Beautiful Sunny Day In San Francisco= Potential Sun Damage

By Albert Chow on September 1, 2010

Our Indian Summer is just around the corner, which means finally we get to enjoy our well over due warm rays of sun!  We all love the sun, as well as that golden, sun kissed tan it creates, but the sun is the number one cause for those horrible,  non aesthetic brown skin spots we accumulate over the years.

The best way to prevent sun damage?  Simple, Sunscreen!  Here at Dr. Chow’s,  San Francisco Plastic Surgery office, we carry a premiere skin care line with one of the best sunscreens we’ve found thus far.

Jan Marini Skin Care Management Sysytem’s Antioxidant Daily Face Protectant with SPF 30, combinds a cutting edge microscopic sponge oil control system, state-of-the-art- sun protection, and a PhytoMelanin plant extract that mimics human melanin and provides futher UV and antioxidant protection.  By using the Daily Face Protectant SPF 30 ensures continuous coverage for daily or extended exposure conditions with a broad spectrum SPF rating.  This sunscreen gives facial skin a soft, silky, conditioned effect as it aids in increasing and sustaining moisture content for all skin types!

Sunscreen should be a part of everyones daily routine.  Not only does it protect your skin from potenital age/brown spots later on in life, it will also help to fight off those inevitable wrinkles that creep up as the years go on.

Posted in skin |

Dr. Chow is hands down one of the very best doctors I have ever had. (YELP Review 1/20/2010)

By Albert Chow on April 12, 2010

I decided to visit Dr. Chow in part based on the helpful reviews of other Yelpers.  I would love to return the favor and now share my great experience with him.

Dr. Chow is hands down one of the very best doctors I have ever had.  Although I am still waiting for the full results of my procedure to develop, I have been nothing less than thrilled with the level of care I have received.  I think I was most impressed with how much time Dr. Chow took to understand what I wanted, answer all my questions, and evaluate how my procedure (fixing a deviated septum plus rhinoplasty) fit into my overall health needs.   He helped me evaluate a few different options and choose what felt best for me.  He clearly was willing to take a significant amount of time and energy upfront to ensure I was going to be happy with my end results.  I did an enormous amount of research into different doctors in the Bay Area before choosing Dr. Chow and he clearly stood out based on his education, experience, and happy former patients.  I was also impressed by the fact that he called my family immediately after I got out of surgery to let them know I was okay, a simple but very nice touch.  It was the first experience I have had with a doctor where I felt like a person not just a patient.

The rest of his staff is a pure delight to work with.  Cassandra is absolutely wonderful, the perfect blend of a comforting friend and efficient/knowledgeable nurse.  She made what could have been a stressful day of surgery amazingly smooth.  The entire staff welcomes your questions and quickly gets back to you with answers.  Overall I was nothing but thrilled with the experience.

-Kristy D.

http://www.yelp.com/user_details?userid=ZPzxWtYfz4ORXrVKu0p4ZA

Posted in Uncategorized |

Tummy Tuck Recovery Time

By Albert Chow on April 7, 2010

The average down time after abdominoplasty is about 2 weeks.  Initially, for the first week you will be very sore, but then progressively start to feel better.  Seven to ten days after your surgery, you would return to our San Francisco Plastic surgery office and have your sutures removed as well as all the bandages.  Most patients are able to return to work at this point with certain limitations, such as lifting heavy objects, walking long distances, excessive bending, etc.  Normal physical activity usually may resume anywhere form 4-6 weeks post surgery.

Posted in Uncategorized |

Silicone or Saline Breast Implants?

By Albert Chow on April 6, 2010

Breast Augmentation… Silicone or Saline Implants?

With on going mandatory studies preformed for the FDA for both silicone and saline implants, both implants show promising and pretty equal long term results.  Both implants have their pros and cons, though this is determined by the shape of your breast, existing breast tissue and your personal family history.  Aesthetically, Dr. Chow usually recommends going with the silicone implant, for they hold a better shape over a long period of time, though strives to completely inform you of all the facts for both implants during the consultation, which should leave you extremely confident on choosing the right implant for you.

Posted in Uncategorized |

I’ve Spent Many Years Pondering Plastic Surgery (Yelp Review 10/13/2009)

By Albert Chow on April 5, 2010

I’ve spent many years pondering plastic surgery and interviewing for the best surgeon (I had looked into probably about 15-20 surgeons across the country), and I have to say Dr. Chow has far exceeded expectations in all fronts: his superb credentials (UC Berkeley, UCSF), level of experience (don’t let his youthful appearance fool you as it did for me initially), talent as a doctor and surgeon, the painstaking detail and artistry he puts into his work, congenial bedside manner, and rarely might you hear this in combination with those listed above… reasonable price point.

I was surprised to see relatively fewer Yelp reviews for him, given what an amazing plastic surgeon he is. When I asked him about it, he said he usually takes those things with a grain of salt. I believe he focuses all his energy on ensuring the highest quality of medical care to each of his patients rather than allocating any of his time to self-promotion and advertising to simply pump up patient volume (which can be timely and expensive for doctors who choose to pursue that route, often translating to lower quality, more expensive care for the consumer).

He’s also extremely modest – if I hadn’t looked more closely into his credentials, which he didn’t mention during our consultation – I would have totally overlooked him. While many practice’s websites I looked at touted in capital letters at the top BOARD-CERTIFIED, or even DOUBLE board certified, Dr. Chow is TRIPLE board certified (by the American Board of Plastic Surgery, American Board of Facial Plastic Surgery, and Board of Head and Neck as well as a member with the American Society of Plastic Surgery), which he mentions quite inconspicuously at the bottom of his website. Now, I’ve looked at a lot of doctors, and very rarely have I seen all four of these credentials. You have to be a very talented doctor to be able to achieve all that.

To further demonstrate his focus on quality rather than quantity, I remember I spoke with another doctor and I asked him how long a rhinoplasty would take, and he said with his years of experience, he could bang it out in about an hour. Forgive me, but this is my face we’re talking about… I don’t care if you’re world-renowned and have performed thousands of rhinoplasties, I want my surgeon to take all the time necessary to ensure that my expectations are met. And that is what Dr. Chow did. We’ve spent many consultations discussing rhinoplasty so he knew how particular I was about it – in surgery, he spent FIVE hours to painstaking detail on my nose alone and I am thrilled with the results. He didn’t even charge me for the overtime in the operating room!

Also about Dr. Chow: he can do CLOSED rhinoplasties. This is very difficult and requires a high degree of skill and dexterity of surgical hands. Very few plastic surgeons are capable of doing this well – they usually only can do open rhinoplasties, which as you can imagine, causes more bruising, scarring, and requires longer recovery time. With a closed rhinoplasty, there is absolutely no external scarring. I was also pleasantly surprised to find that Dr. Chow charged less for his closed rhinoplasties than most doctors who can only do open rhinos.

The other great thing about Dr. Chow is that he doesn’t charge consultation fees like many other doctors. I met with him three or four times over the length of about 8-10 months before finally deciding to have the surgery, all without being charged a penny. He will meet with you as many times as you need to get comfortable. And I never felt pressured to commit to surgery with him – he even encouraged me to take a couple more months to think about exactly what I wanted. I’m a very particular customer, so every time I went in, I usually had a list of about 10-20 questions, which he always answered patiently, never making me feel rushed or like I was wasting his time.

With our healthcare system in desperate need of a makeover, it’s such a rare pleasure to find a doctor with the priorities of Dr. Chow. It was apparent to me through our interactions over time that he is genuinely passionate about medicine and helping his patients feel better about their appearance, and that monetary reward is tertiary.

His staff, especially Cassandra, is also warm and fantastic. When I didn’t have a ride home after the surgery, she offered to give me one. Little did I know that this was a much bigger favor than it seemed. After the surgery, she had to wait in the office until about 10pm while I spent several hours recovering from the anesthesia, which she did happily

Here’s some advice I’d like to share if you decide to meet with a plastic surgeon:
- Bring pictures of yourself so you can specify what you may not like
- Pictures of friends or celebrities demonstrating your ideal, helping Dr. Chow understand your standard of beauty
- Do your research
- Speak to former patients

Yelp Review By: Amy

http://www.yelp.com/user_details_reviews_self?userid=fQnSEMUS33V0dJ4lmzeNYw&rec_pagestart=10&review_sort=time

Posted in Uncategorized |

Dr. Albert Chow is the best! Enough said! (YELP Review 3/6/10)

By Albert Chow on March 10, 2010

dr. albert chow is the best! enough said!
i have been his patient for over 10 years and have had various procedures – rhinoplasty (he did a correction on an older nose job), lipo, lip augmentation and eye brow lift – all perfect!
i am a patient for life – everything mentioned by other yelpers is exactly true – he is kind, efficient, listens and does as expected in the realms of reality!

-Mamma M

http://www.yelp.com/user_details?userid=WUac4g6MOxunQehwUvkDIg

Posted in Patient Testimonials & YELP Reviews |

Will insurance cover my Rhinoplasty procedure?

By Albert Chow on March 3, 2010

Many people ask during their rhinoplasty consultation whether or not it may be possible for one’s insurance to cover a portion or even all of their nasal procedure.  The answer is yes, it is indeed possible for an insurance company to cover a portion or even all of certain rhinoplasty procedures.

Before we get your hopes up, let us just clarify that rhinoplasty solely for cosmetic reasons are not covered by insurance.  Insurance plans only cover rhinoplasty, when the procedure can be proven medically necessary; primarily when a person’s breathing is compromised.  Such conditions include a deviated septum, nasal passage way obstruction or a fracture due to injury or trauma.

As one of San Francisco’s premier Plastic Surgeons, Dr. Chow is contracted with many insurance companies, such as Blue Shield, Blue Cross, Aetna, Cigna and Health Net.  Since individual plans widely vary in coverage and benefits, we recommend that you bring a copy of your insurance card with you to the office.  Our knowledgeable insurance specialist Debbie Haub, is always glad to assist in answering any questions you may have, determining eligibility, as well as promptly processing all necessary paperwork.

Posted in Facial Procedures |