Coming from a family of doctors (nine in fact!), Dr. Mary Lynn Moran didn’t have to think long and hard about her career. “[Medicine was] so much a part of what I grew up with, there was no real other choice for me. It was always what I wanted to do.” She was admitted to an accelerated six-year pre-med/medical school program at the University of Michigan, in Ann Arbor, and received her MD degree from the University of Michigan Medical School.
As a psychiatrist’s daughter and somebody who is very empathic, Dr. Moran knew her focus was going to be facial surgery. She started out in Ear, Nose, and Throat, and then once in it, decided that she really enjoyed the reconstructive and the cosmetic side. She completed five years of head and neck surgery training in Boston at the Tufts and Boston University combined program. She then completed an additional fellowship in facial plastic and reconstructive surgery training. Today she is Tennessee's only female double board-certified Facial Plastic and Reconstructive surgeon (Certified by the American Board of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery and the American Board of Otolaryngology). This double board certification provided Dr. Moran with a much more extensive and intensive education training experience on the face - “taking the face apart and putting it back together, both the functional and the cosmetic part.”
Three decades later, Dr. Moran is still excited and invigorated by the science and challenge of plastic surgery. “Every day, content comes through that I read because there is always new and exciting stuff. You would not be in the field if you did not find it fascinating.” Her practice encompasses a broad range of both surgical and non-surgical face and neck cosmetic procedures and reconstructive surgeries including eyelid surgery, facelifts, neck lift, brow lift, rhinoplasty, and revision rhinoplasty. . She is also a nationally renowned expert in Botox and filler injections. “I love the face, eyes, revision rhinoplasty, and rhinoplasty. I love the transformation you get with a facelift. I love doing facial fillers. I do a lot of Botox, I love it all.” Above all, Dr. Moran provides a caring, personalized, and nurturing experience in a safe environment.
Dr. Moran’s approach to any procedure is to educate her clients, find concerns, explain the underlying causes and discuss potential solutions. Using specialized 2D and 3D computer imaging Dr. Moran is able to show her clients the projected outcome of the procedure. "Imaging is helpful. It is almost like they are watching me do surgery. I can show them - this is my aesthetic. This is how I see this looking better.” Possessing an intimate understanding of facial contours, proportions, and movement, her patients emerge with results that are natural and nuanced - and never overdone.
In 2019, Dr. Moran became the first female president of the American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery (AAFPRS). She is also a senior adviser to the AAFPRS’ FACE TO FACE program, a humanitarian program that provides complimentary facial reconstruction surgical procedures to children with facial deformities who do not have access to doctors with the same kind of education and training as doctors in the United States. She has made three trips to Vietnam and helped to establish their facial plastic surgery and training practices.
In the U.S., FACE TO FACE provides life-changing surgeries to domestic violence survivors, veterans, and active-duty military members who were injured while serving in the United States Armed Forces.
Additionally, Dr. Moran is a senior advisor for The American Board of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery (ABFPRS) which is the certifying body for plastic surgeons. “I have been involved for about 20 years in certifying people to make sure they can call themselves board-certified.”
If the above was not enough to keep Dr. Moran busy, she is passionate about mentoring the next generation of women plastic surgeons. “When I was training, I was one of the very few women in my field. I am really excited for the women that are in this area…we all support each other and I love the empowerment I see now. More and more women are coming up and they are incredibly savvy, sophisticated, and talented.”
Dr. Moran believes “Every surgeon is an artist. Every plastic surgeon has a sense of artistry and a perception of the way they would visualize something, like sculptors.” If that is the case, then Dr. Moran is the female Rodin and Michelangelo of plastic facial surgery. MaryLynnMoranMD.com
