a bit. When I wear make-up, the stitches and glue are hardly noticed. =D Updated on 30 Oct 2015: I'm now using Scar Guard on the scar (BARELY noticeable even when looking closely) under my nose, and it's practically dissolving the raised skin! Updated on 30 Oct 2015: I do have a toothier look when my lips are parted. =) Updated on 5 Nov 2015: 24 days post procedure, and I'm very, very happy with the results! I have very little remaining thick scar tissue skin under the nose where the incision was made, thanks to a topical miracle, Scar Guard! Updated on 6 May 2016: Once my lip swelling went away, I initially planned to have more of my top lip lifted on either side of the center, but, after 7 months, everything seems perfect! Dr. Baker was right, that things continue to change and "settle" months after the procedure. ;-)
I have suffered since the age of 27 with the growth of my breast I was not heavy chested until years after my only child. I suffered with fibromyalgia and systemic lupus years of steroids and the jungle of weight gain has played a major role in my breast size. I have been wanting a reduction since 2006 who would am have know my yearly exam with my doctor would turn out to be the best day ever I was turning 40 son graduate from high school and much life head of me and the best blessing was my doctors recommendation for my reduction my bday was May 30 I scheduled my surgery for July 6 my real life Independence Day I am in love with life PAIN FREE! Updated on 5 Aug 2015:
I had always wanted to do something to make my upper lip have more surface area and to lessen the distance between my lip and my nose. However I'd only heard of lip injections and implants until I found out about a lip lift (perfect!). Had a consult and when I learned that it was relatively affordable for me ($2250) and that it was so simple (done under local in-office, 1-2 weeks recovery) I knew I had t schedule one right away! Just got it done yesterday. I took some Xanax before and listened to music while it was going on. Procedure wasn't too gross or unbearable since I was numb (the 3 numbing injections were the worst part! lol). After an hour I was out and on my way home and then I took some old oxycodone pills every four hours till bedtime. These kept me pain-free and knocked out (though I probably could have survived just fine with strong Ibuprofin). My doctor was able to do some very good sutures in my nose, so that the typical incision line seen just below the nose is not there. I actually can't see the sutures, wherever they are, but I'm to go back in two weeks to get them out. There is surgical glue and pen markings under my nose, but that's it. If I wind up having a scar at all it should be nearly non-existent. I had 6 mm removed and I can tell this was a good choice for me. There was some swelling for the first few hours which then seemed to subside pretty well, but by eight hours after the surgery the swelling returned in force, making my upper lip look HUGE. This is a normal reaction from my body so I'm okay with it, but it is pretty hilarious looking and I'm certainly thankful that I made sure to get enough time off from work! Day 2: I can already tell that once it stops being so swollen that I am going to love the shape and surface area of my new lip. And I think there'll be some great tooth show as well. Upper lip is tight firm feeling, but not too painful. Had some minor bruising inside my lip which was unexpected. I just use ice compression every twenty minutes or so. I'm hoping to get some bromelain pills soon to reduce swelling too. Drinking out of bendy straws is a life saver. Just eating soups and oatmeal and yogurt and stuff right now. Updated on 15 Jan 2015: Yesterday (day two) was the day of swelling. Like, Platypus lips! But today the swelling has gone down from the bottom (top still swollen) and I feel like my lip is actually made of human tissue instead of vulcanized rubber. No pain still, but I am more aware of the bruised feeling near where the incision was. Feel like a dummy that I didn't know this, but there are no stitches to be removed (YAY!). I got some under the skin stitches and the surgical glue on top of my skin. Updated on 16 Jan 2015: As the swelling goes down, the (extremely slight!!!) pain near the incision that I'd originally imagined grows. It's because I now have more movement up there, versus before when I was basically immobilized by my flesh-beak, haha. This new lack of swelling also makes it bleed a tiiiiny bit, though I never see it happen I just notice a little dried blood. Despite this though I feel more comfortable today than days past and I do feel like I'm healing. I'm actually going to go out in public today around people who I don't usually see and who don't know me. I know strangers at Costco and Walmart will be able to see that I've had work done, but they will all assume it was my nose because of the pen marking and glue under there. Either way I don't really care. I'm just excited about my new lip! Updated on 16 Jan 2015: Updated on 17 Jan 2015: I feel like this is my final result now. I am very pleased. Glad I did 6 mm instead of less, and I think it looks very natural. People who know me at work, friends, etc., won't notice this. If they do, I don't think they'll be able to look at me and pick out exactly what it is that's making me look better. All swelling is gone. I take ibuprofen when I wake up and when I go to bed, but I really have no pain. I think once this stupid glue comes off my face I will have even more tooth show. The glue is stiff and prevents full movement of my upper lip. A good thing for the incision to heal, but not good for tooth show or expressive smiles. Updated on 22 Jan 2015: Went back to work today. Nobody but my close girlfriends noticed my face. I wore makeup and that covered the incision pretty well. I still have some stiffness under my nose that makes me hesitant to smile fully, but it lessens every day and I can smile. Now it just itches from healing! Updated on 24 Jan 2015: I put makeup on again today for my third day at work. It covered the incision very well. I do think that although the guys at work haven't figured out what I've done, they DO notice something different about my facial appearance (hey, I'm prettier now!!!). Of course none of them say anything though. So here's what happened today: a few hours into work, I started having a sporadic pain near one point in the incision that grew until it felt like an intermittent pinching sensation, sometimes almost like a needle prick. It really had me worried, and I kept going to the bathroom to check it, convinced that I was developing an infection from makeup and that I'd have to contact my doctor. However the pain subsided and at the end of the day I could feel two hard spots along the incision (one bigger than the other but neither very noticeable to the eye). These two areas are tender, and I thought maybe they were pimples, or else pus was forming there and that would be bad news. But I googled the hell out of this and it seems like this is a common thing that happens to people. It's not an infection, it's the under-the-skin sutures being rejected and pushed at by my body. Warm compress helps, and the suture may even worm it's way out eventually, but it will go away and I am not infected. Oh what a relief to know! Updated on 12 Feb 2015: Tomorrow will mark one month since I had the surgery. Last week there was mild soreness in a few spots along the incision. The incision became more pink-looking, and I noticed a tiiiiny bit of pus in one spot. So I started up again with the bacitracin and all that went away in a day or two. Then I found a few stitches poking out, and they came out. The skin all seems to have knit together pretty much by now. I no longer feel like I'm "healing;" I just feel healed (Though the skin will obviously continue to get better). I feel comfortable going without makeup now. You can't tell there was an incision under my nose when looking at me. My lip changed shape between weeks two and four. At week two I felt that most of the lift effect was in the centre of my lips and I was wishing that the sides had lifted a bit too for a less slope-y look. Well I don't know how, but that happened gradually in the following two weeks! I am even more pleased with the result now. Updated on 12 Feb 2015: Updated on 4 Sep 2015: I just got married! My lip lift was done in plenty of time to fully heal for the big day. I have had some requests to update with new scar pictures so here are a few that I took this morning right after waking up. I'm not wearing any makeup in the pics. There is hardly any scar. I don't think people other than me or my husband can see it, even without makeup.
I am extremely pleased with my lip lift. I had been thinking of a lip lift for a year because I was becoming increasingly insecure about my appearance, especially the space between my nose and mouth. I turned 50 and, through my researcher, read that this space gets longer as we age. I also have a weak chin and was looking to have a chin augmentation as well. My chin reasearch led me to maxilofacial/ plastic surgeon Stephen Baker. Dr. Baker specializes in reconstructive surgery and is quite renowned for his work on cleft pallets. Although I didn't see any lip lifts in his photo gallery, I none the less felt confident that he can perform a desirable lift lift. Boy was my instinct correct! My scare is virtually unnoticeable. In fact, had I not had simultaneous procedures, I feel that I could go out in public. As much as I hated my mouth, the thought of a noticeable scar was equally daunting. If you are considering a lip lift, I gladly recommend Dr. Stephen Baker. Updated on 12 Dec 2013: Elated with results of both procedures Updated on 12 Dec 2013: Here is my progress Updated on 17 Dec 2013: I hate the way I look. I'm glad that I had my lips done but my chin augmentation makes me look like a horse. I hope it's just swelling and not a permanent look. Updated on 17 Dec 2013: I am still in love with my new upturn lips but my chin is giving me the blues. Here are some new photos. Updated on 17 Dec 2013: I hate my chin. Updated on 21 Dec 2013: I am so down about my chin. I feel really self conscious about it. I hope iit's just swelling. It seems to be getting worse rather than better. Updated on 28 Dec 2013: I am very happy with LL but still hate my chin. I am extremely scared that my chin will look this way forever. I hate it more than before surgery. : ( Updated on 5 Jan 2014: My stitches have not completely disolved and I have those bumbs that I read about. Does anyone know how long it takes for the stitches to completely disolve? My chin is stil giving me the blues but it appears to look a little less bulbous. I am still praying that I will like the results once swelling is gone. Updated on 3 Feb 2016: Lip surgery
It's seems Dr. Baker's team don't speak with each other. His assistant, the front desk, the technician and himself, each of them can give you a different answer for the same question, which makes the whole procedure not only time wasting but also annoying. I honestly suggest everyone who read this considering switching to other providers.
I have to say this was the most Horrible, Scariest, Painful and Depressing experience I have ever had!! If you are going to do any work on your body, ESPECIALLY your face please do your homework and make sure you select the best Dr. I wish I would have listened to the other reviews. I just don't feel that Dr. Baker cared. In person he was nice and on paper he has the credentials. However, he does lack the artistic abilities a plastic surgeon should have. My lip lift was just pulled up from the middle with no symmetry or precision. From the beginning I was lied to by Christina his executive assistant. I found but Dr. Baker from a YouTuber posting her experience. There were no photo's of Dr. Bakers work on the website and Christina said due to patient confidentiality she she could not email me pictures they could send me pictures. However, Christina assured me it was one of his most common procedures, she stated that he did excellent work and said she would have several pictures for me upon my arrival from AZ to WA. She seemed very warm and friendly but it was horribly mean and deceptive for her to lie to me about all the photos she had. When I arrived all she provided me were 4 measly pictures including one of the YouTuber in 20's (that picture was at least 3 years old) and none of the pictures were current either! For someone who does "A lot" of lip lifts and procedures there was No Proof and NO PICTURES!!! Now I understand why. After the consultation Dr. Baker did the procedure. It all happened so fast I didn't realize I was never provided any Post-op information or instructions. A week later, the stitches were removed and I was scheduled to fly home a that afternoon. While waiting to have my stitches removed nurse informed me that Dr. Baker would use hydrogen peroxide or a solution to remove/soften the blood to remove the stitches. However, that is NOT how it happened. With tweezers he ripped off the scab/dried blood that had accumulated on top of the stitches. The way he ripped off the scab was so incredibly painful and after looking in the mirror at an exposed incision it did not look like it had properly healed. I did not feel right about going back to AZ. I had actually left the building left and came back I offering to stay an additional week to ensure proper healing and care but Dr. Baker said it was not necessary and advised I just go home. I was scared, worried and now I wish I would have listened to my intuition!!! I was ALSO told by the nurse that after he removed the stitches he would apply surgical glue. No surgical glue was applied primarily because I was going home and he knew it looked bad. Dr. Baker said he didn't want to seal in any bacteria or an infection. I offered to stay! Dr. Baker was aware of all of this. He should had anticipated this would happen... that's his job! All his other patient reviews talked about the surgical glue. I should have insisted because on my commute home just anticipated the open wound/incision he sent me home with looked worse as time went by. Again, I had expressed my concern and suggested to stay. I was scared...I practically begged. The only follow up call I received from Dr. Baker was a returned call because I had called crying due to a huge painful hole in my FACE!! Dr. Baker told me to keep applying the Neosporin and assured me he would do a follow up with me when he arrived to AZ on August 4-6th. I was truly surprised and disappointed that I never heard from Dr. Baker this purely displayed a lack of integrity and empathy!! The anticipated healing process was 2-3 weeks. I am not new to plastic surgery and I understand sometimes it can take a bit longer. However, he was totally negligent and the scar he left was huge, rippled and crooked. I also have have very resilient, strong skin that heals quickly. As a woman in my 40's I know my skin. Had this been anyone else with "Regular" skin it would have taken over a year to heal! Yes- It was that bad and deep. It's been 4 months and I am finally able to go out in public! The scar is still visible, lumpy and his incision was sloppy! I wish Dr. Baker would realize the importance of ones face. Your face is your identity. My decision in going to Dr. Baker has affected my entire life. It has affected my career, my finances and the way I feel about my face now. This whole process has been extremely emotionally and physically painful. Four months later the scar still hurts when I eat or talk and I still fear that the incision will widen or spread and the incision is still painful. Sadly, right before the surgery Dr. Baker jokingly said, “Im going leave the biggest scar possible.” Unfortunately, that is exactly what happened. There has still been no followup. Now, I need a costly revision. This time I am going to pick the right doctor. Revisions usually cost more than double the initial procedure. It's common to be turned away by other surgeons since Several Plastic Surgeons dont want to touch another "Surgeons Mess" revisions tend to be more specialized and costly. **Please Choose your surgeon wisely.**
I recently went to Dr Baker to have cartiledge removed from the tip of my nose. Dr Baker removed the stitches that held the bridge of my nose together causeing my nose to spread wide, he never asked for records from my old surgeon and come to find out he didnt remove the cartiledge at all. Dr Baker is not a good revision surgeon, If you are African American looking for Revision Rhinoplasty go to Dr Nadere or someone else DO NOT go to Dr Baker.
While Dr. Baker is extremely courteous and kind, he not only lacks skill but also some common sense when it comes to how to conduct business and what may look aesthetically pleasing. The staff is lost and disorganized, and his PA is rude. I really hate to write a poor review but I wish someone had warned me before I received a completely botched filler job. I saw someone else he had performed a surgical procedure on that had horrible scarring from a terrible stitching job. He should probably stick with academics. You're better off with a private practice where surgeons are focused on cosmetics.
He did a horrible job on my surgery and then tried to assure me for months that everything was fine. If I hadn't trusted my instincts and gotten a 2nd opinion from a more skilled surgeon, I would have been permanently disfigured. Please get a 2nd and 3rd opinion BEFORE letting this doctor perform any surgery on you.
You are fortunate to have one of the best chiildren's hospitals in teh world in Phiadelphia. Call the Department of Plastic Surgery at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and ask for the pediatric plastic surgeon who specializes in Poland's Syndrome. If you are over 21, ask them for the best person at the Hospital University of Pennsylvania Dept Plastic Surgery. The surgeons are in the same practice, the only difference is where they would do your surgery based on your age.
Full disclosure, I charge for a cosmetic consultation ($130). The reason I charge is that I will spend as much time as needed with the patient to help them make the best decision for themselves. I do not sell, push, or "close the deal." You pay for an honest medical opinion based on your goals, anatomy, and ability to recover. To me that honest information is valuable. If a patient would like to schedule a second appt, I do not charge for subsequent follow up appts.. If they ened up scheduling surgery, I deduct the consult fee from surgical fee. I think a busy surgeon's time is valuable, and they will charge for it. They are also busy enough not to feel as though they need to book every case; thus you may get a more honest assessment. If you look at the best plastic surgeons in the country, they rarely advertise, and they almost all charge for cosmetic consultations. If you are in Ohio, Bahman Guyuron is your best bet for a rhinoplasty.
Good surgeons are good surgeons. There is no substitute for 18 years of experience if the surgeon is well respected and gets good results. If he is a plastic surgeon with 18 years under his belt, he has probably done more rhinoplasties than the other younger surgeon who specializes in the face.Look at your plastic surgeon's nose results rather than the reviews. If he is good, he probably does not solicit reviews because he does not need to. However, I am sure he has many before and afters in his offcie for you to do your own review.
It appears this would be about a 6-8mm advancement. Preoperative imaging will be able to accurately apply a mm measuring tool to the before and after images to accurately determine the difference.
Yes, this can be reversed. It appears the chin has been inadvertantly elongated as well as set back. Through thee same incision, the plate can be removed and the chin repositioned.
