The annual plastic surgery statistics report released recently by ASPS, the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, shows that there were nearly a quarter million more cosmetic procedures performed in 2018 than the previous year.

In 2018, cosmetic procedures accounted for 1.8 million of the nearly 18 million surgical and minimally-invasive cosmetic procedures performed in the United States. This number represents an increase and a five-year trend that looks to continue.      

According to the report, Liposuction and Breast augmentation were the two cosmetic procedures that saw the most significant increases over 2017, 5% and 4% respectively. Nose reshaping was down 2%, and Eyelid surgery was down 1% while Tummy tucks remained about the same as 2017.

Regarding this surge in body-sculpting procedures, ASPS President Alan Matarasso, MD states that ”liposuction continues to be the gold standard in body contouring because of its versatility, efficiency, and effectiveness. With liposuction, one treatment may be all you need to reshape problem areas. A plastic surgeon can treat more areas—and larger areas—in one procedure. Liposuction also provides a more consistent and predictable result than non-invasive treatments, but new non-surgical fat reduction machinery continues to evolve and play a role in reshaping areas of the body.”

Also, while nose reshaping and eyelid surgery were both down a bit, this was due to patients now choosing among more options than ever before, such as emerging non-surgical nose reshaping.

Out of the nearly 16 million cosmetic minimally-invasive procedures performed in 2018, Botulinum Toxin Type A accounted for the majority, 7.44 million procedures which were up 3% over 2017. Soft Tissue Fillers saw an increase of 2% and Chemical Peel 1%. Laser hair removal was down 1%, and Microdermabrasion saw a decrease of 4%.

Board-certified plastic surgeons have also begun to combine surgical and non-surgical procedures. An example given was performing a facelift but also using fillers in conjunction with the procedure which helps to achieve optimal results for the patient.

Matarasso adds, ”Board-certified plastic surgeons are on the cutting edge of developing emerging technology and creating the newest advancements in both surgical and non-surgical techniques.” “Our board-certified plastic surgeons take into account each patient’s specific objective and anatomy to come up with the best course of action to achieve the natural look they want.”

The main takeaway from the report is that in 2018, the most popular procedures were focused on the body and that plastic surgery isn’t the typical surgery that it used to be.  Patients and their medical providers now have more options than ever before and this trend looks to continue into 2019.