Peace of Mind

Every cosmetic procedure entails some level of surgical risk. Every surgery carries some level of risk, including infection, fluid collections, and even blood clots to name a few. Dr. Sorokin will go over these risks while discussing your specific procedures.

While every effort is made to avoid complications, statistically speaking some patients will have some difficulties postoperatively. Dr. Sorokin takes every reasonable precaution to keep his patients safe, and yet there are still times when problems can arise. On a national average, at least 2% of patients have some level of significant complication during the first month after surgery.

Peace of mind when choosing a plastic surgeon certainly involves making sure they are Board Certified. Dr. Sorokin is Board Certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery. Still, complications can occur to any surgical patient despite training and technical skill. Complications are due to healing factors that vary from patient to patient and often to events beyond both the control of patient and physician.

Many patients do not realize that any physician can perform cosmetic procedures. In the Philadelphia area there are family medicine, internal medicine, dermatology, ob-gyn, dentists and eye doctors among others performing cosmetic procedures. Large medical spas and practices are run by physicians who are clearly not plastic surgeons. Many patients do not even realize they are being treated by someone who has not passed the substantial training required to be a plastic surgeon. It is imperative that a patient reviews a doctor's credentials before having even the smallest procedure performed. Even small procedures can have potentially dangerous complications and a physician performing these procedures should have the training and experience to handle these situations should they occur. Local hospital privileges need to be considered as a backup safety net. Dr. Sorokin maintains hospital admitting privileges at the Virtua Hospitals and Kennedy Hospitals.

Obviously the goal of cosmetic surgery is to avoid complications. Any surgeon and any patient can unfortunately have unexpected complications. These events can be unpredictable and therefore patients must realize that cosmetic surgery is still surgery. Thorough preoperative testing and appropriate close follow up will be utilized to carefully protect every patient. Dr. Sorokin will be available both before and after the procedure to make the experience have as low risk as possible.