Suzanne Noël

Suzanne Blanche Gros Noël (1878-1954) was one of the first French plastic surgeons;[1] she became known for her face lift technique the “petite opération”, and her career spanned from 1916 until 1950.

She was born on January 8, 1878 in Laon, France,[2] the only daughter of a well-off family. At the age of nineteen she married Henri Pertat, a physician and nine years her senior.[3] In 1905 she started taking medical classes to work with her husband.[2] She did very well in her studies and after the birth of her daughter she passed the "Internat des Hospitaux de Paris" in 1912, she was the fourth of sixty-seven students to do this. In 1919 her first husband, Henri Pertat, died and Noёl married a fellow dermatology student, André Noёl. Their marriage was short lived as after the death of her daughter, André Noёl threw himself into Seine River while Suzanne could see him.[4]

Noёl first gained an interest in cosmetic surgery in 1912 when she saw an American actress who was well over sixty come back from a trip looking rather rejuvenated. Noёl began to experiment with pinching her skin to see if she could acquire the same effect, she later moved to experimenting on anesthetized rabbits. When she started her practice in 1916 most hospitals did not admit doctors who only practiced plastic surgery, due to this she decided to set up a clinic from her home.[2] Her practice at home was limited to minor surgeries such as face lifts and eyelid corrections. With the onset of World War II she gave up her private practice and moved to practice at Clinique des Bluets in Paris where she could do major surgery, here she did bolder surgeries such as reshaping the breasts. In 1926 she wrote a plastic surgery handbook that became widely read.[4] Noёl was also believed in a woman’s right to vote.[2] In an attempt to gain this right she organized a strike on paying taxes as she believed should not pay taxes for what she has no control over. In 1923 she became interested in Soroptism, a women’s club which supported professional women. In 1924 she set up one of the first of these clubs in Europe.[5]

References

  1. ↑ Alam, Murad; Gladstone, Hayes B.; Tung, Rebecca C. (2009-01-01). Cosmetic Dermatology. Elsevier Health Sciences. p. 264. ISBN 0702031437.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Regnault, Paule; Stephenson, Kathryx L. (1971). "DR. SUZANNE NOEL. The First Woman To Do Esthetic Surgery". Plastic and reconstructive surgery 48 (2): 133–139. ISSN 0032-1052.
  3. ↑ Martin, Professor Paula J. (2014-08-28). Suzanne Noël: Cosmetic Surgery, Feminism and Beauty in Early Twentieth-Century France. Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. ISBN 9781472411884.
  4. 1 2 Davis, Kathy (1999-09-01). "Cosmetic surgery in a different voice: The case of madame noël". Women's Studies International Forum 22 (5): 473–488. doi:10.1016/S0277-5395(99)00052-7.
  5. ↑ "Soroptimist Founding History". Soroptimist International of San Diego. Retrieved 2016-03-11.
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