Iowa plastic surgeons?

Hi All- Even though this is a long way off, I decided to start researching plastic surgeons. I tried googling, but I am more interested in personal accounts. I am willing to travel to surrounding states too. Can you please give me any info you might have? Thanks, Katie SW / CW / GW / HT 359 334 175? 5'7" 25 pounds lost and gone forever!!

Hi Katie, The important thing to remember is to make sure you go to a Board Certified Plastic Surgeon. They have the extra training. Any surgeon can call themselves a plastic surgeon and I know that there are some who do the bariatric surgeries who a year later are telling their patients that it is time to start having plastic surgery & then offer to do it for them and most of their patients don't realize they don't have the extra training they really should have to do plastic surgery. They end up with very noticable scars because they often use staples to close the incision. A Board Certified Plastic Surgeon is very proud of the way his/her incisions end up & most would never use staples. I have read several books about plastic surgery & they all say that using staples is a "no-no." I really like my plastic surgeon. I am getting ready for my second procedure next Monday. I had the first phase of a belt lipectomy ( essentially a TT) done in March. My tummy is flat & tight. My incision had no stitches that could be seen (except around the belly button) so now 5 months later, the scar is quite faint and if you rub your hand over it, you can't feel a ridge or anything. I suspect that in a month or so the scar will be just a faint white line. That is a sign of a very conscious plastic surgeon who takes pride in his work. Phase 2 is next. That will address the backside & outer thighs. He does not do inner thighs. His name is Deniz Bastug & is in Waterloo. As much as I like him & as impressed as I am with his skill, if I had it to do all over again, I'd go to Coralville & see Dr Cran or Aly. They are among the best in the country for lower body lifts. They do inner thighs & that seems to be the biggest problem for people.They have patients come from all over the world! I think you are wise to start thinking about this early. It doesn't hurt one bit to do your homework. You might want to check out the Plastic Surgery board here. There is one gal on there whose profile you should check out. Her name is Caroline Martin. She has had extensive plastic surgery(some I am not at all impressed with,by the way) and she is going to have more. She has posted many pictures that will show you what you can expect. It is because of her experiences with her last surgery that led me to decide to not have my inner thighs fixed. Dixie

I agree with Dixie......make sure they are board certified by the American Plastics something or other.....And I also agree with her that Dr. ALY is the BEST......I was referrred to him at first, but since he departed from U of I hospitals he is cash only And I knew I had a good chance with insurance because I had a lot of documentation of rash problems. Which leads me to that advice. Have every rash or as many as possible documented and that will really help ya if you try for insurance approval. Me and Andrea D. both have the exact same insurance I was approved within days and she was denied.....I had documentation, she did not! I guess most insurances go by three rules in determining need.....maintaince of weight for 6 months.....documentation of rashes...and a panni that hangs below the pube bone. I went with Dr. Erin Kennedy here in Dubuque.....she is board certified and has worked with a lot of WLS patients.....Plus she is a girl, so she kinda knows what really matters to woman.....I was approved for pannilectumy (sp) removal of the pannis only.....and she told me I would not be happy with that at all......and was really concerned with my happiness afterwards....I really like her and would reccomend her. She has also done some work on a good friend of mine. I am 14 days out and doing great and my scar is already looking 100% better......I thought I would have a million staples and she too DOES NOT use staples.....she sews ya up real good inside and uses super glue on the outside.......she wants you to look as good as possible I know there are a few in Davenport.....I have heard some good and some bad from there.....hopefully some folks from that area will chime in and tell ya bout them!! Good idea to plan ahead tho. I am already saving my pennies so I can go back and have my (.) (.) done someday.......actually I will probably just take money from hubbys flew med account......but I think I am gonna take a year off from surgerys since I have had one major surgery every year for the past 5!! Take Care and good luck jesi