Plastic Surgery News and Research

RSS

"Tan Tax" will hurt middle-class women and women-owned businesses

The proposed 10 percent federal tax on indoor tanning services, added to the latest U.S. Senate health care reform bill in a back-room deal over the weekend, will fall 40-50 percent short of delivering the revenue its proponents promised, according to the International Smart Tan Network (Smart Tan). The tax unfairly targets female consumers, who make up more than two-thirds of tanning clients, and would be detrimental to the thousands of women who own the majority of America's indoor tanning salons.

24 Dec 2009

Second successful phrenic nerve decompression surgery

The Plastic Surgery Center today announced that immediately following a rare phrenic nerve surgery to repair his paralyzed diaphragm, a 47-year-old man has reported significantly improved breathing and feels “15 years younger.” The surgery marked the second known case of successful phrenic nerve decompression, both of which were performed by a New Jersey medical team led by Dr. Matthew Kaufman of the Plastic Surgery Center in Shrewsbury, New Jersey.

23 Dec 2009

AMA backs latest Senate bill

Senate Democrats were bolstered Monday by the endorsement of the American Medical Association as they push for a final vote this week on their health overhaul legislation, Bloomberg reports. "The bill advances many of our priority issues for achieving the vision of a health system that works for patients and physicians," the AMA's president-elect, Dr. Cecil Wilson, said in endorsing the most recent version of the Senate bill, proposed over the weekend by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev. (Salant and Donmoyer, 12/22).

22 Dec 2009

Facial plastic surgeon refines rhinoplasty with 3-D endoscopic high definition system

Sam Rizk, M.D., F.A.C.S. (www.drsamrizk.com), takes facial plastic surgery into the future by incorporating the same technology used for years in industrial design to enhance rhinoplasty techniques by empowering him to achieve precise surgical outcomes.

22 Dec 2009

Cohera Medical announces treatment of first patient in TissuGlu study

Cohera Medical Inc. today announced the treatment of the first patient in a study of its lead surgical adhesive product, TissuGlu®. Initiation of the study marks a major milestone in the company's progression of the lead product toward clinical practice.

16 Dec 2009

Cellular and subcellular effects of PACE technology presented

SANUWAVE Health, Inc., (www.sanuwave.com), an emerging medical technology company focused on the development and commercialization of non-invasive, biological response activating devices in the regenerative medicine area, announced that the cellular and subcellular effects of PACE™ technology were described during a lecture presented this past weekend.

15 Dec 2009

Cell-enriched breast reconstruction procedure improves breast deformity in lumpectomy patients

Interim results from a European clinical trial, RESTORE 2, demonstrate that cell-enriched breast reconstruction achieved a high rate of patient and physician satisfaction and improvements in overall breast deformity in lumpectomy patients.

14 Dec 2009

Benchmark Physical Therapy selects Dynatronics as sole-source vendor

Dynatronics Corporation announced it has signed a sole-source vendor agreement to provide therapy equipment and rehab supplies to Benchmark Physical Therapy with 65 clinics located in Tennessee and Georgia.

5 Dec 2009

Cosmetic surgery industry lobbies against the 'Botax' in Senate health bill

"Leading makers of antiwrinkle drugs, breast implants and other appearance-related products are trying to derail a proposed tax on elective cosmetic surgery in the Senate's health-overhaul bill," The Wall Street Journal reports. "The proposed 5% levy -- dubbed the 'Botax' after the antiwrinkle treatment product Botox -- would raise an estimated $5.8 billion over 10 years."

4 Dec 2009

Interactive video presentation on corset trunkplasty surgery

Alexander P. Moya, M.D., Director of the Center for Weight Loss Body Contouring and Assistant Director of the Geisinger Center for Aesthetics and Cosmetic Surgery at Geisinger Medical Center (GMC), will deliver an interactive video presentation on his corset trunkplasty surgery in April 2010. This presentation will be made to a group of board-certified plastic surgeons at the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery's annual Aesthetic Meeting in Washington, D.C.

3 Dec 2009

Details of the policies inside the Senate's health overhaul bill

Hot-button provisions in the Senate health Bill, such as the public option, cost controls and subsidies to expand coverage continue to get a lot of attention, while some interesting details have gone with little notice.

30 Nov 2009

Foot ulcers: One of the many challenges of diabetics

Diabetics face many health challenges, and among them is the risk of developing foot ulcers.

25 Nov 2009

Researchers develop new device to detect skin cancer

Researchers at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev are developing a new device that detects cancerous skin tumors, including melanomas that aren't visible to the naked eye.

25 Nov 2009

Study finds depressed or burned out surgeons more likely to commit major error on the job

Surgeons who are burned out or depressed are more likely to say they had recently committed a major error on the job, according to the largest study to date on physician burnout. The new findings suggest that the mental well-being of the surgeon is associated with a higher rate of self-reported medical errors, something that may undermine patient safety more than the fatigue that is often blamed for many of the medical mistakes.

23 Nov 2009

Three-day interactive conference to showcase new trendsetting techniques and research in aesthetic plastic surgery

Aesthetic Plastic Surgery: The Next Generation Symposium will be held from December 4-6 at the Waldorf Astoria, announces Z. Paul Lorenc, MD, FACS, New York aesthetic plastic surgeon and Chairman of the APSSNY.

23 Nov 2009

Cosmetic tax unfairly targets women, says New Jersey plastic surgeon

Say hello to Botax, the 5% tax on cosmetic procedures that was a surprise addition to the roughly 2,000 page health care reform bill. The proposed tax, scheduled to take effect January 2010, has been suggested as a way to help fund health care reform.

21 Nov 2009

5% tax on cosmetic surgery opposed by AAFPRS

The United States Senate is about to consider health system reform legislation which contains a 5% tax on cosmetic surgery deemed unnecessary for medical purposes. The American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery (AAFPRS) announces it strongly opposes the inclusion of this tax as it is discriminatory and has already failed in other states.

20 Nov 2009

Plastic surgeons cry foul over Senate health bill's cosmetic surgery tax

Kaiser Health News staff writer Phil Galewitz writes about the so-called "botax."

20 Nov 2009

'Botax' on cosmetic surgery questioned

The Associated Press: "The White House and Senate Democrats have turned to a proposal to tax breast implants, tummy tucks, wrinkle-smoothing injections and other procedures as they search for ways to pay for costly health care overhaul plans." The Senate health bill, which was unveiled Wednesday by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada "would slap a 5 percent excise tax on elective cosmetic surgeries and procedures to help pay for expanding coverage to the uninsured."

20 Nov 2009

Hemicorporectomy effective, and add years and quality of life to survivors

A landmark, 25-year review of cases in which surgeons had to remove the lower portion of the body from the waist down for severe pelvic bone infections shows the therapy can add years and quality of life to survivors, say researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center.

20 Nov 2009