Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery
Yale New Haven Hospital offers a wide range of plastic surgery services for adult and pediatric patients, performed by a team of highly trained specialists. Their expertise encompasses the spectrum of reconstructive, oncology-related and cosmetic plastic surgery.
Plastic surgery restores and improves function, as well as appearances, of facial and body tissue defects due to illness, trauma or birth disorders. Cosmetic plastic surgery is performed to repair, reshape or improve appearances of otherwise normal parts of the body.
Why Choose YNHH for Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery Services
YNHH provides plastic surgery services through a number of specialized centers and programs that treat specific areas of the body, including face, head and neck, breast and hand. In addition to reconstructive and cosmetic plastic surgery, we offer related management of skin cancers in coordination with medical teams at Smilow Cancer Hospital at Yale New Haven, as well as facial and extremity trauma and chronic wound-care problems.
Plastic Surgery Services We Provide
Craniofacial services are made up of 18 different disciplines designed to treat congenital, traumatic, tumor and vascular problems affecting the head and neck. Care management for adult and pediatric patients -- including diagnosis, surgery and post-operative treatment -- deals with complex and rare deformities, as well as common problems such as cleft lip and palate.
The Problem Wound Program offers plastic surgery procedures as part of multidisciplinary treatment of difficult-to-treat wounds. Services are available at both inpatient and outpatient settings.
Cosmetic Surgery services include face and breast surgery, facial rejuvenation, body contouring, and surgical and non-surgical skin care. Some patients will choose to have plastic surgery to remove loose or excess skin after they have lost a significant amount of weight from bariatric surgery.
Botox and filler are two common minimally invasive options for patients seeking non-operative facial rejuvenation. While both are used to minimize wrinkles, they are used in very different ways. Botox is purified botulinum toxin A and is used to paralyze muscles. It is used for dynamic wrinkles or wrinkles that appear or are accentuated by smiling or frowning. Common areas of use include the brow, forehead and lateral eye wrinkles (crow's feet). While Botox is commonly thought of as a wrinkle eliminator, it can also be a powerful tool for brow shaping and facial balancing.
Fillers are easier to conceptualize in that they are used to "fill" underneath a depression (wrinkle) in order to smooth out a surface. The most common areas treated include the nasolabial folds and melolabial folds (marionette lines). Fillers may also be used to fill in depressions that occur with facial aging, such as the tear troughs, or simply to add volume to accentuate the cheekbones or jaw line.
Oculoplastic and Orbital Surgery services focus on comprehensive treatment of problems affecting the eyelids and orbits (tissue and bone surrounding the eyes), including injuries, congenital abnormalities and tumors. We also offer cosmetic surgical procedures of the eyelids and forehead.
The Breast Reconstruction Surgery Program provides multidisciplinary treatment of breast disorders, including breast reconstruction following tumor removal and breast reduction, as well as cosmetic breast enlargement. The program's medical team collaborates with specialists at the Yale New Haven Breast Center and utilizes the most advanced microsurgery and endoscopic techniques.
Multiple options for breast reconstruction exist, each with different side effects, surgical times and recovery periods. These options allow for highly individualized care. We have experience in all forms of breast reconstruction, from implant-based techniques to microsurgical perforator flap techniques. While some techniques are intensive in terms of surgical procedures and post-operative care, we are uniquely poised with abundant facilities, staff and equipment to provide the highest level of care.
Breast reconstruction can be subdivided into implant techniques and autologous (your own) tissues techniques. Implant reconstruction offers advantages of decreased operative time, fine control over final size, and minimal additional incision lines. Clinic visits and a second operation are required to stretch the skin to the desired amount and replace the expander with permanent implant.
Alternatively, autologous breast reconstruction creates a breast which grows, shrinks and matures along with you, because it is your own tissue. This type of reconstruction is more resistant to radiation and infectious complications, and will maintain symmetry well over time. But autologous reconstruction requires longer operative times, longer hospital stays and additional incision lines. Most commonly we are able to utilize the skin and fat from the lower abdomen in the form of a TRAM, free TRAM, or DIEP reconstruction. If that area is not suitable, due to scarring or insufficient tissue, then the upper inner thigh, back or lower buttock area are possibilities.
