Daily Cosmetic Research Analysis

BACKGROUND: There has been a rise in women seeking surgical help to aesthetically correct postpartum deformities of the breast and abdomen, known as the 'mummy makeover'. The aim of this systematic review was to evaluate the literature and provide a contemporary evidence base for the positive physical and psychological effects of surgical restoration/rejuvenation of the postpartum body. METHODS: A PRISMA compliant systematic review (PROSPERO CRD42023399659) was conducted by searching the PubMed, EMBASE, and Central databases in October 2022 and updated in January 2025. The search was complemented by bibliographic secondary linkage and a narrative synthesis of the literature. RESULTS: Overall, 1365 articles were screened, and 5 met the inclusion criteria. All studies focused on surgical repair of diastasis recti abdominis and/or abdominoplasty and none of the breast. Overall, 498 women were assessed for physical and 314 for psychological effects of surgical interventions. Analysis reflected a minimum of 85% reduction in back pain and urinary incontinence and statistically significant reduction in trunk dysfunction. Quality of life significantly increased across all the assessed fields, with a 99.5% positive change in self-esteem and 95.2% improvement in sexual life observed post-operatively. CONCLUSION: This is the first systematic review to ascertain the functional and psychological value of body contouring surgical procedures specifically in postpartum women. The true extent is likely underestimated, owing to publication titles often being generic and heterogenous in nature. These findings support postpartum surgery being classified as reconstructive and not merely cosmetic. Further studies, with an emphasis on patient-reported outcome measures in the postpartum group, would help facilitate holistic psycho-physical rehabilitation to augment surgery provision.

BACKGROUND: Actinic keratosis (AK) reflects a field cancerization process in chronically sun-damaged skin, and relapse after diclofenac therapy is a frequent clinical scenario. Field-directed treatments such as 5-fluorouracil (5-FU), tirbanibulin, and photodynamic therapy (PDT) are widely used, yet comparative data in post-diclofenac relapse and the contribution of reflectance confocal microscopy (RCM) to therapeutic monitoring remain limited. OBJECTIVES: To compare the clinical efficacy, tolerability, and subclinical response of 5-FU 4%, tirbanibulin 1%, and PDT in relapsing AK of the scalp, integrating RCM imaging to assess field response. METHODS: A prospective randomized (1:1:1) study was conducted in 45 patients who previously achieved complete clearance with diclofenac 3% and relapsed within 12 months. Endpoints included clinical clearance at 12 weeks, RCM normalization, recurrence at 6 months, and local skin response (LSR) severity. RESULTS: Twelve-week clearance rates were 73.3% for 5-FU, 66.7% for tirbanibulin, and 80.0% for PDT (p=0.711). RCM normalization occurred in 66.7%, 60.0%, and 73.3% of patients, respectively (p=0.741). Recurrence among responders at 6 months was low and comparable (9.1%, 10.0%, and 8.3%; p=0.991). Tirbanibulin showed significantly lower LSR scores versus 5-FU and PDT (p<0.001), indicating superior tolerability. CONCLUSIONS: Short-term efficacy of 5-FU, tirbanibulin, and PDT was comparable, while tolerability differed markedly. Tirbanibulin demonstrated the most favorable inflammatory and cosmetic profile, whereas 5-FU and PDT may be preferred when a more intense field effect is desired. RCM detected subclinical persistence in select cases and may serve as an adjunctive imaging tool for monitoring and guiding retreatment in field cancerization.

The management of children with cholesteatoma has advanced over the course of this century thanks to innovations in surgical instrumentation and other aspects of care. A narrative review giving a perspective on the contributions of advances such as dedicated equipment for endoscopic ear surgery including powered instrumentation and KTP laser, and other areas including CT and MRI imaging, is provided. These have helped raise the standard of care from achieving a "safe dry ear" potentially with a mastoid cavity, to less invasive approaches that can deliver a functionally and cosmetically normal ear in many cases. Areas in need of further innovative approaches persist in the control of residual and recurrent cholesteatoma and hearing loss. Surgeons are advised to be wary of over-reliance on the use of untested hypothetical mechanisms when considering the adoption of new technologies, such as Eustachian tube balloon dilatation. Improved standards for data collection, analysis and reporting will help ensure that efficacious and cost-effective innovations are adopted in future to further improve outcomes from the care of paediatric cholesteatoma.