The Skin Cancer Foundation Seal of Recommendation

The Skin Cancer Foundation’s Seal of Recommendation is granted to sun protection products that have been reviewed by and meet the stringent criteria of a volunteer Photobiology Committee.  The Seal is a symbol of safe and effective sun protection that is recognized by consumers worldwide.

One of the first programs offered by the Foundation, it quickly gained acceptance from consumers for setting the standard for effective sun protection with sunscreen products, sunglasses, specially treated auto and residential window film, umbrellas, clothing and laundry products that wash UV protection into clothing.

Here are the main points in the FDA’s new sunscreen rules:

• Sunscreens may be labeled “broad-spectrum” if they provide protection against ultraviolet A (UVA) and ultraviolet B (UVB) radiation.

• Only broad-spectrum sunscreens with a Sun Protection Factor (SPF) of 15 or higher can state that they protect again skin cancer if used as directed with other sun protection measures.
• Sunscreens with an SPF of 2-14 will be required to have a warning stating that the product has not been shown to help prevent skin cancer or early skin aging.
• The terms “sunblock”, “sweatproof” and “waterproof” are no longer allowed on sunscreen labels.
• A sunscreen may claim to be “water resistant”; however, the product must specify if it offers 40 minutes or 80 minutes of protection while swimming or sweating, based on standard testing. Sunscreens that are not water resistant must include a direction instructing consumers to use a water resistant sunscreen if swimming or sweating.
• Sunscreens cannot claim to provide sun protection for more than two hours without reapplication.
• Sunscreen manufacturers will have one year to comply with the FDA ruling; smaller companies will have two years.
• The ingredients in sunscreens marketed today have been used for many years and FDA does not have any reason to believe these products are not safe for consumer use.

• The FDA reiterated that sunscreen alone is not enough, and should be used in conjunction with a complete sun protection regimen, including seeking shade, wearing long pants, long-sleeved shirts, hats and sunglasses.

Men and Plastic Surgery

MEN AND COSMETIC SURGERY

The business world is competitive and being qualified sometimes isn’t enough.  The candidate, supervisor or staff member must look qualified too.  Promotion and respect in their careers are overwhelming reasons men desire to look more energetic.

Drooping eyelids, accentuated by a falling brow can create a tired and dragged out look.  A weak chin does not project a powerful presence.  A double chin or deep jowls create an impression of being older than you are.  Love handles or a pot-belly can be interpreted as not being physically fit. The plastic surgeon will provide you with solutions to resolve these features that take away from an energetic and healthy appearance. 

Men often neglect skin care, except for soap and water.  There are medically researched products available to reduce fine lines, eliminate “age spots”, lighten dark areas under the eyes and improve the texture of the skin.  These can be incorporated with surgical procedures to create a clear and smooth appearance.  For brochures or more information contact us at Northern Colorado Plastic and Hand Surgery, 970- 493-8800 

Brow Lifts

Now more affordable and available than ever before, endoscopic procedures are an acceptable avenue for those seeking self-improvement.   In some cases, insurance may help cover some of the expense of the endoscopic brow procedure if the brow and upper eyelids have “drooped” as far as to obstruct visual fields and surgical correction is necessary to correct the condition. This visual problem is often compounded by lax muscles of the brow and an increase in softened tissue and skin.  In some cases the eyebrows are actually below the brow ridge.  This extra weight pushes the eyelid skin downward, when there may not be an excess of actual eyelid tissue.  In these cases a brow lift may be combined with the reconstructive eyelid surgery, or take the place of it.  In any case, the visual fields must be affected to the point that surgical correction is the only answer for insurance to consider covering your claim. 

Cosmetically, you can correct the frown lines that crease your forehead, creating a worried or angry expression by having a plastic surgeon perform a forehead or browlift .  This same procedure can eliminate the sagging skin of the forehead and the heavy look of hooded upper eyelids.  The grooves between the eyebrows and across the top of the nose are also reduced.   The cranky or sad expression is replaced with a younger and more alert expression.

This surgery is often performed in conjunction with additional eyelid surgery or a facelift to enhance the new refreshed look.  There are a variety of techniques the surgeon may use to achieve the improvements you are particularly seeking.  This depends on factors such as the position of your eyebrows, hairline, muscle activity during certain facial expressions, scar forming tendencies and any previous brow or eyelid surgeries.

Plastic surgeons use a special viewing instrument called an endoscope, to perform procedures through several small incisions.  These small incisions, usually less than 1” long, take the place of making a traditionally larger surgical incision to repair or change the tissues under the skin. The scope, a small tubular probe, utilizes a tiny camera and bright light to project images to a screen in the operating suite.  This camera becomes the “eye” of the surgeon.  All surgical instruments are manipulated through a separate small incision and are guided by the images captured by the camera.  This endoscopic technique has been utilized by the cosmetic and reconstructive surgeon for nasal surgery, carpal tunnel release (many plastic surgeons are also hand surgeons), facelifts and forehead/brow lifts. 

Patients have less risk of nerve damage and loss of sensation, bleeding and swelling with the endoscopic procedure.  The scars from surgery are smaller and more easily camouflaged by your natural lines.   The procedures generally take less time and are completed without being admitted to a hospital overnight. Recovery and ability to return to normal activity is usually quicker than from the larger, more open surgical incision.  Your surgeon will explain to you any complications or risks that are involved, including the necessity to switch to the open incision type surgery should any complications be encountered during the endoscopic technique.   

Plastic Surgery

PLASTIC SURGERY

The words “Plastic Surgery” are most often associated with cosmetic surgery- to enhance or reshape the normal structures of the body (what nature has given us) to improve appearance.  The side of plastic surgery of which the general public may not be so aware is “Reconstructive Surgery”, performed on abnormal structures of the body caused by congenital defects, developmental abnormalities, trauma, infection, tumors or disease.   Reconstructive surgery is performed to improve function and also to recreate a normal appearance.   Your family physician may refer you to a Plastic and Reconstructive surgeon for skin cancers, hypertrophic or keloid scars, persistent open wounds, lipomas (fatty tumors), inflamed cysts, cleft lip/palate, breast reduction or reconstruction, burns or deformities.  Reconstructive surgeons also treat traumatic hand injuries involving tendons, nerves, arteries and amputations. 

Many reconstructive procedures are covered by health insurance.  After a consultation with the surgeon a letter can be sent to your insurance carrier outlining your situation and asking permission to correct it and establishing your benefits.  For more information regarding a reconstructive procedure please call 970-493-8800 or visit our website.  

CARPAL TUNNEL SYNDROME

Symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome can include pain, numbness, and/or tingling in the hand (particularly in the thumb, index, middle and ring fingers), weakened grip, inability to keep firm grasp on objects or even loss of sensation in the thumb and hand. CTS is the result of pressure on the nerve that passes through a tunnel with tendons from the forearm to the hand.  The pressure is a result of swelling which can be caused by inflammation of the tendon lining, dislocations, fractures, arthritis, fluid retention, and sometimes diabetes.  Inflammation can sometimes be caused by repetitive or strenuous use of the hand.   Most often conservative treatment is attempted after a diagnosis is reached.  This may mean changing the activity or motion made with the hand, keeping the wrist straight by splinting to reduce swelling within the tunnel and using oral or injectable anti-inflammatories.

If surgical intervention is indicated, the procedure is performed either in an open fashion or with a scope (creating a smaller incision) close to the palm.  The tunnel is enlarged, pressure relieved, and the swelling decreases. 

    HANDS IN PLASTICS

A significant portion of some plastic and reconstructive surgery practices is dedicated to hand surgery.  Hand surgery is common to correct contractures of the fingers (claw-hand ), release of trigger fingers, removal of ganglions and cysts and to treat birth defects of the hands.  These include releasing fused fingers or removing extra digits.  Plastic surgeons are also skilled in microsurgery.  This enables them to rejoin severed nerves, veins, arteries and tendons with extreme magnification of the surgical microscope.  Surgical replantation of amputated fingers can sometimes be successful with these techniques.  Our thumbs, so valuable to everyday function, can be reconstructed by using a transplanted toe or by moving a finger and rotating it.  Carpal tunnel syndrome and fractures are treated by many plastic surgeons.  “Plastic Surgery” is derived from the Greek words for to mold or give form, this certainly applies in hand surgery as part of a reconstructive practice.

If you suffer an amputation of a finger, immediately stop bleeding by applying direct pressure to the “stump”area and wrap it in a clean cloth.  Wrap the amputated part in a moist cloth sealed inside a plastic bag, place this inside a larger bag filled with ice.  Go immediately to the Emergency Room of the nearest hospital. 
GANGLION CYSTS

Lumps that appear in the hand, fingers and wrists can be ganglion cysts.  The hand surgeon makes the diagnosis based on location, size, shape and mobility of the mass.  Often, an x-ray is necessary to establish any bony malformations or joint involvement.  Ganglions usually are near joints or within the sheath surrounding tendons. There have been no specific causes established, like fractures or bruising of the area.  The cysts may increase in size and then gradually disappear without ever causing any pain or problems.  Only those that become painful, especially when using the hand or working the joint, warrant medical treatment.  This can range from aspirating (removing) fluid from the cyst, injections of steroid into the cyst to surgical excision.  Ganglions do sometimes return, even after they’ve disappeared following any of these methods.

If surgical intervention is indicated,  after conservative therapy fails to relieve the symptoms of the ganglion, the surgery is performed on an outpatient basis.  The patient’s hand is numbed and the cyst removed, including a portion of the lining of the joint or tendon from which it “ballooned”.  Often a wrist splint is worn to protect the area for a period of time after the surgery.  

Give Up Tanning in 2011

It could save your life and your looks Almost 36 percent of the women and 12.2 percent of the men aged 18-24 surveyed in a recent study tanned indoors in the last year, according to the journal Archives of Dermatology. These young people may believe they look better with a tan, but in fact they are putting themselves at risk for skin cancer and aging their skin prematurely. Tanning machines emit dangerous ultraviolet (UV) radiation, and frequent tanners using new high-pressure sunlamps may receive as much as 12 times the annual ultraviolet A (UVA) radiation they would receive from regular sun exposure. “Our hope for the new year is that people begin to understand that tanning beds are dangerous and very harmful to the skin,” said Perry Robins, MD, President, The Skin Cancer Foundation.“We hope in 2011 that use of tanning beds will decrease.” UV radiation is a proven human carcinogen, and is linked with a higher risk of all forms of skin cancer, including potentially deadly melanoma, which is the most common form of cancer among young adults 25-29 years old. On average, indoor tanners are 74 percent more likely to develop melanomas than non-tanners. They are also 2.5 times more likely to develop squamous cell carcinoma and 1.5 times more likely to develop basal cell carcinoma, the two most common skin cancers. The damage caused by the UV radiation emitted by the sun and tanning beds is cumulative and often irreversible. The destructive process of photoaging – premature skin aging due to UV exposure – produces profound structural changes in the skin including fine wrinkles, deep grooves, blotchiness, sagging and a leathery texture. Some of these changes may appear as early as the age of 20 in anyone who has spent a great deal of time exposing their skin to UV radiation during childhood and teen years. “Chronic exposure to UVA radiation accelerates the aging of skin five to seven years,” said Philippe Humbert, MD, head of the Department of Dermatology at the University Hospital of Besançon and Director of the Laboratory of Cutaneous Biology at the University of Franche-Comte in Besançon, France. In addition to the obvious health risks and link to premature aging, the tanned look is no longer in fashion. The trend started with Hollywood actresses such as Julianne Moore, Cate Blanchett, Nicole Kidman and Gwyneth Paltrow and is now taking hold. Natural skin is now generally viewed as modern while tanned skin is viewed as dated. The Skin Cancer Foundation’s Go With Your Own Glow campaign encourages women to embrace their natural skin tone.   This article is provided courtesy of The Skin Cancer Foundation Northern Colorado Plastic Surgery