Welcome to our September Newsline.

New Midland/Odessa Location Announced

After more than 25 years of seeing patients at the Midland International Airport hotel, a new, exciting opportunity has come about. As of September 5th, Dr. Tobin will begin seeing his Midland/Odessa area patients at Carolina Skin Centre and Salon www.carolinaskincentre.com located at 3303 Midkiff (in San Miguel Square) Midland,TX. For quite some time, we have felt that we were outgrowing the Airport location. Every year, our Midland/Odessa practice continues to grow and we felt we needed to do something to make it more comfortable and attractive for our patients.

While we understand that change can be difficult, we are excited and hope that our patients will find it a more pleasant and tranquil atmosphere. We feel that this will allow us to see our patients in a more comfortable setting. We value your input. Please let us know what you think of the change.

Flying for the Veterans Airlift Command

As a long time pilot, we have long appreciated the convenience that an airplane can bring. In our case, it has allowed us to build a practice far beyond the confines of Abilene. For Dr. Tobin, flying is more than a business tool, it has been a passion. Recently, he discovered a way to combine his love of flying with a means of helping our wounded warriors.

The VAC provides free air transportation to wounded veterans and their families for medical and other compassionate purposes, through a national network of volunteer aircraft owners and pilots. http://www.veteransairlift.org.

According to General Richard Myers, Honorary Vice-Chair of the National Advisory Board of the Veterans Airlift Command, “Taking care of our wounded troops is a top priority. The government administers primary care, but we also rely on generous Americans, such as those affiliated with VAC. Their support to
our nation’s service members, as well as to their families, plays an integral role in raising morale and aiding the healing process” .Dr. Tobin is proud to be a volunteer for this organization.

Dr. Tobin has flown several missions in the past year transporting patients primarily to and from Brook Army Hospital in San Antonio. Shown in the attached photo is a group of wounded warriors flown by Dr Tobin who had participated in this years “Bataan Memorial Death March” in New Mexico. For information about this event, see: http://www.bataanmarch.com

wounded Warriors

Lower eyelid retraction

Blepharoplasty remains a very popular operation at our Center. Patients are frequently seen with complaints of hooding of the upper eyelid and puffiness and wrinkling of the lower lid. The classic approach to eyelid surgery was to make incisions and remove excess fat and skin. This worked out very well in the upper lids but was frequently
complicated in the lower lid by lid retraction and scleral show (an abnormal appearance of the lower white of the eye)

Even when the operation was properly performed, this complication was not uncommon. While it usually subsided with time, it didn’t always. About 25 years ago, surgeons began utilizing a different approach toward the lower lid. Instead of making the incision on the outside of the lid, they made the incision on the inside, through the conjunctiva rather than the skin. This allowed a direct approach to the bulging fat without the risk of lower lid retraction. Of course this did not address the problem ofexcess or wrinkled skin. To solve this problem, skin resurfacing was carried out either with chemical peeling or with laser.

This is the approach that we have favored for many years. While it may not always be quite as effective in tightening the lower eyelid skin, the added safety makes it a favorable trade off. In rare cases where there is a great excess of lower eyelid skin, we may make a lower eyelid skin excision to remove the excess, but the removal is always very conservative.

By following these principles, lower eyelid retraction has become a problem of the past. Patients are still pleased with the results of the operation, although the laser resurfacing does increase the recovery time by a few days.

Announcing our new Cosmetic Surgical Fellow – Dr Waheed Mohamed

Dr. MohamedDr. Waheed V. Mohamed is the newest member of our team and will be filling the Fellowship position for the 2012 academic year. Prior to joining us, he trained in Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Dr. Mohamed was born in Montreal, Canada and grew up in Canada, Central Africa, and the Rio Grande Valley. He attended the University of Texas at Austin for his undergraduate degree in Biochemistry. After college Dr. Mohamed received his doctorate of dental surgery at Baylor College of Dentistry in Dallas. Still looking to further his training in facial surgery, he continued with an internship in Maxillofacial Trauma in New Orleans. In 2005 when Hurricane Katrina devastated the city, Dr. Mohamed stayed to assist in the evacuation and treatment of victims. He received an AAOMS National Community Service award for his courage and contribution.

Dr. Mohamed went on to complete medical school, a general surgery internship, and residency in Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery at Louisiana State University in New Orleans. In New Orleans, he trained in trauma, pathology, and cosmetic surgery of the face. After spending ten years understanding the human face, his continued passion for cosmetic surgery led him join Dr. Tobin and his staff as a Fellow.

When he’s not working or studying, you can be sure to find Dr. Mohamed enjoying the outdoors. He is an enthusiast of all sports, but focuses mostly on playing soccer and training on his bicycle. When able, Dr. Mohamed loves traveling and learning about different cultures.

That’s all for now. We hope you enjoy our Newsline. As always, we welcome your input.

Sincerely,

Howard A. Tobin, M.D., F. A. C. S.
www.newlook.org

For general information: askdena@newlook.org or n41gt@newlook.org