Meet Dr. Surjit Rai - Board Certified Plastic Surgeon

Dr. Surjit Rai was born and raised in Plano, Texas. Being the son of a plastic surgeon, Dr. Rai had the unique opportunity to see first-hand the impact a plastic surgeon can have. He knew at a young age that he would dedicate his life and academic career towards the goal of becoming a plastic surgeon. Family has always been very important to Dr. Rai and he has been fortunate enough to share his life and journey with his beautiful wife Courtney and daughter Aria.

Dr. Rai considers it a privilege to work with patients to achieve their aesthetic goals. Utilizing his extensive surgical training and expansive plastic surgery knowledge he assists patients in realizing those goals. Dr. Surjit Rai offers a full range of aesthetic and cosmetic procedures as well as several reconstructive procedures. Dr. Rai also performs non-surgical procedures such as Botox, chemical peels, and dermal fillers.

Training and Credentials:

Dr. Surjit Rai graduated with honors from the University of Texas in Austin. From there Dr. Rai went on to pursue his training at Texas A&M Health Science Center where he earned his Doctor of Medicine degree with honors. Because of his academic dedication and accomplishments, he was selected from among the top medical students in the country to an integrated 6-year plastic surgery residency program at the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) in Galveston, TX. Because an integrated 6-year program is dedicated to only specialized training in plastic surgery it is considered to be one of the most competitive and highly sought after residency programs. During his residency he rotated at the prestigious MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, TX and Shriners Burn Hospital in Galveston, TX where he learned complex and intricate reconstructive procedures. Other training hospitals that Dr. Rai rotated through included Jennie/John Sealy Hospital, St. Joseph’s Hospital, St. John’s Hospital, Mainland Hospital, and the Cronin-Brauer Cleft Lip and Palate Clinic at Shriner’s Houston. His training at UTMB has taught him the operative skills and techniques necessary to excel at plastic and reconstructive surgery. Dr. Rai obtained his board certification from the American Board of Plastic Surgery in 2018.

Awards:

• Thayer Award for Excellence in Teaching
  Awarded to residents that embody sound scientific knowledge, compassion towards patients, and dedication to learning and teaching
• Second Place in Clinical Science Research
  Awarded for presentation on Comparing Strength of Muscle Laceration Repairs Using Various Suture Techniques
• Best Plastic Surgery Resident Award
  Awarded to the best plastic surgery resident as voted on by the University of Texas Medical Branch plastic surgery faculty and residents. Dr. Rai was the first recipient of this award and the only resident to win it twice during his residency.

Professional Societies:

• Blocker-Lewis Society
• American Society of Plastic Surgeons
• Texas Society of Plastic Surgeons
• Texas Medical Association

Medical Privileges:

• Medical City Dallas
• Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Plano

Publications/Presentations:

• Snyder SK, Hamid KS, Roberson CR, Rai SS, Bossen AC, Luh JH, Scherer EP,
  Song J
  Outpatient Thyroidectomy Is Safe and Reasonable: Experience with Over 1000 Planned Outpatient Procedures
  Published: Journal of the American College of Surgeons.2010 May:210(5):575-82, 582-4.
  Presented: Southern Surgical Association December 2009 Annual meeting (Hot Springs, Virginia)
• Hamid KS, Rai SS, Rodriguez JA
  Symptomatic Bochdalek Hernia in an Adult
  Published: Journal of the Society of Laproendoscopic Surgeons.2010 Apr-June;14(2):279-81.
• Rai SS, Mahabir RC, Roberts JR, Song J, Hamid KS, White RR
  Contralateral Prophylactic Mastectomy
  Published:  Annals of Plastic Surgery.2011;67(3):215.
  Presented: Texas Society of Plastic Surgeons September 2009 Annual meeting (Grapevine, Texas), Texas Surgical Association October 2009 Annual meeting (Corpus Christi, Texas), Canadian Society of Plastic Surgery Summer 2010
• Rai SS, Phillips L
  Use of Strattice in Nipple Reconstruction to Improve Long-term Nipple Projection
  Presented: Texas Society of Plastic Surgeons September 20013 Annual meeting (Bastrop, Texas), University of Texas Medical Branch Singleton Society 2013 Annual meeting (Galveston, Texas)
• Rai SS, Kaltwasser K, Sanchez E, Castillo C, Morris R, Zhang AY
  Comparing Strength of Muscle Laceration Repairs Using Various Suture Techniques
  Presented: Texas Society of Plastic Surgeons September 2014 Annual meeting (San Antonio, TX), University of Texas Medical Branch Singleton Society 2014 Annual meeting (Galveston, Texas), American Society of Plastic Surgeons October 2014 Annual meeting (Chicago, IL), American Society for Surgery of the Hand 2015 Annual meeting (Maui, Hawaii)
  Poster: American Association for Hand Surgery 2015 Annual meeting (Paradise Island, Bahamas)
• DeCroff, C, Rai SS
  The level of Evidence of Research Presented at the TSPS Annual Meeting
  Presented: Texas Society of Plastic Surgeons September 2014 Annual meeting (San Antonio, TX)
• Rai SS, Padilla P, Tran E, Bachilo O, Andry D, Zhang Y
  Endoscopic Carpal Tunnel Release Refined: Techniques to Improve Safety and Efficiency
  Presented: Texas Society of Plastic Surgeons September 2016 Annual meeting (San Antonio, TX)