The most frequent reconstructive surgery Dr. Popp does is facial cancer reconstruction for people who have had skin cancers removed.
He explained he works in tandem with Mohs surgeons. Mohs is named after Dr. Frederick Mohs who invented the procedure that bears his name. It has the highest accuracy of clearance of skin cancers. The least amount of normal tissue is taken while the maximum amount of cancerous or abnormal tissue is removed.
Dr.Popp said these patients start in the morning by having their cancer cleared through the Mohs surgery and then he reconstructs them in the afternoon.
Reconstruction and Recovery
“Trauma injuries are the next thing I do most often including lacerations. After a traumatic reconstructive procedure (such as one done at a hospital after a car accident), I might take over if they need revision surgeries over the years to bring them back to as close to normal as possible,” he said.
Dr. Popp admits reconstructive surgery can be disappointing because when a person loses tissues or has bones fractured, they can be repaired or realigned but it’s rare to get someone completely back to what they were before their injury.
He explained it’s a huge psychological thing for people, especially if they’re younger. And there can be a lot of anger.
An Important Truth
Dr. Popp said with reconstructive surgery it sometimes takes years and years to get people closer to their “normal” and they have to get that through their head immediately. There isn’t going to be one surgery and suddenly you’re back to normal, and that can be frustrating and depressing. “But if there’s a reward, then it’s a bigger reward with reconstructive if things turn out better than you expected,” he said.
You can set up your free consultation with Dr. Popp by calling 402-391-4558.
