MEET PAUL BANWELL – ONE OF ENGLAND’S LEADING COSMETIC SURGEONS

06-10-12 | Posted by Beautyinthebag

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Paul Banwell FRCS is a fully accredited plastic, reconstructive, and aesthetic surgeon providing cosmetic surgery services in southern England, specializing in body contouring, cosmetic breast surgery, facial rejuvenation, advanced skincare, and anti-aging techniques. In addition to holding an NHS Consultant position in Plastic Surgery at the world-famous Queen Victoria Hospital, Mr. Banwell runs a modern cosmetic surgery practice through which he offers comprehensive, high quality service and a full range of both surgical and non-surgical cosmetic procedures. In addition to his cosmetic surgical work, Dr. Banwell also treats patients afflicted with skin cancer and irregular moles.

www.paulebanwell.com

What are some of the most recent advancements in breast and body contouring that you find particularly exciting. 

With regards to breast augmentation, women have become far more discerning about the quality of implants the surgeon uses. The PIP implant scandal has focused the mind and women are now demanding the best quality implants that are available out there. Furthermore, the shape of the implant is also becoming more of a discussion point than in previous years.  For example, the teardrop shape (also known as an anatomical implant) is now fast becoming the most popular implant type to create a natural looking breast shape.

The latest body contouring developments may offer an exciting new avenue for improving body shape in the near future.  The most cutting edge area (and perhaps the most controversial) is the development of stem cell technology in combination with fat grafting – adipose biotechnology and tissue processing platforms with fresh cells therapies are leading to improved results. We’ll hear more about these techniques as they are refined and mastered.  There is also new hardware technology being developed to improve liposuction and liposculpture techniques: this promises improved removal and sculpting of fat with added skin tightening and high definition results.

Describe the difference for you personally between treating breast cancer survivors and cosmetic patients. 

I do not treat my cancer patients any differently than my other patients.  They are all treated equally with compassion and understanding.  Each patient has their own individual wishes as well as emotional and health needs and it’s important to me to listen to what they all are on a case by case basis.

How have patients’ desires and expectations changed over the past decade in terms of facial rejuvenations procedures? 

Overall I’d say that with media and celebrity exposure making it more acceptable to have facial rejuvenation procedures, my patient list has grown exponentially in the last decade. Some of my patients lean towards non-surgical options, but almost without exception they all desire fast results with a high satisfaction outcome and little downtime.

What are your top 3 favorite surgical procedures?

• Breast Augmentation – still firmly the number one cosmetic procedure around the world and also in the UK. The number of patients requesting this procedure has actually gone up even despite all the concerns regarding the French PIP implants. Recovery is rapid and patient satisfaction is extremely high. Unfortunately, breast augmentation can get a bad name because of its ‘glamour’ image. In actual fact, glamour patients only form a very small proportion of breast augmentations. Normal people with normal jobs are by far the biggest group and it is really gratifying to see the massive positive psychological impact this operation can have.
• Labiaplasty – this operation is becoming extremely popular and demand has grown significantly in the last two years. 50% are performed for functional reasons, i.e. discomfort with exercise, clothes and sex and 50% are performed for purely aesthetic reasons. Many do not realise the significance of the angst and concern that occurs for some women and the patient satisfaction is extremely high.
• Tummy Tucks – mummy makeovers continue to be popular and for those who have been unfortunate to have excess skin stretching following children, this operation can be just the ticket. Total recovery is up to four to six weeks so it is important to take things easy after the op.

The bottom line is that all of these three procedures have an extremely high patient satisfaction rate and I enjoy seeing my patients’ well-being and body confidence increase following these surgeries.

Which non-surgical or minimally invasive procedures that you offer deliver the best results for your patients? 

Dermal fillers, Genuine Dermaroller and Botox certainly deliver the most instant and effective non-surgical anti-ageing results for my patients.

In terms of anti-aging procedures, what do you see as the current trends as well as the ones for the future? 

Combination treatments are certainly the present and future of anti-ageing.  Medical micro-needling has revolutionized skin rejuvenation and has also offered additional benefits to patients with acne scarring.  Combining medical needling therapy with potent antioxidant cosmeceutical products is a very exciting advance and we’ll hear much more about these combinations in the future.