Chiseling Away the Dross

Updating with the pics! I initially submitted them along with the written review but for some reason doesn't seem that the pics posted?!?. Please note that all pics posted were taken in the medical offices by the doctors (primary and later on, revision surgeon Dr. Albert) or their attending staff and had been sent to my email for my review upon being shot. As mentioned in my review above, the progression over time and changes shown in the pics are dramatic & really do the 'talking', more than all the words, on illustrating what Dr. Albert has wrought for me!:-) Also, I forgot to mention that I dosed regularly with Arnica Montana (30c) & Bromelain (500mg) during the first week of the recovery period for the revision work and it made a noticeable difference in helping to dissipate the bruising, discoloration & edema for me (I had not taken either with the recovery from the primary).

I initially met Dr. Mark Albert in late 2016 at MEETH (he was one of 2 doctors chosen for MEETH's competitive fellowship program) while I was searching out local options for revision of a 'primary' rhino I had undergone in 2014 (I put the work primary in quotes for as can be seen in the pics I posted for this review, its clear that there wasn't any work done at all in that primary surgery! The surgeon for that primary rhinoplasty DID NOTHING of what he assured me he would throughout our several consultations & computer imaging sessions. In all honesty, it has been painful for me to review the photos from that primary as it brings up all the anger & frustration I felt - & still do! - for being abused & taken advantage of by what turned out to be an unethical PS who lied to me & took my money for services he NEVER rendered & dismissed my efforts to communicate with him post-op, offering only a single comment that he had 'kept me natural'. So, to that GUY, 'natural' must mean getting paid for not doing the work he claimed he would?!?). I selected to go with Dr. Albert after meeting with two other PS (one in White Plains, NY & another in New Jersey) because of his presenting with a strong & eager interest in taking on the often challenging work that rhinoplasty revisions can be. During our initial consultation, he commenced a careful analysis / review of what among a plethora of surgical methods he could use to ameliorate/address the issues that were wrought/left behind by the primary surgeon, all of which I found very encouraging. Dr. Albert was the 3rd surgeon that I had consulted & his enthusiasm stood out greatly compared to the two other surgeons that I had interviewed. Neither of them appeared quite as interested (one seemed almost robotic) nor provided me much by way of confidence in accomplishing the results that I was seeking (namely the very same aims that I had asked of the primary: removal of the dorsal hump, narrowing of the width of the bridge area of the nose, refinement of the nasal tip & an alar base reduction). One of the consulted surgeons quoted me a cost for the revision that was far more expensive than I anticipated and while the other surgeon's price quote was comparable to the fee given to me by the staff at MEETH for having Dr. Albert perform the work, I decided to go with Dr. Albert due to his keen interest in my case, his confidence in being able to deliver on what the primary surgeon had failed to do and appearing undaunted by doing so within a revision rhinoplasty. After several more consultations over several months, the revision work finally took place in July 2017 and it was under the auspices of Dr Albert performing the surgery in a facility on NYC's Central Park West (by this time he had completed his fellowship year at MEETH). Dr. Albert had advised me previously that he would be performing an open rhinoplasty as he felt it was warranted to get a clear, unobstructed view of whatever work, or lack thereof, left by the primary (which had been a closed rhino). The revision was done under GA & Dr. Albert delivered on all the requested work, plus a mentoplasty that I had requested, except for the ABR due to his concerns of time spent under GA as he had encountered, as he put it, 'a ton of scar tissue that needed to be excised" (to achieve better refinement at the nasal tip) and that he also addressed a noticeable asymmetry in the height of my nostrils, all of which needed to be done during the open rhino portion of the surgery and to pursue the ABR along with the mentoplasty would be pushing the time spent under sedation by GA beyond that which Dr. Albert felt comfortable with me undergoing. Upon informing me of this when he came to check in on me as I came out of sedation, he offered that the ABR was a procedure that can be done in office at a later time without the need for (or added expense) of GA and though I was initially disappointed on not getting everything that I had requested in a single surgery, in hindsight, the amount of edema that I ended up experiencing with the revision work was beyond that of the primary and as such, compromised breathing easily for quite some time, which the ABR may have further exacerbated (Dr. Albert did eventually perform the ABR at a later date & I will be providing an update to this review with the results of that procedure & a separate review of the mentoplasty, too, shortly.). Putting off a review of the revision work that was done over 18 months by Dr. Albert was intentional on my part as I wanted to allow sufficient time to pass wherein the prolonged edema dissipated to clearly reveal the refinements that Dr. Albert had wrought for me and I could post, all at once, a visual progression of the work that would highlight the dramatic differences he achieved for me. At this point in time, after knowing Dr. Albert for close to 3 yrs & undergoing 3 surgeries with him, I can attest to the considerate talent and care he brings to every surgery he undertakes, tending towards the conservative in his sense of aesthetics, refinements & surgical approach (That said, I would offer that Dr. Albert is probably not the surgeon to consult if you are considering what I am going to personally frame as 'extreme applications' of PS, such as Brazilian butt lifts or if looking to be '25 again' via a facelift when you're 80! I find such applications an abuse of PS and am not at all in favor of the highly contrived caricatures currently pushed as 'attractiveness', being meted out incessantly via the body distortions mania thats the current zeitgeist. It is truly regrettable that 'natural wow' beauty standards, as exemplified in that iconic poster of Farah Fawcett from 1978, has been usurped by a 'breaks-the-internet' show of the silicon distorted rear-end of a Kardashian.) If wanting to achieve refined, aesthetic enhancements is your aim and avoid implementing deformations of your body, I recommend seeking a consultation with the talented Dr. Albert. I'm glad I did.