Cosmesis is the preservation, restoration, or bestowing of bodily

beauty Beauty is commonly described as a feature of objects that makes them pleasure, pleasurable to perceive. Such objects include landscapes, sunsets, humans and works of art. Beauty, art and taste are the main subjects of aesthetics, one of the fie ...

.'' Dorland's Medical Dictionary''. 25th ed. Philadelphia: W.B. Saunders Co.; 1995 In the medical context, it usually refers to the surgical correction of a disfiguring defect, or the cosmetic improvements made by a surgeon following incisions. Its use is generally limited to the additional, usually minor, steps that the

surgeon In medicine, a surgeon is a medical doctor who performs surgery. Even though there are different traditions in different times and places, a modern surgeon is a licensed physician and received the same medical training as physicians before spec ...

(who is generally operating for noncosmetic indications) takes to improve the aesthetic appearance of the

scar A scar (or scar tissue) is an area of fibrosis, fibrous tissue that replaces normal skin after an injury. Scars result from the biological process of wound repair in the skin, as well as in other Organ (anatomy), organs, and biological tissue, t ...

s associated with the operation. Typical actions include removal of damaged tissue, mitigation of tension on the wound, and/or using fine (thin) sutures to close the outer layer of skin. Cosmetic surgery is the portion of plastic surgery that concerns itself with the elective improvement of cosmesis.

Prosthetic limbs

The practice of cosmesis, the creation of lifelike limbs made from

silicone In Organosilicon chemistry, organosilicon and polymer chemistry, a silicone or polysiloxane is a polymer composed of repeating units of siloxane (, where R = Organyl group, organic group). They are typically colorless oils or elastomer, rubber ...

or PVC, has grown in popularity. Such

prosthetics In medicine, a prosthesis (: prostheses; from ), or a prosthetic implant, is an artificial device that replaces a missing body part, which may be lost through physical trauma, disease, or a condition present at birth (congenital disorder). Prosthe ...

, such as artificial hands, can now be made to mimic the appearance of real limbs, complete with

freckle Freckles are clusters of concentrated melaninized cells which are most easily visible on people with a fair complexion. Freckles do not have an increased number of the melanin-producing cells, or melanocytes, but instead have melanocytes that ov ...

s, veins, hair,

fingerprint A fingerprint is an impression left by the friction ridges of a human finger. The recovery of partial fingerprints from a crime scene is an important method of forensic science. Moisture and grease on a finger result in fingerprints on surfa ...

s, and even

tattoo A tattoo is a form of body modification made by inserting tattoo ink, dyes, or pigments, either indelible or temporary, into the dermis layer of the skin to form a design. Tattoo artists create these designs using several tattooing processes ...

s. Custom-made silicone cosmeses are generally more expensive, costing thousands of US dollars depending on the level of detail. Standard cosmeses come ready-made in various sizes, though they are often not as realistic as their custom-made counterparts. Another option is the custom-made silicone cover, which can be made to match a person's skin tone, but not details such as

s or wrinkles. Cosmeses are attached to the body using an adhesive, suction, form-fitting, stretchable skin, or a skin sleeve. Cosmeses act as a barrier from dirt, water and other particles, thus protecting the technology inside the glove.

References

{{reflist Medical terminology