Plastic Surgery Procedures Rise in 2011

For the second straight year, the number of plastic surgery patients increased in 2011, according to data released by the American Society of Plastic Surgeons. 

A total of 13.8 million plastic surgeries were performed in 2011, an increase of 5 percent from the previous year.  Meanwhile, ASPS has attributed the growing demand for such procedures to the strong consumer confidence.

Breast augmentation still remained the most popular cosmetic plastic surgery, with 307,000 procedures conducted in 2011 or jumping by 4 percent from the previous year.  However, facelift surgery made it to the top five for the first time since 2004 due to the aging baby boomers.

Over the past couple of years, facelift has been one of the most commonly performed cosmetic surgery, a trend which is attributed to the fact that more workers are postponing their retirements in addition to the growing number of seniors.

The second most popular procedure was rhinoplasty or more commonly referred to as “nose job,” followed by liposuction, eyelid lift, and facelift.

While the surgical cosmetic procedures have increased by 2 percent from the previous year, the growth of the market has been primarily driven by minimally invasive procedures which increased by 6 percent to about 12.2 million procedures.

Examples of minimally invasive procedures include dermalfillers, Botox injection, laser skin resurfacing, laser hair removal, chemicalpeels, and microdermabrasion.

Botox has remained the most commonly performed minimally invasive procedure, with about 5.7 million procedures last year, increasing by 5 percent from 2010.  This treatment uses a small dose of toxin that paralyzes the facial muscles to prevent them from moving too much, thereby minimizing the appearance of wrinkles.

Dermal filler like (brands) Restylane, Juvederm, Radiesse, and even natural fats grafted from the patient’s own body has also been one of the most commonly used minimally invasive facial rejuvenation treatments.  These are used to correct the gaunt appearance and “fill in” the creases caused by the loss of facial volume.

Meanwhile, the number of reconstructive plastic surgery has also increased 5 percent in 2011.  This is often covered by health insurance because unlike the cosmetic procedure, this is performed to improve body functions and correct severe abnormalities and defects.

The top five reconstructive plastic surgeries in 2011 were tumor removal, laceration repair, maxillofacial surgery, scar revision, and hand surgery.

While breast reconstruction was not included in the top five reconstructive surgeries, it continues to rise, with more than 96,000 procedures performed in 2011 or jumping by 3 percent from the previous year.