HIV-associated lipodystrophy: epidemiological analysis of a Plastic Surgery Service in Brazil

Introduction: Lipodystrophy is an important complication of HIV and has different clinical manifestations, such as lipoatrophy of the face, buttocks, and limbs and accumulation of fat in the abdominal and cervical regions. Lipodystrophy has aesthetic and psychosocial consequences, stigmatizing and affecting patients’ quality of life. The objective is to evaluate the epidemiology and treatments performed in patients treated at the HIV-related Lipodystrophy Outpatient Clinic at Hospital das Clínicas da Faculdade de Medicina de Botucatu. Method: The study was conducted retrospectively, with port analysis of patients treated between June 2012 and December 2019, at Hospital das Clínicas da Faculdade de Medicina de Botucatu, in Botucatu, S P, Brazil. Results: The medical records of 153 individuals were analyzed, 79 male and 74 female patients. The mean age was 45.6 years. The referrals came from 48 cities in four states. Caucasian patients accounted for 74.5% of the consultations. The complaint of facial lipodystrophy was reported by 52.9% of the patients. The most common invasive procedure was facial filling with polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) in 62 patients. Gluteal implants were the most common surgery on six occasions. Conclusion: The data found show a higher proportion of female patients with complaints of lipodystrophy when compared to general data of patients with HIV. The white race was predominant, and the main complaint of lipodystrophy was facial atrophy. Facial filling with PMMA was the most common procedure

Major and minor risk factors for postoperative abdominoplasty complications: A case series

Background: Although abdominoplasty is a safe and popular surgery, it is associated with a higher complication rate than other body contouring procedures. Therefore, identifying predictive factors of major and minor complications in patients who have undergone abdominoplasty is necessary to achieve better treatment outcomes after major weight loss. Methods: This retrospective study analyzed the medical records of patients who underwent abdominoplasty between January 2016 and December 2019. The inclusion criteria were patients aged >18 years who underwent abdominoplasty as the only surgical procedure and had adequate follow-up. Other patients were excluded from the study. Statistical evaluation was performed using SPSS 20.0; statistical significance was set at a P-value of <0.05. Results: The study included a total of 152 patients, of whom 146 (96.1%) were women and 6 (3.9%) were men. The mean patient age was 41.1 ​± ​9.8 years. Comorbidities were reported in 67 patients (44.07%). A direct proportional relationship was observed between the weight of the resected tissue and occurrence of general complications (P=0.01), and the presence of comorbidities increased the occurrence of minor (P=0.04) and major complications (P=0.01). Conclusion: Abdominoplasty is an aesthetic surgical plastic procedure, and its application has increased over the years. Despite its popularity, patient safety requires further attention due to the high risk of complications. It is essential to study all risk factors