The team at Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery® (PRS) dug deep into the archives and emerged with the 10 best articles on complications in plastic surgery. Just click on the title to read the abstract. Got an opinion on the list? Tweet to @ASPSMembers or write on our Facebook wall.

BREAST AUGMENTATION AND IMPLANT MORBIDITIES

• The Process of Breast Augmentation:
  Four Sequential Steps for Optimizing Outcomes for Patients
• Adams, William P. Jr M.D. | Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery 2008;122:1892-1900.
• Managing Late Periprosthetic Fluid Collections (Seroma) in Patients With Breast Implants:
  A Consensus Panel Recommendation and Review of the Literature
• Bengtson, Bradley MD; Brody, Garry S. MD; Brown, Mitchell H. MD; Glicksman, Caroline MD; Hammond, Dennis MD; Kaplan, Hilton MD, PhD; Maxwell, G. Patrick MD; Oefelein, Michael G. MD; Reisman, Neal R. MD, JD; Spear, Scott L. MD; Jewell, Mark L. MD; Late Periprosthetic Fluid Collection After Breast Implant Working Group | Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery 2011;128:1-7.

BODY CONTOURING

(Tummy Tuck Complications)

• Complication Rates of Lipoabdominoplasty Versus Traditional Abdominoplasty
  in High-Risk Patients (Full Article Only)
• Samra, Salem MD; Sawh-Martinez, Rajendra BS; Barry, Oliver BA; Persing, John A. MD | Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery

(Liposuction)

• Evidence-Based Patient Safety Advisory: Liposuction
• Haeck, Phillip C. MD; Swanson, Jennifer A. BS, MEd.; Gutowski, Karol A. MD; Basu, C Bob MD, MPH; Wandel, Amy G. MD; Damitz, Lynn A. MD; Reisman, Neal R. MD, JD; Baker, Stephen B. MD, DDS; the ASPS Patient Safety Committee | Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery 2009;124(4s):28s-44s

ABDOMINOPLASTY

• Benchmarking Outcomes in Plastic Surgery:
  National Complication Rates for Abdominoplasty and Breast Augmentation
• Alderman, Amy K. MD, MPH; Collins, E Dale MD, MS; Streu, Rachel MD; Grotting, James C. MD; Sulkin, Amy L. MPH; Neligan, Peter MD; Haeck, Phillip C. MD; Gutowski, Karol A. MD | Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery 2009;124:2127-2133.

VTE

• Evidence-Based Patient Safety Advisory: Patient Assessment and Prevention of Pulmonary Side Effects in Surgery. Part 1—Obstructive Sleep Apnea and Obstructive Lung Disease
• Haeck, Phillip C. MD; Swanson, Jennifer A. BS, MEd; Iverson, Ronald E. MD; Lynch, Dennis J. MD; the ASPS Patient Safety Committee | Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery 2009;124(4s):45s-56s.
• Evidence-Based Patient Safety Advisory: Patient Assessment and Prevention of Pulmonary Side Effects in Surgery. Part 2—Patient and Procedural Risk Factors
• Haeck, Phillip C. MD; Swanson, Jennifer A. BS, MEd; Iverson, Ronald E. MD; Lynch, Dennis J. MD; the ASPS Patient Safety Committee | Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery 2009;124(4s):57s-67s.
• Changing Practice: Implementation of a Venous Thromboembolism Prophylaxis Protocol at an Academic Medical Center
• Pannucci, Christopher J. MD, MS; Jaber, Reda M. BS; Zumsteg, Justin M. MD; Golgotiu, Vlad BS; Spratke, Lisa M. PA-C; Wilkins, Edwin G. MD, MS | Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery 2011;128:1085-1092.
• Postoperative Enoxaparin Prevents Symptomatic Venous Thromboembolism in High-Risk Plastic Surgery Patients
• Pannucci, Christopher J. MD, MS; Dreszer, George MD, MS; Wachtman, Christine Fisher MD; Bailey, Steven H. MD; Portschy, Pamela R. MD; Hamill, Jennifer B. MPH; Hume, Keith M. MA; Hoxworth, Ronald E. MD; Rubin, J. Peter MD; Kalliainen, Loree K. MD; Pusic, Andrea L. MD, MHS; Wilkins, Edwin G. MD, MS | Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery 2011;128:1093-1103

SCAR

• Insights Into Patient and Clinician Concerns About Scar Appearance:
  Semiquantitative Structured Surveys
• Young, V Leroy MD; Hutchison, John PhD, FRCP, FFPM | Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery 2009;124:256-265.