Tag Archives: grandmother

West Michigan girl recovering from 1st surgery to fix mauling injuries

Royal Oak — Charlotte Ponce wants nothing more than to go riding on her grandmother’s horse and take her bike for a spin, but the 10-year-old will have to wait for a while before she can get back outside.

Charlotte is recovering from surgery to create her a nose, the first of many operations she will face as doctors reconstruct parts of her face damaged when she was attacked by a raccoon as a baby.

“I’ve been walking around and been doing stuff on one hand, but I can’t go outside. I used to ride my bike every day, even when it was raining,” the west Michigan girl said Wednesday during a news conference at Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak.

It’s early in the progress, but her plastic surgeon is encouraged.

The first stage is complete and I’ve very pleased with the result,” said Dr. Kongkrit Chaiyasate, director of reconstructive microsurgery at Royal Oak Beaumont.

Charlotte is at the beginning of a two-year series of surgeries that will give her back a nose, part of her upper lip and her right ear, which she lost when the animal climbed into her crib and mauled her face.

“She’s so used to people looking at her differently that I just think she takes it in stride,” adoptive mother Sharon Ponce said Wednesday, one week after doctors took skin from her daughter’s forearm and folded it over on itself to sculpt the basic structure of a nose.

With her left forearm wrapped in a bandage, and holding her Care Bear, Fluffy, and her doll, Lillie, the thin girl with blond hair and blue eyes talked with spirit about how she knows the hallways of Beaumont better than her father, and how she tells him where to go while he pulls her around in her red wagon filled with stuffed animals.

She said she loves animals despite what happened to her.

When Charlotte was three months old, a raccoon that her biological parents were keeping as a pet got free from its cage and climbed into her crib. at the time, a bottle of milk was propped up against the child, so Sharon Ponce said she believes the raccoon wanted the milk.

The raccoon disfigured the right side of Charlotte’s face, which led to the loss of her right ear and most of her nose.

The Ponces, relatives of the biological mother, adopted Charlotte and her brother, Marshall, after their biological parents had their parental rights terminated and lost an appeal in 2005. Sharon, 52, and Tim, 61, live in Spring Lake, Mich., and have two sons, both in their 20s. they lost another son to crib death in 1991.

Charlotte’s nose is a work in progress. it will take at least three more surgeries before she will have a functional nose that matches her face and skin tone.

Chaiyasate said Charlotte will recover for six to eight more weeks before undergoing the next stage, building a solid structure to support the new nose.

Months down the line, Chaiyasate said he would use part of Charlotte’s bottom lip to recreate her top lip and eventually give her a new ear by carving out part of her rib for the structure and using microsurgery technique to remove skin from her chest plate to cover it.

“My goal as a plastic surgeon is not only the function but also the look,” said Chaiyasate.

Even after the process is complete, Charlotte will still need to come back for procedures once she hits puberty because she will grow and her face will change. she will also need fat injections in her left cheek throughout her life.

“I expect we’re going to know Charlotte for a really long time,” said Chaiyasate.

But on Wednesday, her parents were focused on blessings: a daughter who just days after surgery was jumping on the bed and playing Bingo with other children while working her way through a box of a dozen red, white and blue ice pops.

“I think she’s looking forward to getting it done and just being like everyone else,” said Sharon Ponce.

“The people have been tremendous and the outpouring of love she gets every day; I tell them all the time, we hear all the prayers.”

lrazzaq@detnews.com

West Michigan girl recovering from 1st surgery to fix mauling injuries

Looking the Way You Feel – Plastic Surgery Patient Success Story «

Did you see COSMED’s patient featured in the Spring 2012 issue of new You magazine? She was featured as one of this month’s top 5 Inspired Patient success stories!

Here’s an except from the article. To see the original printed version, click here.

Roberta did her research, but the determining factor actually came from seeing results. “I went to a wedding of one of my former students. She, her mother and her grandmother had had the same doctor, Dr. Alejandro Quiroz, over a period of 20 years. they were thrilled with the results, and they all looked great. I was convinced and made the call”.

The results couldn’t have made her happier. “Every day someone tells me how good I look, or that I look younger by the day, or that I’m gorgeous. Now who wouldn’t want to hear that? that is so affirming,” she says. But even more important is that I feel good about myself.”

Roberta  had a Face lift, Neck lift, Brow lift, Dermal Abrasion, Fat Injection to Lips and Laser Resurfacing at COSMED Plastic Surgery Center in Mexico.

Looking the Way You Feel – Plastic Surgery Patient Success Story «

British Mom Encouraging Teenage Daughter To Get Breast Implants: Is That What Men Want?

Perhaps most surprisingly, the mom said: “I really love the fake look of my girls, and I know Britney will go that way when she's a bit older. … I love the idea of us all looking similar and glamorous.”

Chantal Marshall, who is a grandmother, works as a psychic. She had her first surgery in 1996 to upgrade her cup size from a 34B to a size 34DD. her bra size currently sits at 32GG, a series of decisions that has cost her north of 18,000 pounds, or $29,000.

Follow us

“When I hit the town with the other girls, I'm often mistaken for their sister,” said Chantal Marshall, who appears completely delusional in some eyes. “It's a real laugh. … It's like being young again.”

Her four daughters with implants range in age from 30 to 21. they “have all had breast implants, adding up to 13 operations, nearly six pints of silicone … between them all,” reported the Daily Mail.

Britney has resisted the pressure from her family so far, although she admits to having considered getting implants in the past.

“I'm too young to be thinking about having a boob job,” Britney said. “I just want to work hard at school. … In the past, I have wanted fake boobs, but then sometimes I look at them and think they look ridiculous.”

The jury is still out on whether most men are more attracted to real or fake breasts — most sources chalk it up to personal preference. however, a recent article on the Huffington Post by Brandi Megan Granett suggested men are attracted to confidence in women. That's something breast implants can improve, but an option many women simply don't resort to.

“At first glance, we would hope that outward appearance isn't so readily tied to self-esteem,” Granett wrote. “We'd like to say that it's what is on the inside that counts. But research actually shows that plastic surgery helps self-esteem. … The good news here is that you don't need to have plastic surgery to get this swagger, this man-attracting confidence. if you are willing to work on yourself in any way that matters to you, if you can hold your head high and rock whatever situation you find yourself in, you too will have double D confidence from the inside out.”

To report problems or to leave feedback about this article, e-mail: To contact the editor, e-mail:

British Mom Encouraging Teenage Daughter To Get Breast Implants: Is That What Men Want?

Man charged with attempted murder after police say he pushed woman from moving car

As John Demetro, 24, and a woman traveled March 13 in a truck on West Copans Road in Pompano Beach, they argued and Demetro punched her in the face and arms numerous times, a Broward Sheriff’s complaint affidavit says.

Demetro unbuckled the victim’s seat belt, opened the passenger door of the moving truck and began pushing the woman out as she held on to a portion of the belt, which left a mark on her arm, the report states.

The victim could not immediately remember what happened in the hours between the argument and when she awoke in a hospital, Broward Sheriff’s Detective Lynne Philbrick wrote in the complaint affidavit.

But after the victim saw Demetro in court during a March 21 child custody hearing, she gave BSO a sworn statement about the attack.

The night before the incident, Demetro told the victim’s grandmother that he would kill the victim, and he made a similar threat to the victim’s father on the day of the murder attempt, according to the affidavit.

Demetro was first charged March 20 with aggravated battery, and has been unable to post a bond.

Assistant Public Defender Terry Conover said Demetro, who is unemployed, has lived in the region for 24 years and had already been in custody for seven days.

Demetro asked Broward Judge Gisele Pollack for a lesser bail, but after the attempted murder charge was added, Pollack increased his bond amounts to $50,000.

Pollack also ordered a GPS monitor if Demetro is released before trial.

Ltrischitta@Tribune.com, 954-356-4233 or on Twitter @LindaTrischitta.

Man charged with attempted murder after police say he pushed woman from moving car

Review: The Awkward Squad, The Customs House, South Shields – News – Shields Gazette

By VICKI NEWMAN Published on Wednesday 29 February 2012 15:55

PUT a campaigning grandmother, her two daughters – one as materialistic as the other is outspoken – and her spoilt-rotten grand-daughter, together in a room and you’ve got an explosive dynamic.

The Awkward Squad tells the story of Lorna (Barbara Marten), a miner’s wife who has spent her life campaigning over strikes and closures.

She is to have a community centre named in her honour, so her daughters Pam (Libby Davison) and Sandy (Charlie Hardwick), and her grand-daughter Sarah (Lisa McGrillis) come to town for the ceremony.

The show deals with feminism, redundancy, failure, family and even plastic surgery, but is more side-splitting than hard-hitting.

The script is sharp and witty, with each of the actresses demonstrating perfect comic-timing to keep the audience roaring with laughter.

It is certainly one of this generation, using tweets and e-mails to further the storyline.

It is a fantastic show, and received a standing ovation. see it before it hits the West end.

* The Awkward Squad is at The Customs House until Saturday.

Review: The Awkward Squad, The Customs House, South Shields – News – Shields Gazette

LiLo, Is That You? 66-Year-Old Debbie Harry Is Mistaken For 25-Year-Old Lindsay Lohan

By Debbie Emery – Radar Reporter

With her hard partying past and recent experiments with plastic surgery, it’s often been said that 25-year-old Lindsay Lohan looks older than her age, but is 41 years older going too far?

Well some people don’t think so!

PHOTOS: Stars Who Look Like other Stars

A group of sharp-eyed photographers mistook former punk singer Debbie Harry, who at 66 is older than Lilo’s mom, Dina, for the notorious party girl as she walked the streets of Manhattan on Sunday, reported the NYPost.com, and crowded around her trying to get the best shot.

In their defense, Harry was dressed in a very Lohan-like get up of large dark glasses and a thick black coat, with a mane of bleach blonde hair sticking out from under her hood, so it’s easy to under to understand their mistake, despite the fact that the 80s star formerly known as Blondie is old enough to be Lindsay’s grandmother.

PHOTOS: Lindsay Lohan Arrives at Court with Mom Dina

The mean Girls star was in New York that day too, recovering from the embarrassment of her SNL hosting bomb the night before, she just didn’t happen to be leaving the Mercer Hotel when the photographers started frantically snapping.

While the misunderstanding must be flattering for the Heart of Glass singer, who certainly looks fabulous for her age, Lindsay will no doubt be upset about the confusion, especially in light of recent concern over her sudden obsession with plastic surgery.

PHOTOS: LiLo Blonde & Bold at amfAR Event

But with three decades of hit records and 30 film roles to her name, Lohan should be proud to be compared to an artist as successful as Blondie!

RELATED STORIES:

Lindsay Lohan Licks Wounds with Retail Therapy after SNL Bomb

Lindsay Lohan Makes Painful Return To SNL

Lindsay Lohan’s New Addiction: Plastic Surgery?

Lindsay Lohan Dishes On Hosting SNL, Playing Liz, & That Infamous ‘Debbie Downer’ Skit

http://www.radaronline.com

LiLo, Is That You? 66-Year-Old Debbie Harry Is Mistaken For 25-Year-Old Lindsay Lohan

Ewings loves results of her work as a plastic surgeon

EAU CLAIRE — Ember Ewings loves being able to see how her workturns out. especially when she sees her patients smile.

“I feel really blessed to be able to do this job and to be ableto do it here,” the Bloomer native said.

What she does is make children and adults feel better aboutthemselves. she works out of the Marshfield Clinic in Eau Claireand is the area’s only female plastic surgeon.

The shortest procedures may take only 10 minutes; the longestand most complicated, six to eight hours.

For each one of them, she has to maintain her focus on thesurgery. That can be wearing, but also worthwhile.

“It’s a fun thing to do, as a surgeon, to help people andrealize your gave them their quality of life back,” Ewingssaid.

Some of what she takes to work everyday she learned growing upon a farm in the town of Bloomer, 10 miles north of the city ofBloomer.

Just a mile away

She said the family farm run by her parents, Tom and JackieEwings, was just a mile away from her grandmother and an aunt.

“We were always close to our extended family,” she said.

When Ewings was 10, her father decided to sell the dairy cattleand switch to beef cattle and crop farming.

“My parents were always, ‘Think for yourself. make your owndecisions,’” she said.

From them, she learned to show respect and be polite to others.she said that has kept her steady, knowing who she is and where sheis headed.

After graduating from Bloomer High School in 1996, Ewingsstudied at  Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, Minn.

“I chose that because it was a smaller town and a smallercollege,” she said. being there meant she could do a lot ofdifferent things. 

She also was drafted by her college roommate into being incharge of the community page of the college newspaper. To this day,she uses her copyediting skills to correct mistakes incommunications.

“All of these details become a part of you,” she said.

Ewings took art classes, enjoyed dance lessons and took part intheater in musical ensembles.

“All of this while I was doing my pre-med studies,” shesaid.

Ewings had decided to go into medicine at age 16. she creditsthe late Dr. Merne W. Asplund, who was one of the founders of thehospital in Bloomer, as being a strong influence in her wanting topursue medicine as a career.

She went on to graduate from the University of Wisconsin Schoolof Medicine of Public Health, and completed her residency at St.Louis University School of Medicine. she joined the MarshfieldClinic in August 2010.

Helping kids

She enjoys working with children, saying they are so resilientwhen they are faced with obstacles, such as having a cleft lip.

“We see so many kids who do well and overcome in their lives,”Ewings said.

One of the most common surgeries she performs is breastreduction. she is amazed how many women continue to endure back andshoulder pain before having a procedure that can reduce pain andallow them to stand straighter.

“I think a lot of them don’t know such as thing can be done,”she said of breast reduction.

Ewings said there is a stigma attached to plastic surgery. “It’skind of considered to be a vanity,” she said.

Others fear pain or are concerned at how long it would take torecover from surgery. while it can be a hard decision, Ewings hasseen people’s lives improve after getting surgery.

Feeling fulfilled

“I really think this is a wonderful career,” Ewings said, notingthat where she works, there is a great commitment to take care ofpeople.

“I feel that God brought me to this place for a reason,” shesaid.

Ewings said the Chippewa Valley has a beautiful environment,with lovely, respectful and hard-working people. she said she’sbeen able to keep an eye on her goals, and keep true to what shefeels in her heart.

“If you have a commitment to do your best, you’ll be fulfilledwhen you wake up in the morning,” she said.

Ewings loves results of her work as a plastic surgeon

£50k payout for patient left in agony by blundering dentist – Tameside Advertiser

A woman has won a £50,000 payout after a dentist botched her treatment, leaving her in constant pain and unable to eat properly.

Jean Wall, 75, handed over thousands of pounds to Dr Oscar Kwame Gagoh after he promised to correct a crooked front tooth. but her dream of a Hollywood smile turned into a nightmare after the treatment sessions in Droylsden and Clayton.

Grandmother-of-five mrs Wall said she had to endure a year of radical treatment with another dentist, costing £30,000, to repair the damage.

Lawyers acting on her behalf spent three years trying to track down Dr Gagoh until finally securing a £50,000 payout from his insurers.

The M.E.N. can reveal that Dr Gagoh is now practising as a dentist in Michigan, in the United States.

He left Britain despite having 13 outstanding county court judgements against him across the country – topping £450,000.

He is also subject to conditions imposed by the General Dental Council after another patient made a complaint against him.

Mrs Wall, from Droylsden, had agreed a schedule of treatment with Dr Gagoh that included bleaching, crowns, veneers and white fillings.

But, she says, her life was ‘almost wrecked’ when the sessions left her with burned and blistered lips.

She said: “I looked like a mess. I had nerve damage – the pain was unbearable, I couldn’t eat, drink or swallow properly.”

Mrs Wall’s case was taken up by Chris Gawne, partner in clinical negligence department at Manchester law firm Pannone.

They were able to secure a payout from Dr Gagoh’s defence organisation, the Medical Protection Society, after its bosses admitted that even they hadn’t been able to contact him.

Mr Gawne said: “She had placed her trust in Dr Gagoh and that trust was obviously misplaced. not only did he give her negligent treatment, he has refused to address the claim.

“Even his own defence organisation was unable to get instructions from him.

“Despite the difficulties caused by his refusal to deal with the claim, we were able to secure a substantial sum. Jean has not had to go through the difficult and risky process of pursuing Dr Gagoh personally.”

The General Dental Council said Dr Gagoh, who used to work at the Fairfield Road dental practice, Droylsden, and carried out treatments at a clinic in Clayton, was made the subject of an interim order, which runs until August next year.

He is still allowed to work in Britain but only under a series of conditions, including informing them if he changes his work address. The M.E.N tracked down the dentist to the Gagoh Family Dental practice in Michigan.

Confronted with mrs Wall’s claims, he said he had done nothing wrong and insisted she was happy with her treatment.

He refused to comment on why he had left Manchester and would not be drawn on the outstanding county court judgements.

Dr Gagoh added: “I remember the patient well. She was given a mirror and saw the work. if she was not happy, why did she allow me to continue? this is nonsense.”

According to Dr Gagoh’s American website, ‘excellence is the hallmark’ of his work.

He describes himself as ‘highly motivated and hardworking’ and says he is ‘committed to serving families and creating beautiful smiles which leave patients feeling good, content and confident’.

He says he is originally from Ghana, and is a graduate of Manchester University’s Dental School.

He also says he has completed an advanced dentistry programme at the University of Rochester, new York.

No happy ending to widow’s dream of Hollywood smile

SHE dreamed of a Hollywood smile – but when Jean Wall went to see Dr Oscar Gagoh there was no happy ending.

Mrs Wall was still grieving the loss of her husband Thomas when she decided to spend some of her inheritance on cosmetic dental work.

She had disliked her crooked front tooth for years and finally plucked up the courage to do something about it.

When she arrived at Dr Gagoh’s Fairfield Road practice in March 2007, he impressed her with his confident manner and promised he would sort her teeth out ‘in no time’.

Mrs Wall agreed to pay £8,000-£10,000 for crowns, veneers, white fillings and bleaching, to ensure she had the perfect smile.

A week later, she was back in the treatment chair for four hours, having her teeth drilled and filed. She says the session left her in great pain.

At her next session, she spent five hours in and out of the chair and had to have her anaesthetic topped up four times.

She had two further treatment sessions but became concerned when the bill soared to £12,000, then £15,000.

When she refused to pay the extra money, she says, Dr Gagoh turned up at her house asking for the cash.

She last saw him on Good Friday 2007. After that, she was unable to contact him after being told he had left the area.

At that point she went to law firm Pannone to press for compensation.

She said: “I had perfect teeth apart from one slightly crooked one at the front.

“My husband had died in the November and had left me some money. I’d seen programmes on the TV for cosmetic dentistry and that gave me the idea to go for it.

“I ended up with veneers and crowns I didn’t need.

“My lips were blistered and gums were inflamed.”

Pannone spent three years fighting for compensation.

Mrs Wall added: “I had to have a full restoration of my teeth, costing over £30,000 and taking more than a year to complete.”

She said she had no sense of satisfaction at her payout but thanked lawyers at Pannone and Dr Robert McLelland at St Ann’s dental clinic in Manchester, who carried out the repair work.

£50k payout for patient left in agony by blundering dentist – Tameside Advertiser

The Five Telltale Signs of Poor Plastic Surgery – StyleList

I agree with Mark, he pretty much said it all. as women we are all always trying to improve our looks whether it be by clothing, accessories, etc… Most of us know if we had the money the stars have we would be doing it to. I do agree that some of them go over board, look at Joan Rivers. You can not tell if she is smiling or what she is doing…she looks like a freak. I think if everyone would just eat the right foods, work out and wash their faces with the correct regimen everyone would age great. my mother is almost 60 and only looks like she is in her early 40′s and she has always taken care of herself. On the other hand my grandmother didn’t, she smoked, drank, partied all the time and did not eat healthy or workout and she was in a nursing home at the age of 54 due to all the problems she had with her body. So I do not think it is all about genes, they play a little part but not as much as taking care of yourself. Most women get married and turn into piglets, they eat themselves to death…why is that? I am guilty of that too, when I first got married years ago I did that but I quickly learned not to do that. Now I workout, eat right (which in turn teaches our children to eat right and not grow up with bad eating habits) and take care of my skin. This generation had more obese children than any, kids are getting fatter and fatter because parents are letting them eat themselves into obesity…wake up america we are killing our children!!

The Five Telltale Signs of Poor Plastic Surgery – StyleList