Computer Imaging: Plastic Surgery's Crystal Ball

If you want a glimpse of the future that plastic surgery could provide for you, it won't require a crystal ball. Plastic surgery practitioners often use computer imaging that can show you what results you might anticipate.

Plastic surgery is often first "performed" on your photography. A picture is taken and scanned into a special computer program. Using a mouse, stylus or pointer, the plastic surgeon alters your photograph to demonstrate the results you could expect from plastic surgery. See what you would look like after a facelift or liposuction. Choose from a selection of noses and let the computer show you how they would look on your face.

Of course, computer images can't promise you actual plastic surgery results. How elastic your skin is, how well you heal, your bone structure, and many other factors, including the plastic surgeon's skill, will dictate the ultimate results.

Before you decide on plastic surgery, you will want to ask the surgeon to show you other images as well. Those are the before-and-after pictures of former patients. Most plastic surgeons maintain a portfolio of pictures of patients who have given permission for their pictures to be shown to other prospective patients. This will help you have realistic expectations of your final results.

You should also ask to see the images of patients throughout the healing process. Especially for facial surgery, the swelling and bruising can be substantial, and it's important that you know what you can expect to look like at various stages after plastic surgery, and how long it will take to entirely heal.

Jeanette Pollock is a freelance author and website owner of cosmeticsurgery-101.com. Visit Jeanette's site to learn more about computer imaging and plastic surgery.