Complaint Review: Dr. Gary Brownstein - cherry hill New Jersey

 Botched!  I am a former patient of Dr. Gary Brownstein, M.D., a rude plastic surgeon practicing at the Cherry Hill Cosmetic Surgery Center.The following is my opinion as of 3-6-15 (1 year after surgery) This man is only in it for the money:

(Note: I learned from healthgrades.com, that Dr. Gary Brownstein was disciplined by the State of New Jersey Board of Medicine in 2010 for allowing an unlicensed person to practice medicine in his office - by using a laser in the treatment of his patient. He was ordered to pay a $3,000 fine, costs of $4,685.19, complete a Legal & Ethical Implications in Medicine Physician's Survival Guide Laws & Rules Course, and perform 50 hours of community service. I wrote below, and write here, I should have done my homework).

I regret that Dr. Brownstein performed my upper and lower blepharoplasty (cosmetic eyelid surgery). I should have done my homework and used an oculoplastic surgeon - that is, a cosmetic surgeon whose speciality is cosmetic eye surgery. Although Dr. Brownstein performs facial surgery, his focus is breast surgery at least, as it appears from his website.

I am a 63 year old professional woman. Dr. Brownstein spent a very short time with me during his pre-op evaluation/consultation (9-12-13) which was only 4 days before surgery on 9-16-11. The short time he spent with me should have been a red flag, but it seemed impressive (or so I thought) that he sized up things so quickly. Cosmetic surgeon offices I later contacted were surprised to hear of the short time that Dr. Brownstein spent with me. Dr. Brownstein did not discuss with me what results I did not want from surgery. He did not ask for photographs (recent or otherwise). He did not discuss my myasthenia gravis (a nerve and muscle disorder which a plastic surgeon informed me can sometimes create or increase ptosis (slight drooping) of eyelids and/or eyebrows. I listed my illness on Dr. Brownstein's patient intake form. Dr. Brownstein did not discuss, before surgery, the possibility of any negative result I now have, such as - My eyes now appear smaller in width and are rounder (they were almond shaped). Neither Dr. Brownstein, his staff, ever discussed the possibility of these negative results. When I initially asked Dr. Brownstein about the appearance of my eyes, he said that he cannot change the shape of eyes (i.e., eyeballs). I knew that of course, but the appearance of eyes are often changed by blepharoplasty - after all, that's one of the main reasons why people have the surgery.

Yes, Dr. Gary Brownstein, M.D. did a good job in removing the bags under my eyes (which created a shadow beneath each bag). However, now beneath each eye is a dark circle particularly when I even slightly tilt my head. Dr. Brownstein tried to tell me that the darkness is from dark skin pigmentation (which cannot be reduced by blepharoplasty). The result looks almost as the original bags. Another plastic surgeon told me post-surgery that the darkness under my eyes may be from a slight hollowness causing a shadow which could have be from excessive fat removed and/or not properly transitioned from the bottom of the lower lid to the upper cheek area (according to an ocular surgeon I saw well after my surgery). Neither Dr. Brownstein nor his staff ever informed me, either verbally or in writing, of the possibility of this result.

Dr. Brownstein removed the sutures a week after surgery. It was very painful - Dr. Brownstein told me that apparently the anesthetic had worn off. Great. I believe at the next appointment, Dr. Brownstein's assistant demonstrated how to massage the areas, but only after I asked her to do so. However, I later realized that she didn't tell me how often to massage, how long, whether to use a gel, creme, etc., and, if so, what type. A few hours after I left the office (late Friday afternoon), I called the office but it was closed. I called again and left a message stating that the matter involved an emergency (although it wasn't, but it is was important to me). I spoke with Dr. Brownstein's answering service who was helpful but she advised me to call or see Dr. Brownstein's office on Monday. I went to Dr. Brownstein's Cherry Hill office on Monday and a member of his staff told me they never had a patient who called so many times as me. I replied I didn't care. Almost 7 months after surgery, I still have significant, noticeable scars. I have recently read that if Dr. Brownstein had used a different procedure for my lower eyelids (transconjunctival lower blepharoplasty) there would not have been any scars. This newer procedure utilizes a laser, not a scapel, and is performed from the inside of the lower eyelid.

In conclusion, I strongly recommend against using Dr. Gary Brownstein for cosmetic eye lift surgery. Do your homework first and don't assume anything.