When mentioning plastic surgery, most people are likely to think about expensive procedures that are needed for purely aesthetic purposes. Of course, there is an element of truth in this, since the vast majority of plastic procedures are associated with a change in the shape of the nose and breast enlargement. However, the pioneers of plastics had quite practical goals and objectives. Here top 5 amazing operations from the history of plastic surgery.
Italian rhinoplasty method
Documented plastic surgery dates back to the 16th century, when the Italian surgeon Gaspare Talyakozzi, using the methods described in an ancient Indian treatise, restored the patient's damaged nose. To do this, he used tissue from his forearm.
The operation took place in several stages. At first, the skin flap from the biceps was not completely separated, but attached to the tip of the nose with a connecting clip and left for 20 days. At the same time, the patient’s hand was fixed with a tight bandage and attached to the nose so that the skin flap would fit the rest of the nose well. Then Tagliacci completely cut off the skin from the biceps. It is difficult to imagine the sensations of a person forced to walk for almost a month with a motionless hand suspended from his nose. In addition, the result of an unusual operation was not guaranteed, and the risk of infection was quite high.
The first successful breast augmentation
The first breast augmentation surgery was reconstructive. In the patient, part of the left breast was removed due to a tumor. German surgeon Vincenz Czerny used a lipoma, a fatty benign tumor from a woman’s back, to restore her breast.
An amazing operation took place in 1895, and surgeons spent the next 70 years trying to come up with viable material to create breast implants. What they just didn’t try to put into the woman’s breast: paraffin and glass balls and beeswax, and even ivory. Fortunately, in the 1960s, surgeon Frank Jirou invented a silicone implant. His first experimental procedure was performed on a dog. And the first woman to have silicone implants inserted was Timmy Jean Lindsay.
First kidney transplant
Although most people do not think of transplant procedures as being directly related to plastic surgery, they include many similar methods, in particular, the reconstruction and replantation of nerves and tissues. Therefore, the first successful kidney transplantation was included in the top 5 amazing plastic surgeries. It was performed by the famous plastic surgeon Joseph E. Murray in 1954. The organ donor was the twin brother of the patient.
Selfies and plastic
In 2013, the compilers of the Oxford Dictionary chose selfies as "the word of the year." The habit of photographing yourself in different situations for many has become an element of everyday life. Men and women, young and old, upload their photos to social media sites such as Instagram, Snapchat, Facebook and Twitter. Even though the act seems innocent, it supposedly causes an increase in plastic surgery.
According to the American online publication Huffington Post, several people performed cosmetic procedures for the sole purpose of increasing their attractiveness for selfies. This, in part, is understandable: who wants to see the dislike under their own photo?
Full face transplant
The ranking of unusual facts about plastic surgery is led by a tragic story with a happy outcome. In 2012, surgeon Eduardo Rodriguez transplanted his face to Richard Norris, who shot himself in the face with a shotgun due to a drunken quarrel with his mother. This was perhaps the most intense and complex plastic surgery procedure ever performed before this time. It lasted 36 hours.
Despite the fact that you can’t name Norris handsome, and he must take medications to keep the immune system at “half power”, his new face is mobile and plastic. And this fact is amazing, given that it literally exploded when fired.
