For that reason, Dr. Sullivan requires all of his patients to undergo a thorough physical examination prior to any surgical procedure. Other plastic surgeons may not require this, but Dr. Sullivan believes ensuring a patient’s overall health is of the utmost importance. He says some patients will not agree to the physical, and end up having their surgery elsewhere.

Luckily, one of his patients, Aurora, agreed to the thorough evaluation before having eyelid surgery. The physical included a mammogram, and because of the mammogram, Aurora’s doctor detected breast cancer. Her eyelid surgery was cancelled, and because of the early detection, she was able to undergo a double mastectomy and says she knows she will survive. Dr. Sullivan says Aurora is only one of a handful of his patients who have discovered underlying health issues through the required evaluation, adding that early detection before developing a major health issue, or complicating one through cosmetic procedures, is of the utmost importance to him and his team.

Dr. Sullivan remains committed to the well-being of his Rhode Island plastic surgery patients. Other than requiring a thorough evaluation, they take the time to get to know each of their patients prior to any surgical or nonsurgical procedure, and will recommend against it if they do not feel it is in the patient’s best interests. “We want to enable people to live their lives to the fullest in every way: superb health, energy, vitality, confidence. All of these allow people to be more passionate about their lives. They are happier and can give and contribute more.”

For more information about Aurora’s story, or to read Dr. Sullivan’s full interview, click here.

Advocates Dr. Martin Weinstock, Professor of Dermatology at Brown University School of Medicine, and Mike Tamburro, President of the Pawtucket Red Sox, also attended the press conference, which was held at Dr. Sullivan’s Providence-based plastic surgery practice.

Dr. Sullivan and Senator Reed have worked closely on this important public health issue for over 16 years.  As a plastic surgeon, Dr. Sullivan often sees the endpoint of years of sun damage when he removes cancerous lesions from his patients.

“During the past 16 years I have treated hundreds of patients with sun-related skin cancers,” says Dr. Sullivan. “What Senator Reed accomplishes through his sunscreen legislation and consumer education efforts has the potential to prevent skin cancer in thousands of people. It’s a really big opportunity for cancer prevention.”

Dr. Sullivan adds that requiring the makers of sunscreens to accurately label their products is key in helping consumers understand which products to use, and how to use them properly to best protect their skin against cancer.

Senator Reed has said that while this is an important step, more action is needed in the fight against preventable skin cancers.  Next up on Reed’s agenda: Better education and regulation of the popular aerosol-based sunscreen products, as well as a comprehensive review of new sunscreen ingredients, which may offer even stronger protection against the sun’s rays.

Beginning this summer, sunscreen products sold in the U.S. will be required to comply with the new Food and Drug Administration (FDA) labeling rules.  The new regulations will require manufacturers of sunscreen products to provide explicit labeling related to a product’s ability to protect against the sun’s harmful rays.  Products that do not meet the standards will be required to carry a label warning consumers that it will not protect against skin cancer. Additionally, manufacturers may no longer market their sunscreens as “waterproof, “sweatproof,” or identify the products as offering “all-day protection.”

The goal of the new regulations is to cut through the confusion by helping consumers understand the benefits — and limits — of sunscreen products through accurate and easy-to-understand labeling.  We feel that educating consumers about adequate sun protection is an important public health issue, as skin cancer is the most common cancer in the United States.  It is also one of the most preventable.

For more information on the FDA’s new regulations, click here.

To learn more about how you can prevent skin cancer, visit skincancer.org.

Dr. Patrick K. Sullivan will lead several courses at an international plastic surgery conference in Moscow, Russia focusing on facial rejuvenation techniques and technology.

Providence, RI – Dr. Patrick K. Sullivan, a board-certified Rhode Island plastic surgeon, is recognized as a leader in the field of plastic surgery due to his innovative techniques and his emphasis on natural-looking results. With a wealth of experience in facial rejuvenation, breast augmentation, abdominoplasty, and body contouring, Dr. Sullivan is a valuable resource for up-and-coming surgeons. On May 16th, he will serve as an educator during a two-day conference in Moscow, Russia titled “Combined Techniques and Biotechnology in the Aesthetic Medicine.”

Last month, Dr. Sullivan delivered two lectures at the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery’s The Aesthetic Meeting. His lectures, which focused on facial rejuvenation, facelift procedures, and eye lifts, both sold out. According to Dr. Sullivan, the plastic surgeons at the conference were so interested in learning about natural-looking results with facial surgery that surgeons were standing in the back of the room to listen in on the lecture. Questions about new techniques and technology went on long after the end of each presentation.

While in Moscow, Dr. Sullivan will be focusing his courses on facial plastic surgery, expanding on the lectures he delivered at The Aesthetic Meeting to include additional topics at the request of the Russian conference. He is partnering with two other American plastic surgeons who will discuss body contouring and new advancements in surgical technology. Dr. Sullivan will lead several courses throughout the conference, covering topics including:

• Aesthetic Lower Eyelid Rejuvenation: Successful Solutions for Extended Lower Lid Blepharoplasty and Treatment of the Lid Cheek Junction (Circles)
• Brow lift & Periorbital Rejuvenation: Effective & Reliable Ways to Rejuvenate the Forehead, Brow & Upper Orbit Including Fat Injections
• Advanced Lower Face & Neck Rejuvenation: Lifting, Fat Contouring, Fat Injections and Stem Controversies
• Rejuvenation of the Aging Jawline: A Comprehensive Approach
• Neck Rejuvenation Including the Risk Benefit Analysis of Sub-Platysma Surgery and Successful Solutions for the Fat Sagging Neck

Because Russian plastic surgeons are striving to improve the quality of plastic surgery in Russia and establish a board of plastic surgery similar to the board in the United States, Dr. Sullivan is particularly interested in sharing his knowledge at this upcoming event. He is especially excited to discuss his unique techniques of providing patients natural but significant cosmetic results without the appearance of obvious surgery.

International involvement in the field of cosmetic surgery permits Dr. Sullivan the opportunity to share his method of careful, detailed evaluation of each individual patient as well as how to plan for successful, natural-looking results. By teaching new surgeons these techniques, the number of patients that will benefit from this knowledge will expand exponentially.

With recent achievements such as his lectures at the ASAPS’s annual conference, receiving a “Top Doc” award from his peers in the industry, and his upcoming courses in Moscow, Dr. Sullivan is happy to show his Rhode Island plastic surgery patients the extent of his passion for his work. According to Dr. Sullivan, such achievements only stimulate him further to give each of his patients the best care available when they visit his practice.

About Patrick K. Sullivan, MD, FACS
Dr. Patrick K. Sullivan earned his medical degree from the Mayo Medical School in Minnesota. He went on to complete his residencies at the University of Colorado and Brown University in Rhode Island and is now a board-certified plastic surgeon. Dr. Sullivan is available for interview upon request.

Dear Dr. Sullivan & Staff,

I cannot express my gratitude enough for your exceptional skills and extraordinary care following one of the most important decisions of my life. I truly appreciate my restored youthfulness and natural appearance with each new day. I am so thankful for such an extraordinary group of professionals! You have all made this such a comfortable and memorable journey! Thank you! My husband thanks you as well!

- Name omitted for patient privacy

Non-surgical cosmetic procedures may be good treatment options for individuals who show early signs of aging, or for those who may not be good candidates for aesthetic facial surgery.  These non-surgical cosmetic procedures appeal to many of our male and female patients who desire the minimal downtime associated with temporary treatments.

For more information on treatment with Botox or injectable fillers, contact our office.

When performed by a skilled, board-certified plastic surgeon, aesthetic eyelid surgery can leave individuals looking more rested, refreshed and alert.  Healthy individuals may be good candidates for cosmetic eyelid surgery if they have:

1. excessive skin obscuring the natural fold of the upper eyelids,
2. loose skin hanging down from the upper eyelids,
3. a puffy experience to the upper eyelids,
4. excessive skin and fine wrinkles of the lower eyelids,
5. “bags” and “circles” under the eyes, and/or
6. lower eyelid droopiness.

Eyelid surgery can also be combined with a brow lift or brow-lifting injections (as in the patient pictured here) for a complete eyelid rejuvenation.

Dr. Sullivan will deliver presentations on facelift treatments, eyelid surgery and facial rejuvenation at 2013’s The Aesthetic Meeting in New York City.

Providence, RI – From April 11-16, the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery and the Aesthetic Surgery Education and Research Foundation will be hosting The Aesthetic Meeting—an annual educational event for plastic surgeons and cosmetic specialists. Dr. Patrick K. Sullivan, a Rhode Island plastic surgeon, will be delivering presentations about the latest treatments for facelift procedures, eyelid surgery and facial rejuvenation.

According to Dr. Sullivan, the scientific understanding of the aging process has helped revolutionize facial aesthetics and the approach to facial rejuvenation. Plastic surgeons now realize the necessity of addressing not only the laxity of the facial soft tissues and the loss of skin elasticity, but also how facial deflation plays a prominent role in the appearance of one’s features. Dr. Sullivan will be demonstrating the advantages of specific types of fat injections with careful emphasis on where the fat injections should be placed artistically and the optimal anatomical level for each placement.

At Dr. Sullivan’s Rhode Island plastic surgery practice, he strives to address each of his patients’ concerns and produce natural results that enhances each patient’s unique facial appearance. Many of his patients frequently ask how long the results of their procedure will last. At ASAPS’s Aesthetic Meeting, Dr. Sullivan will present an update on his practice’s 10-year study of 487 patients who have had face lifting combined with fat injections. To date, only 3% of these patients have returned for additional fat injection treatments.

“The use of the patient’s own fat cells in conjunction with their associated stem cells for facial rejuvenation makes so much sense to me. The superior effects of this treatment method has been proven at our practice time and time again.” –Dr. Sullivan

In Dr. Sullivan’s experience, many patients are concerned about jowls, double chins and other fatty deposits in their face and neck. At the conference, he will be demonstrating how the removal of excessive fatty tissue followed by a lifting of the lax and drooping facial tissue can dramatically improve one’s appearance and yield very natural looking results. These treatment demonstrations illustrate how to resolve the drooping appearance around a patient’s mouth using a combination of lifting, sculpting down excessive fat, and the addition of the patient’s own cells through fat injections.

Dr. Sullivan is passionate about meeting his patients’ goals and looks forward to sharing his practice’s success stories with his peers. He feels it is incumbent on plastic surgeons to share what they have learned through their experience and intensive follow-up studies evaluating their patients’ results. Through conferences such as The Aesthetic Meeting, surgeons and cosmetic professionals can come together to learn what works over the long-term in achieving beautiful, natural results.

About Patrick K. Sullivan, MD, FACS

Dr. Patrick K. Sullivan is a board-certified plastic surgeon who earned his medical degree from the Mayo Medical School in Minnesota. He went on to complete his residencies at the University of Colorado and Brown University in Rhode Island. In addition to his role as a public medical author, he has lectured internationally on cosmetic plastic surgery. Dr. Sullivan is available for interview upon request.