Plastic Surgery

Plastic surgery, the functional, structural, and aesthetic restoration of all manner of defects and deformities of the human body. The term plastic surgery stems from the Greek word plastikos, meaning “to mold” or “to form.” Modern plastic surgery has evolved along two broad themes: reconstruction of anatomic defects and aesthetic enhancement of normal form. The surgical principles of plastic surgery remain focused on preserving vascularity, replacing like tissue with like tissue, respecting anatomic zones, and fostering wound healing by minimizing tissue trauma. As a diverse surgical specialty, the discipline of plastic surgery not only interacts with other disciplines of medicine but also merges medical science with the art of physical restoration. It couples careful evaluation of defects with sophisticated arrangements of tissue to improve the uniformity and natural resemblance of repair. Innovative techniques used in plastic surgery are largely the result of the successful clinical application of advances in tissue engineering, nanotechnology, and gene therapy.