New Jersey Plastic Surgeons

The Food and Drug Administration has put out a strong statement about a widely-used type of cosmetic procedure called Lipodissolve which is often used as an alternative to true liposuction. These “fat melting” injections are often offered in medical spas and are regularly advertised as being able to dissolve or destroy small deposits of fat in the arms, legs and even midsection.

The FDA sent out warning letters to at least five medical spas for using unapproved drugs that have not been scientifically proven to be safe or actually “melt” fat as they are advertised. None of the medical spas were in New York or New Jersey, though the Monarch MedSpa of King of Prussia, PA and the Medical Cosmetic Enhancements medical spa of Chevy Chase, MD are close enough to have New Jersey and New York clients. The drugs in question are usually a mix different chemicals including PC (phosphatidylcholine), DC (sodium dioxycholate) and even Infasurf, a breathing medication used with premature infants.

The FDA has been under increased pressure to begin cracking down on medical spas and their various claims and advertisements for products and procedures that seem to good to be true. In this case the idea of using a simple chemical injection to melt away fat in the body was advertised as safe and without side effects, though the Food and Drug Administration has reports that there may be complications with the procedure.

In addition to warning various medical spas across the United States, the FDA also warned against buying lipodissolve products from the zipmed.net and mesoone.com websites.

Remember: a board certified plastic surgeon has many years of schooling and formalized medical training. Don’t trust your body to someone who isn’t qualified and if a claim about a miracle beauty drug sounds too good to be true it probably is.

Most people are surprised when they first find out about the expensive cost of most plastic surgical procedures. A typical plastic surgeon will change anywhere from a few hundred dollars to tens of thousands of dollars for a single surgery, depending upon the complexity of the operation. Counted in those high costs are not only the plastic surgeon’s costs, but also the costs of the anesthesiologist, operating room facilities and accommodations for recovery.

The average kind of elective plastic surgery patient only makes about $50,000 a year. As you may know most optional cosmetic surgeries are not covered by any sort of health insurance, leaving most patients to pay the bill another way. Cosmetic surgery is not exclusively for the wealthy. Here are several different ways you can pay for your plastic surgery:

Personal Loan: You could outright borrow the money from a bank or other lending institution without any sort of collateral such as a home or car. There are lots of reputable internet loan agencies that can offer often offer you lower interest rates than a bank because they have less overhead. Some loan agencies specialize in medical or smaller loans for minor elective surgeries. The approval process for these types of loans can be a few hours to a few weeks.

Home Equity Loan: If you own your home and it is worth more than you owe the bank, then you could borrow some money against your home to pay for your plastic surgery. Most home equity loans don’t have restrictions on how the loaned money is used and the money you pay in interest may even be tax deductible.

Credit Card: Yes, some people put their entire plastic surgery bill on their credit card and pay it off over time. Generally the interest rates will be high, but you could get special incentive points and bonuses from the credit card company for spending that much money at once.

Plastic Surgery Financing: There are companies that actually specialize in giving out loans that are intended to be used for plastic and cosmetic surgeries. These loans are generally lower interest rates than many other loans and many plastic surgeons prefer using them when possible. Some plastic surgeons now work with financing companies or even offer their own financing services.

LendingClub is a peer-to-peer service that offers personal loan rates that are much lower than a bank. You can create a free account to learn more!

Personal Networking Loan: Peer-to-peer loan programs allow hundreds of people to loan you very small amounts of money at a relatively low pay back rate. There are many web based peer-to-peer loan sites that will loan you money as long as your credit rating is not too bad. This is one of newest ways of borrowing money.

Save it Up: Yes, you can save up the money, but it could take a long time, depending upon the cost and the amount of money you are able to put away. By the time you save up enough for the procedure you want the cost may have risen! Many people have a difficult time saving up enough money to pay for a specific plastic surgery procedure.

The idea of taking out a loan for something like plastic surgery tends to scare some people, but you have to consider plastic surgery as an investment in your health, both physical and mental as well as an investment in your career, relationships and quality of life. It is a high cost to pay, but the rewards of a successful cosmetic surgery often outweight the costs.

No matter what the occasion, if you’re looking for a one-of-a-kind gift idea for that special person you may want to consider getting him or her a gift certificate to a plastic surgeon! Taking a cue from travel agents where gift cards for luxury vacations are a popular idea, many plastic surgeons now offer gift certificates for their services which can be purchased by friends and relatives of the perspective patient.

Most plastic surgeons will sell you a gift certificate or gift card for as little as $25. Some plastic surgery centers have fancy gift cards with logos and photos embossed on them while some simply offer plain gift certificates which you can present to the recipient in a classy card or envelope. Of course most medical spas which combine the services of a spa with that of a plastic surgeon’s office will offer gift cards that can be used for everything from getting your nails done, to a full derma smooth or Botox procedure!

Obviously, you’ll want to do your homework before you just run out and buy a gift card from any plastic surgeon. First, be sure that your recipient is serious about getting plastic surgery and has really done his or her homework. Giving a plastic surgery gift card out of the blue can obviously be taken the wrong way! You should talk to your recipient to find out which plastic surgeon he or she is currently working with and be sure that’s the surgeon’s office that will be performing the cosmetic surgery. In addition to the doctor you’ll also want to be sure your recipient is healthy enough and interested enough to go through with the procedure.

You most likely won’t be able to exchange or get a refund on your gift certificate once it’s purchased. You may even want to find out the approximate cost of the procedure that he or she is interested in. You may have some friends who can also chip or purchase gift cards to help offset the cost.

So consider giving the gift of beauty and confidence with a cosmetic surgery gift card! The gift of plastic surgery is not something to be taken lightly, but it could prove to be the gift that dramatically improves someone’s outlook on life and because each cosmetic surgery procedure on each individual is unique, you’ll never find a gift that’s as “one-of-a-kind” as a gift card to a plastic surgeon!