If you are considering have plastic surgery done in the near future, as you search for the right cosmetic surgeon, you find some that will perform your operation in a hospital and plenty that will perform it in an out-patient or office based facility. If you think you need to worry about the safety of having cosmetic procedures done outside of a hospital setting, think again! An extensive new study released recently found that such operations were just as safe when performed in office based places as in hospitals. The study was published in the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) called Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery (PRS), and it was an in-depth look at over 1.1 million different procedures in office based centers. The findings showed that the mortality rate at these facilities was much less than even one percent; it 0.002 percent! \"The study shows that plastic surgery in accredited facilities is safe and deaths are rare,\" said ASPS Member Surgeon and co-author of the study Geoffrey Keyes, MD. \"However, people should consider plastic surgery with the same seriousness as medically necessary surgery. Most importantly, patients should have their procedure performed by an ASPS Member Surgeon in an accredited facility.\" Keyes and others examined data collected by the American Association for Accreditation of Ambulatory Surgery Facilities (AAAASF) during the time period of January 2001 through June 2006. The AAAASF gives accreditation to surgery centers if all the cosmetic surgeons are board certified and are already able to perform the plastic surgeries at a hospital with the proper credentials. This group also requires all accredited facilities to report any complications or fatalities each year. Of the more than 1.1 million procedures performed in accredited out-patient facilities during the time period, death only occurred 2.02 time out of every 100,000 procedures, a rate that is as low as operations that are performed in hospital settings. And most of the deaths that occur are from pulmonary embolism, or a blood clot that migrates into the lungs and blocks blood from getting through the blood vessels. This is a risk that all people face, whether they are having cosmetic surgery or a medically-necessary procedure performed. \"While all surgery carries risks, the bottom line is that this study illustrates patients can and should feel safe when they go to an ASPS Member Surgeon who performs their procedures in an accredited facility,\" said ASPS President Richard D\'Amico, MD. \"Amazingly, only 14 states mandate accreditation of facilities, so it\'s up to the patient to be knowledgeable. A patient\'s safety and life is everything.\" Potential patients can find safe plastic surgery office based centers by shopping around and asking which one are AAAASF accredited and whether they have board-certified plastic surgeons in the practice. It is also smart to check out the surgeon\'s background and education and experience. All these factors come into play when you are looking to get the best quality results from your cosmetic procedure.
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