The number of cosmetic surgeries went up five percent in 2010 to just over 13 million according to The American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS). Breast augmentation, where silicon now controls 60% of the market, nose reshaping, eyelid surgeries, lipo and tummy tucks led the way.
ASPS President Dr. Philip Haeck says:
“There’s some pent up demand for cosmetic surgical procedures. People have waited a couple of years or more to have procedures, until their finances were at least somewhat back in order. But, all indications are, more consumers are again willing to spend more to look better. The financial markets are at a two year high, we’re seeing a double digit increase in the percentage of auto sales over a year ago, and as the aging population continues to grow, people are investing in plastic surgery procedures to help stay competitive in the workplace. The growth in cosmetic plastic surgery procedures is multi-factorial.”
This trend may spill over to 2011. Global trading volumes should ramp up this year after a sluggish latter half of 2010, and the global economy should “officially” recover, the head of exchange operator NYSE Euronext said on Tuesday.
However, one doesn’t need to go through knife surgery to improve self perception of image. The top five non-surgical procedures went up in parallel, a whole 5% in 2010 also. The top “easy” procedures were Botox, soft tissue fillers, chemical peels, laser hair removal and microdermabrasion.
Botox was introduced to the world in the late 1980s by ophthalmologists, who began using it to treat optic muscle disorders. It was approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of moderate to severe frown lines between the eyebrows in 2002, and its popularity has soared ever since. Botox is consistently one of the top five nonsurgical cosmetic procedures performed each year.
Microdermabrasion has evolved from rocks, stones and shells to crystals, particle-free diamond tips and particle-free bristle tips. The popular, preferred method of mechanical exfoliation is particle-free over crystals. Once the desired amount of exfoliation has been reached, some microdermabrasion units will then infuse a skin specific solution into the skin. By infusing the solution, it will penetrate deeper than if applied manually for two reasons; the first is because the dead skin has been removed, so product penetration increases, the second is because the vacuum pressure works in reverse to push it in deeper. Results are significantly greater from microdermabrasion treatments combined with an infusion technique.
Editor in Chief of Health and Beauty, Keith Veseleny continues:
“Even between the months of December 2010 and January 2011, American Health and Beauty has already seen nearly 44% rise in its traffic. Although it is still early in the game, we believe that consumer interest in aesthetic procedures will only continue to rise throughout 2011; perhaps even transcending the numbers of years past.”
Plastic surgery and cosmetic surgery treatments require educated decision-making. You need to know who are the best candidates for each plastic surgery procedure, the recovery time, appropriate expectations and how to best select a plastic surgeon.
Source: American Society of Plastic Sergeons
Written by Sy Kraft, B.A.