Dr. MacRae did her undergraduate training in molecular biology at Haverford college. She then spent a few years teaching environmental education to school children and became a zookeeper at the Philadelphia Zoo.
Although her interest in wildlife biology was very strong, she realized in that time that the cutting edge technology and miracles of modern medicine were what really fascinated her.
She did her medical training at Yale University School of Medicine, where she was first exposed to plastic surgery. Plastic surgery fascinated her, as it combined two of her greatest loves: science and art.
Since childhood, Dr. MacRae has been an artist, particularly enjoying miniature, meticulous projects both in acrylic paints and needlework. Throughout school, her favorite subject had always always science, so the chance to combine the scientific side with the artistic side was a perfect combination.
While at Yale, Dr. MacRae won a Wilbur Downs fellowship to León, Nicaragua where she researched and wrote a thesis on how to improve international medical donations
Like many people, Dr. MacRae did not appreciate the full range and breadth of plastic surgery until she worked alongside incredible surgeons such as Dr. John Persing and Dr. Stephen Ariyan at Yale School of Medicine. There she saw complex and beautiful procedures such as cleft lip repairs, breast reconstructions, hand trauma, and craniosynostosis repair (malformed skull shape in infants).
Dr. MacRae realized that plastic surgery is all about restoring form and function to the human body, whether a defect is due to the aging process, trauma, cancer, or birth defects.
After earning her M.D. in 1997, Dr. MacRae went on to do her surgical training at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville. She was accepted into the highly competitive “Integrated Program” there, which combined general surgical training with plastic surgical training over a period of six years.
Only one resident per year was accepted into the program. At UVa her entire six years was overseen by the department of Plastic Surgery, allowing her to train not only with the general surgeons and plastic surgeons, but to also rotate with dermatological surgeons, ENT (ear, nose, and throat) surgeons, OMF (oral and maxillofacial) surgeons, and orthopedic hand surgeons.
In addition to clinical training, Dr. MacRae did original research in plastic surgery and won the Southeastern Society of Plastic Surgeons’ Outstanding Resident award two years in a row.
After finishing her training in 2003, Dr. MacRae was honored to be invited to join her current practice alongside Dr. Jonathan Saunders and Dr. Kathryn Warren. Together, the three partners in Christiana Cosmetic Surgery Consultants provide excellent care in a welcoming environment.
More Publications as seen in The News Journal
5/12/16 "Beware: Everyone is at risk for skin cancer"
4/10/2016 ‘Oh, my aching back:’ The benefits of breast reduction
3/3/2016 "A Different Kind of Corset - Removes Excess Abdominal Skin" column in The News Journal
2/7/2016 "Thank your lucky scars - You need them to heal" column in The News Journal
1/12/2016 "Plastic Surgery Roots Date back to 3000 B.C." column in The News Journal
1/5/ 2016 "The Benefits of Breast Reduction" as seen in The Women's Journal
12/8/2015 "Non-surgical technique reshapes newborn ear deformities" column in The News Journal
2004: "Ex Vivo Fat Graft Preservation: effects and implications of cryopreservation” Ann Plastic Surg 2004 Mar; 52 (3) 281-2. Authors MacRae JW, Tholpady SS, Ogle RC, Morgan RF.
July/August 2003: “Human Adipocyte Viability Testing” Aesthetic Surgery Journal. Vol 23, No 4 pp.265-269. Authors: MacRae J.W., Tholpady S.S., Gampper T.J., Katz A.J.,Ogle R.C., Morgan R.F.
October 2001: “Alloplastic Malar & Midface Implants”, chapter written for Emedicine; Plastic Surgery. Author Julia MacRae, co-author Thomas Gampper.
Accepted for publication: “Alloplastic Facial Implants in Aesthetic and Reconstructive Surgery” MacRae J.W., Gampper T.J., Hoard M.A. Journal of Long-term Effects of Medical Implants.
Submitted for publication: “Bilateral Coronoid Hyperplasia” (case report and review of the literature). Authors: Nava G, MacRae JW, Gampper TJ, Hoard MA.
Submitted for publication: “Evaluating Signs of Solar Damage using Ultraviolet Photography”. Authors: Julia W. MacRae, Sunil S. Tholpady, Mark A. Russell, James W. Patterson, Harry L. Parlette, John M. Hiebert, Raymond F. Morgan, and Roy C. Ogle.
| 1997-2002: | University of Virginia Department of Plastic Surgery Residency Program |
| 1993-1997: | Yale University School of Medicine. M.D. |
| 1986-1990: | Haverford College. B.A. in Molecular Biology. University of Costa Rica (fall 1989) |
American Board of Plastic Surgery, November 2004
Be sure to look for this logo to know that your plastic surgeon is certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery (ABPS) and that she has maintained her certification with continuing medical education and rigorous testing by the ABPS. Only board certified plastic surgeons can display this logo.
State of Delaware (current)
State of Virginia
2000-2004: “Human Adipocyte Viability Testing”. Presented at the annual Aesthetic Society of Plastic Surgeons meeting, April 2002, Las Vegas, NV and at the Southeastern Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons meeting, June 2002, Hilton Head Island, NC.
2000-2004: “Evaluating Signs of Sun Damage Using Ultraviolet Photography”. Accepted for presentation at the annual American Academy of Dermatology meeting, March 2003, San Francisco, CA.
May 31, 2003: Southeastern Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons’ Outstanding Resident Award
June 22, 2002: Raymond F. Morgan Award for Resident Research in Plastic Surgery. University of Virginia
June 4, 2002: Southeastern Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons’ Outstanding Resident Award
Nov. 2001: Dean’s Office/General Clinical Research Center Award for Excellence in Resident Research. University of Virginia
July 1, 2001- June 30, 2002: Grant awarded from Plastic Surgery Educational Foundation (Aesthetic Society)
Jan., 1994: Wilbur Down’s Fellowship (Yale School of Medicine)