Question:
My daughter is seven years old and has ears that stick out from her face. She’s always being teased about her ears, and my husband and I are contemplating an ear pinning procedure for her. I heard that the younger someone is, the easier this type of surgery is. Could you please tell me if this is true or not?
Answer:
The procedure you are referring to is called an otoplasty. The procedure is slightly easier in younger patients as the ear cartilage is more pliable. This is not a good reason to push someone into the procedure however as the procedure is only minimally more difficult in adults and equally successful. Seven is certainly old enough to have an otoplasty however, and if your daughter is interested and willing it is certainly a rewarding procedure for both the patient and physician.
Posted by Dr. Buckingham
Question:
Can laser skin resurfacing get rid of acne scars?
Answer:
Nothing can remove acne scars completely. Laser skin resurfacing or dermabrasion can improve acne scars to some degree. Adjuvant treatments include subcutaneous filling of the scarred area with either Sculptra or autologous fat as well as surgical excision of the deeper scars.
Posted by Dr. Buckingham
Question:
I have many age spots on my forehead and cheeks. Otherwise I don’t look too bad for a 76-year-old grandpa. I would like to reduce the appearance of these pigmented spots. Can a chemical peel do this and what would the recovery time be?
Answer:
Yes a chemical or laser peel would be effective in reducing age spots. The recovery time to look reasonable is about 2 weeks. You will still have some redness to the skin for several more weeks that will fade over time.
Posted by Dr. Buckingham
Question:
What areas of the face does Dysport work in? Does it work well when injected into the chin area?
Answer:
Dysport can be used in any part of the face that you would use Botox or any other neuromodulator. The most common areas for use are the glabellar frown lines, forehead lines and smile lines/crow’s feet wrinkles. Other areas are also common and beneficial however. These include the “bunny lines” on the side of the nose, upper and lower lip lines, depressor muscles of the corner of the mouth, chin and neck bands. Yes it does work well in for chin dimpling.
Posted by Dr. Buckingham
Question:
What kinds of grafts can be used in rhinoplasty?
Answer:
A book could be written on this question. Not only are there cartilage grafts that can be placed on the nose, onlay grafts, but there are all kinds of grafts that can be placed in the tip, spreader grafts, rim grafts, lateral crural grafts, etc. Additionally, some artificial materials can be used in rhinoplasty as well, although we limit the use of these to the most rare case as we prefer cartilage whenever possible.
Posted by Dr. Buckingham
