Cosmetic surgery
Aesthetic surgery involves techniques intended for the "enhancement" of appearance through surgical and medical techniques, and is specifically concerned with maintaining normal appearance, restoring it, or enhancing it beyond the average level toward some aesthetic ideal.
In 2006, nearly 11 million cosmetic surgeries were performed in the United States alone. The number of cosmetic procedures performed in the United States has increased over 50 percent since the start of the century. Nearly 12 million cosmetic surgeries were performed in 2007, with the five most common being breast augmentation, liposuction, nasal surgery, eyelid surgery and abdominoplasty. The increased use of cosmetic surgery crosses racial and ethnic lines in the U.S., with increases seen among African-Americans and Hispanic Americans as well as Caucasian Americans. In Europe, the second largest market for cosmetic procedures, cosmetic surgery is a $2.2 billion business.[7]
The most prevalent aesthetic/cosmetic procedures include:
Abdominoplasty ("tummy tuck"): reshaping and firming of the abdomen
Blepharoplasty ("eyelid surgery"): reshaping of the eyelids or the application of permanent eyeliner, including Asian blepharoplasty
Mammoplasty:
Breast augmentations ("breast implant" or "boob job"): augmentation of the breasts by means of fat grafting, saline, or silicone gel prosthetics, which was initially performed to women with micromastia
Reduction mammoplasty ("breast reduction"): removal of skin and glandular tissue, which is done to reduce back and shoulder pain in women with gigantomastia and/or for psychological benefit men with gynecomastia
Mastopexy ("breast lift"): Lifting or reshaping of breasts to make them less saggy, often after weight loss (after a pregnancy, for example). It involves removal of breast skin as opposed to glandular tissue
Buttock augmentation ("butt implant"): enhancement of the buttocks using silicone implants or fat grafting ("Brazilian butt lift") and transfer from other areas of the body
Buttock lift: lifting, and tightening of the buttocks by excision of redundant skin
Chemical peel: minimizing the appearance of acne, chicken pox, and other scars as well as wrinkles (depending on concentration and type of agent used, except for deep furrows), solar lentigines (age spots, freckles), and photodamage in general. Chemical peels commonly involve carbolic acid (Phenol), trichloroacetic acid (TCA), glycolic acid (AHA), or salicylic acid (BHA) as the active agent.
Labiaplasty: surgical reduction and reshaping of the labia
Rhinoplasty ("nose job"): reshaping of the nose
Otoplasty ("ear surgery"): reshaping of the ear, most often done by pinning the ear closer to the head
Rhytidectomy ("face lift"): removal of wrinkles and signs of aging from the face
Browplasty ("brow lift" or "forehead lift"): elevates eyebrows, smooths forehead skin
Midface lift ("cheek lift"): tightening of the cheeks
Suction-assisted lipectomy ("liposuction"): removal of fat from the body
Chin augmentation ("chin implant"): augmentation of the chin with an implant, usually silicone, by sliding genioplasty of the jawbone or by suture of the soft tissue
Cheek augmentation ("cheek implant"): implants to the cheek
Fillers injections: collagen, fat, and other tissue filler injections, such as hyaluronic acid
Laser skin resurfacing
