Plastic & Cosmetic Surgery Blog – Harley Medical Group

Teenagers opt for nose and ear reshaping surgery, young adults choose breast augmentation, those entering middle age pick liposuction and eye bag removal is most popular with those in old age.

These are the findings of two sets of statistics – one from the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS), and the other from the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ASAPS). The Orange County Register pulled together the statistics, which focus entirely on female patients, and published ‘Plastic Surgery From Teenage to Old’ today.

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A survey has revealed that almost half of women would consider cosmetic surgery to correct features that they are not happy with.

The poll of 3,000 women aged between 18 and 30 years old found that 43.5 per cent of women who had ever been teased or bullied would consider cosmetic surgery to increase their self-confidence. Nearly half (47.45 per cent) of those women asked said they had been teased or bullied at some point in their lives.

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A cosmetic surgery clinic in America has claimed that communicating with patients on Facebook and other social networking sites can help to improve overall patient experience.

Dr David L Buchanan of the Santa Barbara Plastic Surgery Centre believes that social media plays an important role in bringing cosmetic surgery to the 51 per cent of Americans who believe it is now acceptable. He also believes that it may help the other 49 per cent to understand what the industry is all about.

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Sarah Burge, who is better known as the real life Barbie, has published a book detailing the reasons why she has spent £500,000 on cosmetic surgery.

The 51-year-old, who is married with three daughters, has undergone countless procedures to alter the way she looks, with the first coming after she saw photographs from her wedding day. Unhappy with the size and shape of her chin, Burge had surgery to change it and began a lifetime of cosmetic alterations to her face and body. (more…)

Star of The Only Way is Essex, Jessica Wright, has become the face and body of a lingerie brand that produces bras specifically for women with breast implants.

Photographs of the 25-year-old reality television star wearing sexy lingerie have been published as part of Alexis Smith Lingerie’s first publicity campaign.

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Celebrities such as singer Katy Perry and Mad Men actress Christina Hendricks have an inspired a generation of women to embrace their curves.

This is the view of MSN Life and Style magazine editor Zoe Zahra, who cites Italian Vogue as one indicator that skinny girls are out and curves are in. The glossy magazine featured plus size models on its latest cover and has even created an online offshoot of the main publication called ‘Curve’, offering fashion advice for the shapely lady.

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Breast reduction is one of the most successful cosmetic surgery procedures in terms of patient satisfaction, according to a new survey.

The research was conducted by RealSelf.com, a US-based online forum for cosmetic surgery patients. Dr Gus Galante, a specialist in breast reduction surgery, said he was not surprised by the findings.

Dr Galante believes the reason that patients experience a high level of satisfaction with this type of surgery is that there are physical benefits to be enjoyed, as well as emotional ones.

Women with large breasts can suffer from back, neck and shoulder pain, which can prevent them from wanting to take part in physical activities. Dr Galante added that these women can often feel self-conscious about their appearance.

He said: “For them, the breast reduction procedure is about achieving a shape and proportion that allows them to feel normal.

“Both breast augmentation and breast reduction help women to feel more balanced and proportional, and may enhance their body image and feelings of sensuality.”

Recent figures suggest that there is a direct correlation between the number of people having cosmetic surgery and the state of the economy.

More than 1.6 million Americans underwent cosmetic surgery in 2010, an increase of nine per cent on figures from 2009, and spent an estimated $6.6 million in the process. Experts believe that this indicates the start of an economic rebound.

“We’ve joked for years that we could create an economic indicator about how we’re booked,” said Felmont Eaves, president of the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ASAPS).

Facelifts saw a huge increase in popularity, with procedures up by 35 per cent on 2009 and Americans spending $845 million on the surgery. Breast augmentation remained consistently high, rising two per cent last year, with around $1.2 billion being spent on breast implants last year. 

Although women accounted for 91 per cent of cosmetic surgery patients in 2010, men made up eight per cent of non-surgical procedures such as laser hair removal and Botox.

You might have noticed that there seems to be a celebrity baby boom in progress, with a variety of shapes and sizes on view for us to ogle at. From the voluptuous British television presenter Holly Willoughby, to slender Hollywood A-lister Natalie Portman, it’s quite clear that being pregnant changes the body shape in dramatically different ways.

And as the baby boom continues to fill the pages of glossy magazines, figures suggest that more and more non-celebrity women are looking for ways in which they can put their bodies back to how they were before they became pregnant. The Harley Medical Group has reported that bookings for breast augmentation surgery at their UK clinics were up 31 per cent year-on-year, liposuction up 27 per cent and tummy tucks up 15 per cent over the same period – all popular choices with new mums.

For many women, it can be very difficult to come to terms with an often significantly altered body shape as the result of pregnancy, and this can prove too much of a dent in self-esteem for some to bear. Surgical options are allowing these women to look and feel like they did before their baby was born and regain their body confidence.

Experts speaking at a conference run by the Australasian College of Cosmetic Surgery (ACCS) have revealed that the cosmetic surgery industry in Australia is now worth $1 billion annually.

The Cosmetex Conference opened in Hobart, Tasmania, yesterday and is expected to be attended by more than 700 doctors and surgeons from across Australia and the rest of the world over the next three days.

On the opening day, the ACCS president Russell Knudsen told delegates that the effects of the recession had not adversely affected the market.

“Demand for cosmetic medical procedures has continued to rise with college member practices reporting increases of 10-20 per cent over the last 12 months,” he said.

Dr Knudsen added: “When you consider the number of cosmetic procedures performed, and the number of take-home anti-ageing products consumed, it is reasonable to estimate that Australians now spend as much as $1 billion annually on appearance medicine.”

It was revealed that the $1 billion annual value of the market was made up of a variety of procedures, including approximately 16,000 breast augmentations and 15,000 liposuction surgeries performed last year.