Follow-up: Website says he's a Triple Board Certified Cosmetic Surgeon, but I can't find him on any of the Board Certified Sites

Question

I asked this question yesterday. (How do I find out if my Dr. is a Board Certified Surgeon for Breast surgery.) After getting responses back from 3 different Dr.'s (Kelly Killeen MD, Donald Nunn MD, and Zachary Farris MD) I'm a little more concerned. All the links that I was giving to search I can't find his name on there anywhere. What does Triple Board Certified cosmetic Surgeon mean? Is that false advertisement? Can anyone can help me figure this out, if so please message me.

Richard G. Reish, MD, FACS · Answer

Hello and thank you for your question. It is very important that you thoroughly research your surgeon before committing to surgery.  It is a good idea to research your surgeon's educational background, online reviews, before & after pictures, and speak with anyone who you may know who has had surgery with that surgeon.If your surgeon is board-certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery, his/her name will be listed there.  If they are not there, I would be cautious about having breast surgery with that surgeon.Best wishes and good luck.Richard G. Reish, M.D.Harvard-trained plastic surgeon

Vishnu Rumalla, MD · Answer

Thanks for your inquiry and an excellent question. If your surgeon is not listed on the American Board of Plastic Surgery website, abplasticsurgery.org, the he/she is not certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery.  There are other boards including state credentialing boards to practice medicine and other speciality boards that your surgeon may be certified by.

Tania Medina de Garcia, MD · Answer

Hello dear, thanks for your
question and provided information as well..
The breasts may lose their elasticity and firmness which can be caused by
different factors such as pregnancy, massive weight loss, lactation and aging.
To reaffirm the breasts and restore the natural look your surgeon can perform a
mastopexy or breast lift. A breast lift restores a firmer, perkier, and more
aesthetically pleasing shape to sagging breasts. This not only can improve
a patient’s appearance by restoring her youthful, feminine proportions,
but also help bras and swimsuits fit more comfortably and attractively. By
removing excess, stretched out skin, reshaping the breast tissue, and raising
the nipple & areola into a more forward position, a cosmetic surgeon can create
a more youthful breast contour. Stretched, large areolae can also be
reduced during breast lift surgery, creating an overall better proportioned,
natural looking breast, Actually the perkiness on a person or another, depends
on patients skin and breast tissue

Tom J. Pousti, MD · Answer

Thank you for the important questions.  Unfortunately, differentiating the credentials of the variety of physicians who wish to provide "cosmetic surgery" services, can be very confusing to patients. Also unfortunately, there is no strict regulation set up to protect the consumer by state or national medical regulatory organizations. Therefore, patients must take the responsibility to ask the question: what are you board-certified in? ***The American Board of Plastic Surgery is the only board recognized by the American Board of medical specialties (when it comes to the plastic surgery specialty). Confirming that your surgeon is certified by the American Board of plastic surgery is very important; this will assure you that your surgeon's undergone rigorous training, testing, and continued medical education necessary to become and remain board certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery. Plastic surgeons who are certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery are then potential candidates to join the American Society of Plastic Surgery and/or the Aesthetic Society of Plastic Surgery. These societies will have lists of their plastic surgeon members; these lists may be helpful when patients are seeking a board-certified plastic surgeon. in the process of selecting a plastic surgery I also encourage patients to ask to SEE lots of examples of their work AND preferably speak/see patients who have had similar procedures done.Be very careful with your decision-making. You will find, while doing your due diligence, that there are many different “specialties” who will offer their services to you; again, I strongly recommend you concentrate on surgeons certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery. Be very careful with your decision-making.  Again, I cannot overemphasize the importance of careful selection of plastic surgeon when it comes to concerns such as safety, achievement of the desired outcome, and ability to manage complications that may arise (even in the best of hands). Keep in mind that revisionary surgery may be more costly in many ways. I hope this, and the attached link, helps. Best wishes.

Lee E. Corbett, MD · Answer

There are many Boards that offer certification, so your surgeon may be triple board certified, but if he or she isn't listed on the ABPS website, they are not a board certified Plastic Surgeon. The American Board of Cosmetic Surgery is a completely different board made up of Ob-Gyn's, ophthmologists (Eye doctors), ENT surgeons, general surgeons, and oral surgeons.

Peter A. Aldea, MD · Answer

Your concern is valid.I would urge you to read the link below to fully understand the meaning of Board Certification in Plastic Surgery and how to check what if any boards he may be certified by.The law in most states allow anyone with a MD or DO degree to "practice" Plastic Surgery or Dermatology in their offices REGARDLESS of their actual education and training. To add to the confusion, there are a lot of NON - ABMS board (American Boards of Medical specialties  ABMSorg) who anyone can join who offer these doctors a "board certification".Your Breast Augmentation surgeon should be certified by The American Board of Plastic Surgery and a member of The American Society of Plastic Surgeons (PlasticSurgeryorg). If he is not listed on the ASPSorg site, there is a VERY high likelihood that he is NOT a trained plastic surgeon but a trainee in another field.Peter Aldea MDMemphis, TN

Robert Brueck, MD · Answer

I guess my question would be what boards are you certified by? Once you know that you can go to their websites and check them out.It sounds kind of fishy so do some homework and also check with other doctors like your primary care doctor.Does he have patient recommendations on his website?

Scott Thellman, MD · Answer

A great question.  It's complicated but I'll try to sort it out for you and others.There are 24 boards recognized by the American Board of Medical Specialties.  These are the widely recognized ones you would expect for doctors- such specialties as Internal Medicine, Ophthalmology, Cardiology, and, yes, Plastic Surgery are all represented.  Your primary care doctor is probably certified by one of these boards (Internal Medicine, Family Practice, OB/GYN, etc).  These boards all have stringent requirements for training and continuing education that help the public know whether the doctor they are trusting with their health is a qualified practitioner. However, there are numerous other boards which have been formed outside of these recognized ones. While some of these boards may also have rigorous standards, others do not.  In reality, any group of physicians can get together, form a "board", come up with a legit sounding name and logo,  write some bylaws, and start certifying it's members.  While I'm not condemning all non-ABMS boards, I would caution you to evaluate  physicians who are only certified by such boards carefully. There is no specific ABMS board for "Breast Surgery".  They don't have a separate board for this as it falls into the scope of two existing ABMS boards.  If you are seeking care for a breast abnormality (lump, cancer, etc.) you typically would want a surgeon certified by the American Board of Surgery.  If your concern is cosmetic or reconstruction after cancer surgery you should seek a surgeon certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery.  Like many plastic surgeons, I was initially trained as a general surgeon and achieved certification by both of these boards. If you go to the certication matters website maintained by the American Board of Medical Specialties and cannot find the doctor you are considering on their search page, I would be very concerned.  While it's technically not false advertising to claim to be "triple board certified" if none of these are ABMS recognized boards, I think it is misleading.

Christine Sullivan, MD (retired) · Answer

Every answer written by my peers is right on. I  . It is imperative that you do your research and make certain your choice of surgeon is one who devoted their studies and training to plastic surgery.  Best of luck!

Ashok Govila, FRCS, MCh, MS - Account Suspended · Answer

Hi Tessa,Thanks for the most important question in plastic surgery and while I can see most confusing answers so far I like to clear the confusion as much as possible.First and foremost how many board certifications are their on this globe.Most Americans think they are the only board certified surgeons.Britisher think they are the only ones and similar thought are there with most European PS.The fact is that there are board certifications in each country and continents like in US,England,Europe,Gulf,Russia,Korea,Japan,India and many more.In US one gets after under going training for 5 years as residency and in England also for 5 years of residency ,In gulf for 3 years and similarly many with 3 years in Plastic surgery and 2 years in general surgery that comes to finally for 5 years.The final fact is if the person goes training under international authorities or with any general mass.This is finally will decide what he has learned and when in practice how much human part lives with him.Its just like some one is from Berkeley or Harvard as compared to other schools.I am sure I came clear in some possible way.Wish you all the best.

Follow-up: Website says he's a Triple Board Certified Cosmetic Surgeon, but I can't find him on any of the Board Certified Sites

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