The beautiful history of plastic surgery
The term plastic surgery stems from the Greek word plastikos, which means to reshape, or to give form to something. This reflects the potency of plastic surgery as a way of reshaping the human body; either to improve the way the body functions or enhance its appearance; and hints at its potential to shape our life experience in a positive way.
While today’s top plastic surgery procedures reflect the cutting edge of medical science, the practice itself goes back thousands of years. The first records of plastic surgery procedures appear in the “Sushruta Samhita”, a Sanskrit text compiled in the 6th Century BCE by Indian physician Sushruta, detailing the work he did with nasal reconstruction and skin grafts.
The birth and growth of Plastic surgery however was not confined to a single place or a single point in history. The fundamental human need to surgically alter physical conditions that adversely affect people’s lives, contributed to the advancement of plastic surgery procedures and techniques on a global scale across the centuries.
It was during World War One, when the devastating nature of war injuries; especially facial injuries due to burns, gunshots and blasts; spurred the modern advancement of plastic surgery. During the decades that followed, advances in anaesthesia, antibiotics and medical care made levels of surgery possible that had not existed before. The advent of silicone in the 1960s, heralded new possibilities for plastic surgery in the field of breast and other enhancements.
The advancement of plastic surgery for reconstructive purposes during the first part of the twentieth century also opened new possibilities of plastic surgery as an elective procedure for cosmetic purposes. Over the decades, cosmetic surgery blossomed from the secretive indulgence of a select few, to an easily accessible and celebrated part of modern culture. A far cry from emergency surgery and experimental procedures, today’s most popular plastic surgery procedures including breast enhancements and reductions, facelifts, tummy tucks, and the sculpting and contouring of the face and body, are performed daily around the world.
I am proud to have a practice that continues this great tradition and spirit of plastic surgery: the transformation of lives through reconstruction and enhancement, and the celebration of infinite expressions of beauty.