Luxury Las Vegas Article 8/1/12

Tue, July 31, 2012 5:32 pm MDT

RINGSIDE HEALER.

With a ringside seat to fight night in a city that becomes electric at the thought of a knockout punch, Dr. Jeffrey Roth has not only been privy to an up close view of such champions as David Diaz, Zab Judah, Antonio Margarito, and Manny Pacquiao, but in some cases his sewing skills have been requested. Since 2008 Dr. Roth has administered “hundreds, if not thousands” of stitches to boxing’s best, but not before the Nevada State Athletic Commission gives him the okay.

 “The Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC) has its own set of ringside doctors. The fighter will be checked out by the NSAC first and if the NSAC doctor thinks he needs to go to the hospital, he is going to the hospital. If they don’t feel he needs to go to the hospital then I usually fix the wound,” reveals Roth.

The Chaparral High School grad started his role as the post-fight plastic surgeon after 2008’s match between Manny Pacquiao and Juan Manuel Marquez. Dr. Roth lucked into his part-time gig purely by accident. “I was at a fight and I was in the press room. They found out I was a doctor and said, “Hey Jeff, Manny got cut, can you go help him out?” So I went down and offered my services and they were happy with the results. 

“So since then I always bring my doctor’s bag to the fight. I don’t feel dressed for the fight without bringing the bag, and the other guys at the fight who know me will say, ‘Hey doc, did you bring your bag tonight?’”

Dr. Roth notes every gash is unique but remembers one of “the deepest was Pacquiao’s wound, because it was down to bone, after Marquez 3. Although Antonio Margarito’s eyelid split after Cotto 3 was pretty bad too.

“I did trauma in Philadelphia for seven years so I have seen it all from gunshot wounds to car accidents. You spend a lot of time training in sewing up wounds before you get to do this,” says Dr. Roth, who received his medical degree from the University of Nevada School Of Medicine.

Having completed a plastic surgery residency at University of California, San Francisco as well as a fellowship in microsurgery and hand surgery at the University of Southern California, Dr. Roth returned to Las Vegas to open his own private practice, Las Vegas Plastic Surgery.

“Basically the plan was always to come home to my hometown to give back to the city and the state that really nurtured me and helped me with my education. It always felt right to come home, contribute and make a difference,” explains Dr. Roth.

He loves his day job as a plastic surgeon because “you are able to see a difference on the table. With general surgery sometimes you don’t. The mommy makeovers can be very powerful. Also the body makeovers, for those who have lost 100 lbs. or more and now you get to help them look good in clothes or give them the chance to really be active, are really gratifying.”

Dr. Roth is also gratified “to see the growth of world-class medicine in Las Vegas, like the Lou Ruvo Brain Center. I used to eat at Louie’s restaurant. I think that more and more great medicine and great medical minds are coming here, and for me that is very exciting to see. There’s opportunity here, always has been. There’s a real can-do spirit, if somebody can dream it up, they can do it here in the desert. I see glimpses of it in other places, but Las Vegas is the only place I have seen to be able to carry if off.”