Featuring Neela Rao, MD (Fort Mill, Rock Hill) Facial plastic surgery can be both functional or cosmetic. Either way, the ultimate goal is to improve one of more of the characteristics of a person’s face. But whether a doctor is smoothing out wrinkles or lifting a sagging eyelid, facial plastic surgery is equally a science and an art. What education does a facial plastic surgeon need? Faces have thousands of intricate parts, and our doctors are specially trained to know every muscle and nerve, how they function, and how to obtain the best facial plastic result. The training they receive as either eye or ENT doctors give them the medical background they need to ensure your face gets the safe, comfortable, care it deserves. After completing medical school, a prospective facial plastic surgeon needs to complete a five- or six-year residency in general surgical rotations and facial plastic surgery. Sometimes, these two residencies are combined into one. Once that training is complete, the doctor can go on to get a facial plastic surgery fellowship, where they receive additional training in the plastic surgery subspecialty. How are facial plastic surgeons artists? An artist needs to have a sense of aesthetics. They need to understand the characteristics of what they are working with and how to use them to produce visually appealing work. Facial plastic surgeons understand that each person has unique characteristics, and that different strategies need to be used on different people to create the most attractive outcome in each case. “Plastics is an art because it takes appreciation of balance and symmetry,” CEENTA Facial Plastic Surgeon Neela Rao, MD, said. “It is also a science because it takes appreciation of anatomy, function, ethnic variations, and meticulous planning.” The facial plastic surgeons at CEENTA are specially trained in their areas of expertise and are highly skilled artists, too. If you are considering facial plastic surgery, don’t hesitate to make an appointment at CEENTA. This blog is for informational purposes only. For specific medical questions, please consult your physician. To schedule an appointment with Dr. Rao or any of CEENTA’s facial plastic surgeons, call 704-295-3000. You can also schedule an appointment online or through myCEENTAchart.
