Background: The resident aesthetic clinic is a practice in which plastic surgery residents oversee patient care, thereby gaining autonomy and hands-on experience in cosmetic surgery. This study assesses the outcomes of procedures performed at a single institution’s resident clinic. Methods: A retrospective review of aesthetic procedures performed at the resident clinic between 2012 and 2023 was conducted. Data collected included demographic information, procedure type, operation details, follow-up, re-operations, and complications. Results: 163 procedures were performed in 100 patients, primarily females (96%), with an average age of 41.3 years. Common comorbidities included depression (25%), anxiety (17%), smoking (16%), and hypertension (10%). Procedures included abdominoplasty (25.2%), breast augmentation (17.2%), mastopexy (9.8%), augmentation mastopexy (9.8%), and face/neck lift (8.0%). The complication rate for abdominoplasty was 43.9%, including seroma (4.9%), infection (14.6%), necrosis (17.0%), dog ear deformity (14.6%), and hypertrophic scarring (12.2%). The complication rate for breast procedures was 24.6%, including implant rupture (4.5%), capsular contracture (4.5%), and infection (7.3%). The complication rate was 38.5% for face/neck lift, including ear numbness (15.4%), excessive eye tearing (7.7%), wound dehiscence (7.7%), and hypertrophic scarring (7.7%). Despite these complications, only a small portion of patients required re-operation (6.0%), and a high satisfaction rate was reported for breast procedures (93.4%) and face/neck lifts (69.2%). Conclusion: The resident clinic is a valuable teaching tool with relatively few acute complications and re-operations, particularly for cosmetic breast procedures, and high patient satisfaction rates. These findings support the continued use of resident clinics in plastic surgery education.
