doctor advise

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i have been going to the same plastic surgeon since i was 3 or 4 (i am now 17). you see i have a benign tumor on my right orbit and it periodically needs to be removed. we are considering surgery right now, however my surgeon wants to pass me off to someone else. he says he wants to do this because he is to busy right now with all his patients. at first i was uneasy about this because i donot like change then however, i looked him up on http://profiles.massmedboard.org/profiles/ma-physician-profile-find-doctor.asp and he is not board certified in plastics. he is certified in orthopaedic surgery. though he did do his fellowship in pediatric plastic surgery. i do need reconstructive surgery. should i trust my surgeons suggestion or else what should i do? i really need advise.

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Time spent selecting the best surgeon you can find is never wasted. It is your face, and you should have the best, right?

If I were you, I'd take your current surgeon's advice, but also do thorough checking on your own, and when you have all the information, then decide for yourself. I wish you well, and hope that it all ends well. :)

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It sounds to me like he was doing the right thing in referring you to someone more qualified to meet your needs, even though I think he gave you a really lame excuse. He could have just said he's qualified in pediatric surgery and you're situation is out of his realm of expertise. Who knows. Whatever, I think apart from this strange conversation you had with him it really is in your best interests to find someone who is qualified to work with adults.

When I had my herniated disk I went to a neurosurgeon who said, "Yeah, I could operate on you but it would change your life forever. Take a shot at physical therapy first." I was pretty impressed that he didn't want to jump at me with a scalpel and it turned out PT worked. So I'm always encouraged when I hear docs -- especially surgeons -- say "there might be a better way to do this."

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you see my situation is NOT out of his area of expertease. He has done three surgeries on me before.

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