Plastic Surgery Blog

The recent death of 18-year-old Stephanie Kuleba has sparked countrywide interest and concern about whether, we as a society, are provoking, allowing and enabling our children to go under the knife at too early of an age.
Although the Stephanie, who was the captain of her cheerleading squad, appeared to many on the outside as being “perfect” she apparently didn’t feel this way and made the decision to have corrective breast surgery.
In the aftermath of her surgery gone wrong and sudden death, many Americans are asking questions like: Why would a parent allow her teenage daughter to have surgery to “enhance” part of her body? Especially when it may not be done developing?
Number of Surgeries Rising
According to the American Board of Plastic Surgeons, an estimated 12 million cosmetic plastic surgeries were conducted in the year 2007 alone.
Data shows that this is a seven percent increase from 2006 and a 59 percent increase from 2000 with the most desirable surgeries being face and chest surgeries.
The Surgery Debate in America
The current debate regarding surgery in the U.S. stands between elective surgery and cases of young girls, like Stephanie Kuleba, getting nipped and tucked.
Kuleba is now known as the face of cosmetic surgery and the importance of making the right decision for both yourself and those you love when it comes to “perfecting” your appearance.

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As the amount of cosmetic surgeries being performed yearly continues to rise and more Americans go under the knife for lipo, facial surgery and breast augmentation, the country seems to be delving deeper into an age of pure vanity. To top off the “must look perfect at all times” phase that is the current trend in the U.S., is our ever growing fascination with being tan.
It was hoped that with all the research revolving around how bad tanning can be on your skin and the risks that come along with getting that desired glow, people would be thinking twice and be more cautious before surrendering their bodies to the UV rays. However, lately the opposite seems to be happening and more men and women are hitting the beach and the tanning salons to get that golden look.

TV Ad Claims Tanning is Safe
A TV ad that is set to start airing in the upcoming summer months, reportedly claims that tanning can actually be beneficial and good for people.
The group sponsoring this ad backs their claims up with the known fact that vitamin D, which the body gets from the sun, is essential to our overall health.
According to Sarah Longwell, from the Indoor Tanning Association, studies against tanning are supported by “junk science” and tanning is completely safe.
“More and more it’s becoming just what the doctor ordered,” says Longwell.
Then how do we account for the numerous cases of skin cancer that have arisen in patients who spent too much time in the sun? Are all scientists, researchers and medical experts lying to us, for whatever reason, because they don’t want us to be enjoying some nice weather or looking slightly darker than normal from time to time? Highly doubtful.

Campaign Proves to be Controversial 
Many dermatologists and researchers believe that the advertisement is only going to be harmful to consumers and increase their risk for developing various skin complications and even cancers related to sun exposure.
These health experts want to remind the American people that although the body does need vitamin D, this is available to them through various foods and drinks.
Which is why there’s no real point, whether some “tanning associations” are trying to promote burning your skin or not, to test the findings of experts in the medical field and risk your own health for that “perfected” look.
A healthy alternative to frying your skin? There are numerous tanning products currently on the market that work wonders and spray tan has proven to be just as successful in appearance as the real deal.

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New reports show that although African Americans have skin that appears more youthful long term, they are typically the first race to show any real signs of aging.
According to research, facial aging appears in the outer corner of an African Americans eyes before it does in the eyes of Caucasians and Asians.
The Difference of an Eye
Researchers have attributed the reasoning behind the early signs of aging to the fact that African Americans tend to require more attention to their eyes because of their ethnic characteristics.
“African Americans have a slight slant to their eyes, much like Asians do but not as pronounced,” says Julius Few, who is the co-author of the study conducted on the subject.
Few also says that, “During aging, we found not only do the outer corners of the eyes of African Americans droop lower that Caucasians, they also droop sooner.”
Study Conducted
In the study led by Few, the median eye slant for African American women age 45 years or younger was approximately three degrees.
The number reportedly decreased to one degree for those over the age of 45 years old.
The study also showed that the median eye slant in Caucasian women who were 45 years old or younger was 1.3 degrees and decreased to nearly zero for those above the age of 45.

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Plastic surgery has been on the rise in the past decade and surgeons are only anticipating the numbers of procedures being performed to increase in the future.

As is expected the top most requested surgeries include breast augmentation and liposuction.

Although stereotypically women are the sole seekers of cosmetic surgery, new reports are showing that more men are opting to go under the knife then ever.

Women Are Still the Majority

According to recent reports, about 91 percent of women are perfecting themselves with the help of a surgeon and are getting everything from Botox to liposuction.

Men Putting Their Best Face Forward

The American Society for Plastic Surgery recently reported that more than one million men received surgical or nonsurgical treatments in last year alone.

This statistic supposedly shows a 17 percent increase from 2006.

The ASPS also claims that men typically go for Botox when they’re opting to make some physical upgrades.

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The American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery recently reported that an estimated 11.7 million surgical and nonsurgical operations were performed in the United States in 2007.
They have supposedly been collecting procedural statistics since 1997 regarding plastic surgery in America and found that the number of procedures increased 457 percent since they began their investigation.
The Popularity of Breast Augmentation
According to the statistics gathered by the organization, liposuction and breast augmentation are the two most requested procedures by both men and women throughout the country.
2007, 399,440 Americans reportedly underwent breast augmentation surgery in just one year.
This procedure proved to be the most popular among women, while breast reduction ranked fourth on the list for the most popular procedures among men.

Helpful Surgery Tips
Seeing as plastic surgery is growing in popularity with Americans, doctors want to make sure that all necessary precautions are being taken by patients so that they get the best possible outcome from their surgery.
Some things to consider before having breast augmentation are:
•    Make sure that you have a board certified surgeon
•    Be sure that you aren’t going to have any more children
•    Research various types of implants, including shapes and sizes to make the best decision for your body

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