Posts Tagged ‘ Cosmetic Procedures ’

Time to Wake up to “Awake” Cosmetic Procedures

January 21st, 2011. By LucyC

It’s that time of year when everyone—well almost everyone—thinks about losing weight and getting in shape. Gym memberships go nuclear as do memberships to organizations like Weight Watchers and Jenny Craig. All good. But there’s also some not so good.

One trend—that sounds too good to be true—is “Awake Procedures.” According to a report on MSNBC.com, bargain prices are being offered on cosmetic procedures such as breast augmentation and liposuction without general anesthetic—and apparently without an anesthesiologist, or even a qualified plastic surgeon.

The procedures, such as Awake Liposcuplture and Awake Abdominoplasty, are aimed at women who are afraid of having or don’t want a general anesthetic, who want to remain in control during the procedure (?), or who don’t want to go to a hospital. Here’s a blurb from a website offering information about Awake Liposculpture:

“Because liposculpture is generally performed under local anesthesia, it is an outpatient procedure that can be performed in a short 1-2 hours in the comfort of the liposculpture surgeon’s office or clinic.”

Sounds comfortable, safe, private, non-threatening…but what if things don’t go according to plan? Let’s take breast augmentation for example. In the piece on MSNBC, Dr. McGuire, M.D., a director of the American Board of Plastic Surgery, cites numerous potentially life-threatening complications that could occur during the procedure “including blocked airways, blood pressure changes or collapsed lungs.” The most invasive procedure, full tummy tucks—presents even Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Awake Breast Augmentation, Awake Liposuction, Cosmetic Procedures
Posted in Consumer Fraud, Drugs/Medical, Emerging Issues | 1 Comment »