General Information Regarding Plastic Surgery

Did you know that the “plastic” in plastic surgery is from the Greek word, plastikos, meaning to form or mold?

What is Plastic Surgery?

The act of performing surgical procedures to reconstruct or aesthetically improve physical features of the human face and body has been around since ancient times, first appearing in India eight centuries before common era. Known as plastic surgery, the term includes any surgical procedure that changes or forms any part of a patient's body for reasons that are purely functional.

Reasons to Undergo Plastic Surgery

Toronto patients undergoing plastic surgery often do so to correct one or more physical flaws that hinder their functionality. Plastic surgery repairs such flaws to a "normal" shape or form. In many instances, individuals may experience a renewed sense of self worth.

Plastic surgery is performed on those people that require a physical flaw to be reconstructed. In this case, the flaw may be due to two general reasons: a birth defect, or by accident, illness and other trauma.

A baby born with a cleft lip, a birth defect that often develops while they are still in the womb, can actually prevent food and liquid intake, as well as inhibit speech. A woman experiencing severe back pain due to heavy drooping breasts. Techniques in plastic surgery can be used to reconstruct the problem areas, and as a means to eliminate them to prevent potentially serious health problems.

Types of Plastic Surgery

As plastic surgery can reconstruct or form the physical appearance of just about any part of the entire body, there are several areas of specialization a plastic surgeon may dedicate themselves to. Plastic surgeons may specialize in breast reconstruction, skin grafts, hand surgery, and surgery utilizing specially designed lasers. The technical names of some typical types of plastic surgery are blepharoplasty (eyelid), mammoplasty (breasts), rhinoplasty (nose), and otoplasty (ears).