What is the Difference Between a Cosmetic and Plastic Surgeon?
When considering a surgical procedure, many people wonder about the difference between a plastic surgeon and a cosmetic surgeon. This can be a very confusing issue that is more than just nomenclature. There are specific differences in training and specific areas of expertise between the two.
What is a cosmetic surgeon?
A cosmetic surgeon can perform both cosmetic and plastic procedures. A board-certified cosmetic surgeon will have completed 4 years of medical school, 5-6 years of medical residency with training in at least one of these categories: general surgery, obstetrics, and gynecology, oral and maxillofacial surgery, otolaryngology, dermatology, or ophthalmology. He/she must take an additional 1-2 years of cosmetic surgery training and pass the exam of the American Board of Cosmetic Surgery.
Cosmetic surgery includes some types of plastic surgery but is focused on enhancing a patient’s appearance. These surgeons can operate on the neck, head, body trunk areas, and arms and legs.
Many cosmetic surgeons focus their practice on specific procedures. They can include, facelifts, surgeries to change the shape and appearance of ears, chin, and nose as well as other surgeries to change the facial appearance. In addition, cosmetic surgeons will do breast augmentation and breast lifts. They will also perform surgery to resurface the skin and other non-surgical aesthetic treatments. Some cosmetic surgeons limit their practice to dealing with spider and varicose veins.
What is a Plastic Surgeon?
A plastic surgeon differs, often significantly from a cosmetic surgeon in that they can do cosmetic treatments but more often do surgeries that restore function and appearance to areas of the body that have been damaged.
There are a variety of techniques used by plastic surgeons to achieve their surgical goals for the patient. These techniques include but are not limited to microvascular surgery, the use of skin flaps, and skin grafts. One of the most prominent things they do is to transfer live, healthy tissue including skin, fat, muscle, and blood vessels from one part of the body of the patient to another area affected by burns, injuries and traumatic injury, tumors, or other conditions.
In order to reach board certification in plastic surgery, a physician must attend 4 years of medical school, a medical residency of 5-6 years, with training in general surgery, plastic surgery, and cosmetic surgery. Finally, he or she must pass the exam of the American Board of Plastic Surgeons.
The procedures that a top plastic surgeon will perform include cleft lip and palate repair, breast reconstruction after a mastectomy, and breast reduction. In addition, procedures can include skin cancer removal and hand surgery. Plastic surgeons will also do many of the procedures that a cosmetic surgeon can perform.
What to look for in a surgeon?
Surgeons in this field may use many different terms to describe what they do. Patients might be better off by looking past these confusing terms and digging deeper into other considerations. A patient should always seek out a board-certified surgeon in the area for which they seek treatment. It is vital that a patient looks for an experienced surgeon for the specific area to be treated. A physician who performs the exact surgery sought will be the best surgeon you can choose. Just because the surgeon does nose jobs every day does not mean they are experienced in a procedure they do only once a month. This is very important to help assure success. Check out the hospital in which the surgeon does his or her work. What do other patients say about it? Finally, what are the overall comments about patient satisfaction with the surgeon you are considering? If enough patients are not happy with the work done or the professionalism of the doctor and the team, warning lights should be going off loudly and clearly.