Specialty Plastic Surgery Facility East Bay Plastic Surgery Address Oakland Medical Center Fabiola Building, 1st floor 3801 Howe St. Oakland CA 94611 Richmond Medical Center Building 1, 3rd floor 901 Nevin Ave. Richmond CA 94801 E-mail your doctor View your preventive services

My Credentials

Medical school	Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT
Residency	Brown University School of Medicine, Providence, RI
Residency	Brown University School of Medicine, Providence, RI
Fellowship	Boston Medical Center, Boston, MA
Fellowship	University of Texas Southwestern Medical School, Dallas, TX
Fellowship	Center For Breast & Body Contouring, Grand Rapids, MI
Board certification	Plastic Surgery, American Board of Plastic Surgery

Welcome to my home page.

I am a plastic surgeon at the Kaiser Richmond and Oakland facilities and have been in practice in Northern California since August 2008. Previous to that, I was with Southern California Kaiser in a similar practice since 2005, but recently moved to be with my husband who got a job in Northern California. I had been familiar with the Kaiser system because my father had been a neurologist at Kaiser for thirty years and had always seemed to be very happy. Kaiser gave him the opportunity to have a rewarding practice as well as a full family life.

I really enjoy working at Kaiser and feel it is a very collegial environment where the physicians and staff work really hard to coordinate with each other and do what’s best for the patient.

People often ask me why I chose to become a plastic surgeon. I didn’t know I wanted to go into the field until late in medical school. I was intrigued by the tremendous variety of cases plastic surgeons are involved in, everything from hand surgery, to cleft lip and palate surgery, to breast reconstruction as well as traumatic, burn and cancer reconstruction. I’ve done additional training in breast surgery and find this aspect of my practice very rewarding. (Please see below for further general information on breast reconstruction.) Our practice has also expanded in the past few years to include various cosmetic services as well. The field of plastic surgery is always interesting because it allows us to think about various complex problems and come up with solutions specific to a patient’s needs.

In my free time, I enjoy music, movies, and taking long walks. Just like Kaiser’s motto, “thrive”, I’m trying to cook and eat more healthily which is challenging on a busy schedule. I’ve also recently gotten involved in yoga, which I find very useful in relieving tension.

Breast Reconstruction Information

Breast reconstruction surgery does not reconstruct a true breast but attempts to make a mound of similar size and shape to the original breast. This should allow the patient to wear clothes more easily and avoid the use of an external prosthesis. This should also help somewhat with body image problems resulting from the mastectomy. The breast can be reconstructed with either an implant or the patient’s own tissue (autologous).

Implant Surgery
Most implant reconstructions require two to three procedures. Usually, a tissue expander is placed first, followed by exchange with permanent implant, then nipple reconstruction and finally tattoo of the areola. A one-stage immediate placement of a permanent implant is occasionally possible.

Autologous surgery
In autologous (flap) reconstruction, a breast mound is created from transferring a patient’s own tissue from one part of the body to the breast area. Sources of this tissue usually involve the abdominal tissue (TRAM-transverse rectus abdominis muscle flap, or DIEP-deep inferior epigastric perforator flap) and the back (latissimus dorsi flap). Autologous procedures also typically require a few surgeries to revise the flap and later create the nipple and areola tattoo.

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