Silicone is derived from silicon, a semi-metallic or metal-like element that in nature combines with oxygen to form silicon dioxide, or silica. Beach sand, crystals, and quartz are silica; in fact, silica is the most common substance on earth. Heating silica with carbon at a high temperature can produce silicon. Further processing can convert the silicon into a long chemical chain, or polymer, called silicone %26ndash; which can be a liquid, gel, or rubbery substance.

Various silicones are used in lubricants and oils, as well as in silicone rubber. Silicone can be found in many common household items, such as polishes, suntan and hand lotion, antiperspirants, soaps, processed foods, waterproof coatings, and chewing gum. The FDA has approved many medical devices made of silicone, including replacement heart valves, and now the re-entry of silicone gel-filled breast implants. Solid silicone implants are commonly used for chin and malar augmentation, and have been used in nasal, chest, and calf augmentation, as well as in joint replacement and tendon reconstruction

Liquid silicone was developed in 1963 and used for augmentation of the breast and face prior to the development of a purer grade of injectable silicone, which was available for   investigational purposes. This new formulation was in the process of being considered as an investigational new drug by Dow-Corning in 1976, when the accumulation of reported adverse effects, including inflammation, induration, discoloration, ulceration, migration, and silicone granuloma formation led Dow-Corning to withdraw its application. Liquid silicone is not Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved and its use should be condemned.

The FDA warns that they have not approved “the marketing of liquid silicone for injection for any cosmetic purpose, including the treatment of facial defects or wrinkles, or enlarging the breasts.%26rdquo;

In the Philippines, sad to say, liquid silicone injection is still rampant. It can be found in the black market, as well as salons using non-medical and medical grade silicone intended for lubrication of surgical instruments. Medical grade silicone does not mean that it is intended for human injection. Horror stories are abound with the injection of silicone oils. Most of the people who inject it will say that it is a form of collagen. Beware. Collagen injections are very expensive as compared to silicone injections which will cost under USD200 for a noselift. Some patients even fall victim to silicone injections as alternatives to breast augmentation with implants.

Effects of silicone injection are well-documented. Displacement due to gravity, inflammation, and discoloration of surrounding tissues, and granuloma formation, and infection of the recipient area are the most common complications reported.  Foreign-body-type silicoma can even occur up to 11 years after implantation, even with highly refined, medicalgrade silicone and microdroplets.

There is difficulty of conducting long-term follow-up with patients who present with these complications, because of the underground nature of the practice. It is the author%26rsquo;s wish that by making the public and the medical community aware of the symptoms and severe consequences of illegal silicone use, mortality risks and patient outcomes from this clandestine practice will improve. The safety and well-being of the patient should be the plastic surgeon%26rsquo;s primary concern. Illicit practices such as these has no room in the field of plastic surgery.  Always ask for the qualifications of your chosen surgeon.

Article by Joel Unson MD, a fully trained Filipino Plastic Surgeon. For more information on Plastic Surgery in the Philippines, you may visit his website at http://plasticsurgery.unson.com

Other  related articles:  http://www.philippinecosmetic.com/” target=”_blank”>Affordable  Cosmetic Surgery

Treadmill Belt Care And Maintenance - How Important Is It?

Regardless of the type of belt you have on your treadmill, the most important aspect of any belt is how well you take care of the belt. Many factories have decided to put warnings in their manuals to not lubricate a walking belt. The reason many do this is because of all the crazy things that people use to lube the belt. Ive seen people use everything from motor oil to WD-40 to Crisco in order to lube the belt and you should only use a commercially available treadmill belt lube on a treadmill belt. Many other products like WD-40 or most commercially available spray silicone lubricants will ruin the backing of your walking belt. Some of these lighter lubricants can actually cause the belt to create more friction on the treadmill deck than not using any lubricant at all.

Finding a lubricant that is designed just for your machine can be difficult. Most commercially available lubricants for treadmills are composed of food grade liquid silicone which has as much in common with spray silicones as a fish has with a bicycle. Other treadmill lubricants use a synthetic polymer and others use products such as Teflon or something as simple as wax. The key is to make sure you use a product that is designed to work with your treadmill and has been designed to work exclusively with treadmills.

Another important point is to make sure to keep the top of the belt clean. Dirt can have its own insulating effect on the walking belt. What we suggest is buy a new pair of shoes for each person that will be using the treadmill and only use them when walking on the treadmill. This keeps dirt, road grime, sand, etc. off the top of the belt. It is surprising just how much trash can build up on a belt just from people carrying dirt on to it from their shoes. We also suggest cleaning the top of the walking belt at least once a quarter. It is easy to do and any treadmill belt cleaner along with a clean nylon bristle brush works great to keep the belt clean and running at as low a temperature as possible.

Many people dont realize the need to maintain the most important part of their treadmill. The dealers are sometimes only concerned with making the sale and getting the product out the door. Maintenance will always be a necessary part of using your treadmill and the belt is the most important part to maintain. If you maintain your belt well and keep it properly lubricated it will not only make your belt last longer, but also keep your treadmill running better for longer. It is relatively low effort and considerably cheaper than the alternative, in short, it just makes sense. So keep up with your maintenance otherwise you could have much bigger problems than you expect.

Softening deep acne scars resulting from severe bouts of cystic or nodular lesions requires a well thought out cosmetic corrective plan. And according to reports in Dermatologic Surgery, popularized scar removal options like laser resurfacing may not satisfactorily smooth away deep acne scars. Yet, patients can readily witness scar depth reductions in indented acne scaring using aesthetic therapies such as dermal fillers.

Silicon based dermal fillers

In a 30-year perspective study of using dermal fillers to correct acne scars, doctors Jay Barnett and Channing Barnett deemed medical-grade liquid silicone the only filler substance that permanently and precisely corrects acne scars. During their investigation, the researchers reviewed the lives of five patients with a history of acne scarring. Each patient showed improvements from injections of liquid silicone at the initial treatment session and at 10-, 15-, and 30-year follow-up sessions.

Hyaluronic acid dermal fillers

Even though silicon based dermal fillers work, heavily marketed fillers made of hyaluronic acid also present a potential deep acne scarring corrective. While the results from dermal fillers can prove pleasantly dramatic, in the case of hyaluronic acid, the enhancements may only last six months. Moreover, most Food and Drug Administration approved dermal fillers like Perlane have only been tested on and prescribed for correction of nasal labial folds, not acne scars that can arise on multiple areas of the face.

Calcium-based dermal fillers

In a study published in the Journal of Cosmetic and Laser Therapy, investigators tested a dermal filler composed of calcium hydroxylapatite to treat acne scars. Researchers used the filler to correct both round or saucerized acne scars, and deep acne scars with a sharp triangular shaped called “ice-pick” scars. After administering the dermal filler to ten patients with various types of acne scarring, the investigators found that only saucerized acne scars responded well to the treatment. Scar improvements lasted up to twelve months in some volunteers.

How to select a dermal filler

While dermal fillers offer dazzling results, they aren’t cheap. And typically, the longer the filler lasts, the more expensive the treatment. Dermal injections can run from $300 to $2000 for treated area so plan to spend smartly. Moreover, a dermal injection is only as aesthetically beautiful as the professional delivering the shot.

When seeking a dermal injection, seek a professional possessing experience with correcting deep acne scars with dermal fillers. Finally, when using a dermal injection, make certain that you have your acne outbreaks under control because dermal injections are contraindicated for facial areas experiencing pain or inflammation, including pimples.

Sources:

Barnett, Jay %26 Channing Barnett. Treatment of Acne Scars with Liquid Silicone Injections: 30-Year Perspective. Dermatologic Surgery, November 2005; vol 31, no 4, pp 1542-1549.

Food and Drug Administration. Perlane Injectable Gel – P040024s006 Labeling. May 2, 2007. http://www.fda.gov/cdrh/pdf4/p040024s006c.pdf

Goldberg, David; Snehal Amin %26 Mussarrat Hussein. Acne scar correction using calcium hydroxylapatite in a carrier-based gel. Journal of Cosmetic and Laser Therapy, September 2006; vol 8, no 3, pp. 134-136.

Woo, S; J Park %26 %26 Y Kye. Resurfacing of Different Types of Facial Acne Scar With Short-Pulsed, Variable-Pulsed, and Dual-Mode Er:YAG Laser. Dermatologic Surgery, April 2004; vol 30, no 4, pp 488-493.

Millions are heading towards India for breast implants surgery. For a traveler, India offers the best to see and at prices which few destinations can match. It has always lured its fair share of tourists, drawn to the country’s awe-inspiring temples, breathtaking scenery and rich culture. But a relatively new attraction is gaining ground on the travel scene. It is the land to travel to, a sanctuary of tourism escapade, and a civilization to tour through. Tourists come here for its affluence of sights, cultural excitement, and diversity of landscape and in search of that extraordinary something, an extra punch that only India promises and delivers. From the murky mangroves of the Sunderbans to the scorching Thar Desert, blistering cities like Mumbai and Delhi to the scintillating villages of Khajuraho and Hampi, from the heights of the Himalayas to the deep blue waters around the Andaman’s are the attractions of country. Breast implants surgery in India is available at a very reasonable price to international patients.   A breast implant is a prosthesis used to enlarge the size of a woman’s breasts (known as breast augmentation, breast enlargement, mammoplasty enlargement, augmentation mammoplasty or the common slang term boob job) for cosmetic reasons; to reconstruct the breast (e.g. after a mastectomy; or to correct genetic deformities), or as an aspect of male-to-female sex reassignment surgery. Pectoral implants are a related device used in cosmetic and reconstructive procedures of the male chest wall.   There are two primary types of breast implants: saline-filled and silicone-gel-filled implants. Saline implants have a silicone elastomer shell filled with sterile saline liquid. Silicone gel implants have a silicone shell filled with a viscous silicone gel. There have been several alternative types of breast implants that were developed, such as polypropylene string or soy oil, but these are no longer manufactured.   Indications   Breast implants are used for: primary reconstruction (to replace breast tissue that has been removed due to cancer or trauma or that has failed to develop properly due to a severe breast abnormality) revision-reconstruction (revision surgery to correct or improve the result of an original breast reconstruction surgery) primary augmentation (to increase breast size for cosmetic reasons) revision-augmentation (revision surgery to correct or improve the result of an original breast augmentation surgery) India has one of the best-qualified professionals in each and every field, and this fact has now been realized the world over. The advantages include five-star facilities, high quality doctors, very low costs (almost 1/3rd as compared to the developed countries and in most cases, even lower) and finally, a great tourist destination. Western patients usually get a package deal that includes flights, transfers, hotels, treatment and often a post-operative vacation. There are most competent doctors and world class medical facilities for breast implants surgery in India. To know more about breast implants surgery in India: http://tour2india4health.com/breast-augmentation-surgery-india.htm Submit your case details at: enquiry@tour2india4health.com