Perspectives on what's new in plastic surgery. The new millennium.

The next millennium will witness the most exciting advances in the field of plastic surgery. Some of these advances are already here today whereas others are just starting to surface. These include soft-tissue and bone reconstruction, tissue engineering, gene therapy, microsurgery, and fetal surgery to name just a few. Fetal wound healing may become a major part of intervention for correction of certain birth defects. Plastic surgery will continue to work with other specialties to solve clinical problems. Innovative techniques and other modalities will continue to rise in plastic surgery.