Plastic Surgery: Superficial or Necessary?

Plastic surgery is a very necessary form of surgery. It is needed by millions of Americans every year, not only to improve life, but in some cases, to save it. There are two types of plastic surgery: cosmetic and reconstructive. Cosmetic surgery consists of certain procedures used to “improve” a person’s natural features, or give a more youthful appearance, while reconstructive surgery is used to restore a person’s natural form after an appearance-altering event, such as disease, infection, cancer, trauma, congenital abnormalities (birth defects), and burns. Sometimes, however, the difference is not so black and white. A woman may feel she needs breast implants to look more attractive, while another may need breast reconstruction after an appearance-altering event, such as a mastectomy. The difference between these two, although they require the same procedure, is obvious. The first would be deemed “cosmetic” and the latter, “reconstructive.” “The term ‘plastic surgery’ has nothing to do with plastic, as you might imagine it would, because plastic surgery predates plastic. It comes form the Greek word plastique, which means ‘to shape or form’” (Larson Par. 3). Some other reconstructive surgeries commonly performed include operations to correct craniofacial abnormalities, mandibular and palatal reconstruction, and the correction of sleep apnea, burns, combat injuries and trauma. Besides major reconstructive surgery to repair physical defects, many standard cosmetic procedures are employed by plastic surgeons to help improve a patient’s self-esteem and self-image. Craniofacial abnormalities make up a fairly large percentage of reconstructive procedures performed each year. Craniofacial abnormalities include physical deformities such as hemifacial microsomia (HFM), mandibulofacial dysostosis, Pierre Robin syndrome, Nager syndrome, and various other, rarer head-related defects. Nearly all of these syndromes and deformities are birth defects, some being related to