What is a medical checkup for a physician?

Do I have to come in for a post-op checkup?"
Can I have my stitches removed at a local clinic?"

We are sometimes asked questions such as

Especially for patients who come from far away, if the postoperative course is good, it may be a hassle for them to spend time and money to go all the way to the clinic.

Some clinics do not provide follow-up checkups after stitches are removed, but simply say, "If you have any concerns, please come in and see us.

Postoperative checkups are an unprofitable business that does not directly lead to sales for clinic management. It would be more efficient to spend the time spent on medical checkups on counseling and surgery, and to see more patients.

For physicians, medical checkups are stressful work, as they sometimes receive complaints and scolding from patients. Some physicians have an iron heart and do not mind what is said, but when the surgical results are not satisfactory, the primary surgeon suffers as much as the patient.

However, I do believe that postoperative checkups are necessary.

This is because the success or failure of treatment cannot be determined without seeing the progress.

A doctor who does not perform a checkup is like a doctor who does not take a test and check the results.

For surgeons, checking the progress of patients through medical examinations is essential to improve their skills and knowledge.

What you can do during a medical checkup

For example, the majority of patients who undergo incisional double folds wish to have a beautiful view of their eyelash line. It is not easy to create a stable double fold that allows the eyelash line to be seen from the inner corner of the eye to the outer corner of the eye. Each patient has a different desired double width, skin thickness, and eye opening. It is a skill that can only be acquired by sincerely reevaluating one's own surgery by comparing photos of the immediate postoperative state and the state three months after surgery, and foolishly accumulating confirmation that if this is the state immediately after surgery, this will be the state three months later. This is not something that can be acquired by reading textbooks or papers, but rather an art form that can be memorized by the hands and eyes.

The feedback and words of gratitude we receive from our patients during checkups are a source of motivation. The scolding and suggestions we receive from our patients also serve as reminders and hints to improve our treatment.

For patients, the checkup is also an opportunity to ask questions directly to the surgeon about any postoperative concerns they may have, and to find minor problems that they may not have noticed on their own.

I explained winking and biting in a previous column ( https://ro-clinic.com/doctors_column/9383/ ). He told me that the post-operative double-layer line will look like a strong bite if you try to check it while winking in the mirror. For such patients, we may be able to solve their problems by showing them a video of how the double-layer line looks when both eyes are closed naturally. If she had not come for the checkup, she might have undergone unnecessary scar revision surgery at another clinic.

On the other hand, there are cases where I point out things that are not going well after the surgery and encourage corrective surgery. In the industry, it is considered taboo to point out defects that the patient does not care about or is unaware of. Of course, we should not go out of our way to point out a point that the patient does not care about, such as a very slight difference between the left and right sides of the face, to deepen his/her concerns. However, if a small correction can turn an 80-point surgery into a 90-point surgery, we think it is better to be honest about it even if the patient is not aware of it. The patient should then decide whether to take the downtime to correct the problem again or to leave it as it is.

Who doesn't have a problem?

If there are no problems with the progress of the surgery and the patient is satisfied with the results, is a checkup unnecessary? It is not a waste of time to come for a checkup, as objective documentation of the patient's condition in the form of photographs and findings in the medical record can be used as a basis for making decisions in the future if any points of concern arise.

Important.

For any surgery, it is a good idea to come for a 3-month checkup if possible. Depending on the nature of the surgery, you may be asked to come back for a 6-month or 1-year checkup if necessary.

For patients who are satisfied with the postoperative results at the checkup and the follow-up is completed, I tell them, "If you have any problems or concerns in the future, please come back for a checkup no matter how many years have passed. This is because I believe that as long as I am still active as a cosmetic surgeon, I will always be responsible for the surgery I have performed.

Because cosmetic surgery is a profession that is sometimes looked at with a white eye by the public, we believe that it is precisely the things that do not generate sales that we should take care of carefully.

Assistant Director Daiki Kuroda

#Cosmetic Surgery Yoyamatogatari Series