Consultation for Buccal Fat Removal

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There are many things that you can do to prepare yourself for buccal fat removal consultation, both physically and mentally, to help yourself come out of the treatment happy and healthy. The best thing that you can do for yourself before embarking on any cosmetic procedure is to thoroughly research all aspects of the treatment so that you are completely prepared at all stages.

The Procedure

You should make yourself very familiar with the procedure you hope to undergo, so that you will be able to discuss this during your consultation and ultimately to decide if it’s something that you could go through with. Researching the procedure also includes looking into, and beginning to understand, the anaesthetic options. Although this will be discussed in your consultation, and your doctor should be able to talk you through all the options, it pays to be prepared and have ideas about your preferences.

Your Suitability

An important part of your research will be deciding if you are both physically and mentally suitable for the surgery. It’s easy to look at the physical limitations and assume that that makes you suitable, or not, but you should also consider aspects of your mental health, personality and personal situation at the time. For example, you should assess your reasons for wanting the surgery, how long you have wanted it for and address any possibilities that it could be something you grow to regret. Also if you’ve never had surgery before are you sure you could handle it? Are you good with pain? These are the kinds of questions you need to ask yourself before you start the long and journey into cosmetic surgery.

In terms of physical requirements it’s important to research if any current medical conditions you suffer from are compatible with the surgery. The same should be done with any medications you are taking. If you are over-weight, or smoke, you may also have to consider the possibility that a surgeon may not agree to operate on you.

The Risks

Naturally another area that will require extensive research is the possibility of risks or complications. This means that not only should you make yourself fully aware of all the risks attached to the procedure, but also aim to discover how possible they are and what the likely causes of any complications could be. This in turn could help you decide if you are a suitable candidate for the surgery.

The most effective way you can research the risks involved is by, if possible, talking to, and getting accounts from, previous patients of the surgery. Talking to those who have already undergone buccal fat removal will provide you with a true idea of how the surgery could potentially go. A good place to find these people is on internet forums.

If possible you should try to create for yourself an idea of the worst case scenario that could arise from the surgery. Once you’ve done this you can assess whether or not you are still prepared to go ahead with the procedure.

The Surgeon and the Clinic

It’s very important that you look into the surgeon and the surgery carefully. To get the best out of the procedure you should be looking for a comfortable, clean and friendly surgery with attentive staff. If the operation is not going to be conducted in a hospital you need to make sure that the surgical suite is accredited. You should also look into the surgery’s after-care plan to make sure that, should anything go wrong, you’ll be looked after.

To make sure your surgeon is top notch there are a couple of things you can look out for. Firstly your doctor and nurse should be registered with the General Medical Council (GMC), which you can verify on their website, where you’ll also find information on their primary specialities. You will usually find cosmetic surgeons are also members of either BAAPS or BAPRAS. Qualification wise, buccal fat removal is a surgical procedure and so will require specific surgical qualifications and special training. You can tell if a surgeon is qualified as they will usually display FRCS, FRCSI, FRCS(Ed) or FRCS(Glas) beside their name, standing for Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons of England, Ireland, Edinburgh and Glasgow respectively. Some surgeons don’t do this but should have the certificates in their office to prove that they are qualified.

These however are not the only qualifications as more specific FRCS titles exist. As there are many different titles, for this procedure the best to look out for are FRCS (ORL) which indicates a Specialist Fellowship in Otorhinolaryngology (plastic surgery of the head, neck and face) and FRCSPlast which (Specialist Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons in England) which indicates a surgeon who has specialised in plastic surgery.

As well as ensuring everything is in order with your surgeon’s medical training, you also need to make sure you are selecting someone who has performed the procedure before and in whose care you feel happy and above all safe. Ideally don’t just take their word for it and try to find patients of the surgeons you are looking into, to get a real idea of their previous work. Equally if, after your consultation, you don’t feel happy or comfortable with the surgeon don’t go with them. You’ll need to have a lot of contact with the surgeon so it’s imperative you feel comfortable around them.

What Should I Expect From a Consultation?

The main idea of a consultation is to speak openly and thoroughly with your surgeon about the surgery you wish to receive and what you hope to get from it. This can take anything from 10 minutes to two hours or more depending on how many queries you have and how straight-forward the procedure would be for you and to achieve what you want. For some people the surgeon may suggest a different procedure which might achieve better results for what you desire, than buccal fat removal could.

The surgeon should also explain the entire procedure to you, including details of how much fat should be removed. They should discuss with you the techniques that will be used, where and what incisions will be made and what you can expect in terms of recovery.

Honesty is the Best Policy

As you should expect the surgeon to be very honest with you, you should return the favour and be open too. It’s vital that you make as much of your medical history known to the surgeon as possible, whether it seems relevant or not. If you have any allergies, are currently on medication or suffering from any medical conditions, whether it seems related or not, you should make this known to your surgeon at the earliest opportunity to avoid the possibility of confusion or complication. The same goes for habits like smoking which can impact on the recovery from a procedure like this. It helps to give the surgeon an impression of your lifestyle as they can then discuss with you how, potentially, the surgery or recovery could impact on this.

Anaesthesia

Something you should also discuss in a consultation for buccal fat removal is anaesthesia. There should be a few different options open to you, the most commonly used being Light Sleep Sedation, Twilight (which keeps you conscious, but you’re still sedated) or regional anaesthetic. Some Doctors may also use General Sedation. All of these would normally be done via an IV; however some oral sedation methods may also be available. If you would like Deep General anaesthesia, or it is recommended to you by your doctor, you should verify that a certified anaesthesiologist will perform this. Anaesthesia should not be an after-thought in your consultation but a full and informed discussion, as there can be, as with the surgery itself, certain risks attached to it. Ideally you should research the options open to you thoroughly prior to your appointment.

Instructions

During the consultation you should also discuss anything you’ll need to do before receiving the operation and talk about the requirements following the procedure. This includes discussing what medications will be prescribed to you in order to manage the post-surgery pain and aid the healing process. Generally you will be offered antibiotics, pain killers, anti-inflammatory medicine and perhaps blood pressure medication. During this conversation you should mention any medications you are currently taking as this could alter the choices made or even your eligibility for the surgery altogether.  Here you’ll also be advised to avoid any other medications (including aspirin) aside from the discussed existing prescription medicines.

Get Organised

Given all the above, to help you and the surgeon get the best out of the consultation it is beneficial to take with you a list of questions and concerns you have, so that you make sure you’ve discussed everything you wish to with the surgeon. Bring a photo which demonstrates your problem so that the surgeon can get an idea about what needs fixing and so you can both look at it. Finally also bring a photo of what you’d like to achieve. It might not be possible, but if this is the case a photo will help the surgeon to more easily determine this.

Shop Around

Finally one of the best things you can do is get a few opinions. Whilst this could cost you more in consultancy fees, it pays to be thorough and to make sure you are booking yourself into a good clinic, with a good surgeon to receive the surgery which will best give you the results you’re seeking. Also avoid taking any clinic up on an offer to pay your consultation fee back if you book surgery on the day. Although this is tempting, if you haven’t had a few opinions doing this could prove to be something you grow to regret.

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