About

About Dr Rodrigo Teixeira, FRACS

Dr Rodrigo Teixeira is a Specialist Plastic Surgeon in Melbourne. His practice focuses on face and neck lift surgery, rhinoplasty, eyelid surgery, and related facial procedures. His work brings together aesthetic and reconstructive experience. His approach centres on careful assessment, anatomical diagnosis, and treatment planning tailored to the individual.

Experience

Experience, Anatomy, and an Individualised Approach

His principal areas of practice include facelift and neck lift surgery, eyelid and brow surgery, rhinoplasty and facial fat transfer. This work is grounded in experience across both aesthetic and reconstructive surgery. That experience has shaped a careful approach to facial assessment, surgical planning, and long-term structural preservation.

In facial surgery, visible concerns are not assessed in isolation. Facial balance, skeletal support, soft tissue position, skin quality, movement, and function may all influence what is seen clinically. They may also influence how treatment should be planned. This is why experience and judgement matter alongside technical knowledge. Not all faces age in the same way. Not every patient requires the same procedure or the same surgical plan.

For patients, this means recommendations are based on what is appropriate to the individual. They are not based simply on the procedure initially requested. In some cases, surgery may be appropriate. In others, a different procedure, a staged plan, or no surgery may be the more appropriate recommendation.

Why plastic surgery

Why He Chose Plastic Surgery

Dr Teixeira’s interest in plastic surgery began early in his medical training in Brazil. Watching a reconstructive operation inspired the kind of surgeon he wanted to become. He was drawn to the combination of anatomy, technical precision and judgement. He was also drawn to the opportunity to make a meaningful difference through surgery.

That early experience led to a long training pathway across reconstructive and aesthetic plastic surgery. He trained first in Brazil and later in Australia. Throughout that journey, his interest remained closely connected to facial surgery. In facial surgery, appearance, structure, and function often need to be considered together.

Training

Training, Qualifications, and Professional Background

Brazil

Graduation and Specialist Training

Dr Teixeira graduated from the Faculdade de Ciências Médicas da Santa Casa de São Paulo in Brazil. He also completed his early medical and surgical training there. He later undertook accredited plastic surgery training through the Brazilian Society of Plastic Surgery, and qualified as a plastic surgeon in Brazil in 2006. He then moved to Melbourne for further fellowship training.

Australia

Fellowship Training

His fellowship training in Australia included advanced aesthetic plastic surgery, craniofacial and cleft surgery, paediatric plastic surgery, and burns. In 2014 he became a Fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons (FRACS) in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. This added Australian specialist recognition to his earlier plastic surgery qualification in Brazil.

Reconstructive surgery

A Reconstructive Foundation in Facial Surgery

He then worked further in Brazil. There, he treated cleft lip and palate, facial clefts and other complex facial anomalies. He also performed primary and secondary rhinoplasty. He later returned to Melbourne, where he now works in both private and public practice. This breadth of training and experience continues to shape his perspective in facial surgery. In this field, careful planning often depends on understanding both aesthetic goals and reconstructive principles.

Philosophy

Surgical Approach and Philosophy

Dr Teixeira’s surgical approach is based on careful assessment, anatomical diagnosis, and clinical judgement. In facial surgery, the visible concern is not always the primary problem. Bone, cartilage, soft tissue support, skin quality, movement, and function may all contribute to what is seen. They may also contribute to what treatment, if any, is appropriate.

Understand the underlying anatomy first, then plan surgery in a way that respects structural integrity, facial balance and function.

His philosophy is to understand the underlying anatomy first. He then plans surgery in a way that respects structural integrity, facial balance, and function. This often means thinking in layers. It also means recognising that not all concerns are best addressed in the same way. His reconstructive background continues to influence this approach. It reinforces the importance of preservation, proportion, and restraint.

For patients, this means treatment recommendations are guided by what is appropriate, not simply by what is possible. The aim is not to overcorrect or impose a standardised result. The aim is to recommend a treatment plan that is proportionate, considered, and tailored to the individual.

Teaching

Teaching, Anatomy Education, and Public Hospital Roles

Dr Rodrigo Teixeira with MAFAC 2022 faculty, Royal Australasian College of Surgeons

MAFAC and Advanced Facial Anatomy Teaching

A significant part of Dr Teixeira’s professional work is teaching anatomy and applying it to aesthetic practice. He is a faculty member of the Mendelson Advanced Facial Anatomy Course (MAFAC), where advanced facial anatomy is taught in a surgical context. This reflects a core part of his practice philosophy: everything in facial surgery ultimately comes back to anatomy. With a background in plastic surgery and craniofacial surgery, he brings a detailed understanding of facial structure, support, movement, and tissue layers to both teaching and clinical practice. Teaching with international colleagues helps keep his practice up to date with current techniques. He writes about this in What MAFAC Has Taught Me and Surgical Insights from MAFAC and QMP Amsterdam 2025.

Credentials

Qualifications and Registration

Qualifications

Medical Degree and Internship, Faculdade de Ciências Médicas da Santa Casa de São Paulo, Brazil
Specialist Plastic Surgeon, Brazilian Society of Plastic Surgery (SBCP)
Fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons (FRACS), Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery