One In Five Cosmetic Surgery Patients Are 'Unsuitable', Experts Warn (PICTURES)

One in five people who go under the knife are 'unsuitable' for cosmetic surgery, say surgeons.

According to an internal survey by the British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons (BAAPS), patients can often be "dangerously misinformed" when consultations are not held by the surgeon performing the operation.

BAAPS members revealed that consultations held with brokers, customer advisors and salespeople can fail to fully explain risks, recommend unsuitable procedures or provide incorrect advice on surgical plans to patients.

BAAPS president Rajiv Grover added that such recommendations for surgery are often "financially motivated."

Ahead of a government inquiry due to be published later this month, BAAPS recommend that consultations are only carried out by the operating surgeon.

"It’s little wonder that we constantly hear horror stories of bad outcomes and dissatisfied patients when many of them shouldn’t have undergone the procedure in the first place!" says Grover.

"The reality is that, in the right circumstances, aesthetic plastic surgery can have a positive impact on a person’s life.

"Under the wrong conditions –- particularly in a sales-driven, ‘stack em high’ environment -– the results can be no less than catastrophic.

LIKE HUFFPOST UK LIFESTYLE ON FACEBOOK | FOLLOW US ON TWITTER

The poll also highlights that BAAPS surgeons, who abide by the two-week ‘cooling off’ period and champion the notion of 'informed consent' on the part of patients, turn away a high proportion of people who express an interest in cosmetic surgery.

The most common reasons members give for recommending against surgery are:
the procedure being unsuitable or unnecessary, for example being too young for a facelift

unrealistic expectations, such as wanting to look like a specific celebrity

medical reasons including smoking, obesity or a heart condition

Also on HuffPost:

Loading Slideshow

#25: Romania
Total Non-Surgical Procedures: 53,644 Top Non-Surgical Procedure: Botulinum Toxin Type A Total Surgical Procedures: 43,258 Top Surgical Procedure: Breast augmentation Country Rank In 2010: 25
#24: Netherlands
Total Non-Surgical Procedures: 55.109 Top Non-Surgical Procedure: Botulinum Toxin Type A Total Surgical Procedures: 46,343 Top Surgical Procedure: Breast augmentation Country Rank In 2010: 24
#23: Australia
Total Non-Surgical Procedures: 67,698 Top Non-Surgical Procedure: Botulinum Toxin Type A Total Surgical Procedures: 40,427 Top Surgical Procedure: Breast augmentation Country Rank In 2010: 21
#22: Saudi Arabia
Total Non-Surgical Procedures: 70,254 Top Non-Surgical Procedure: Botulinum Toxin Type A Total Surgical Procedures: 46,962 Top Surgical Procedure: Lipoplasty Country Rank In 2010: 23 A general view shows the meeting hall of the Arab Foreign Ministers on the eve of the third session of the Arab Economic, Social and Development Summit held in Riyadh.
#21: Argentina
Total Non-Surgical Procedures: 59,594 Top Non-Surgical Procedure: Botulinum Toxin Type A Total Surgical Procedures: 73,706 Top Surgical Procedure: Lipoplasty Country Rank In 2010: 18
#20: Thailand
Total Non-Surgical Procedures: 80,555 Top Non-Surgical Procedure: Botulinum Toxin Type A Total Surgical Procedures: 55,642 Top Surgical Procedure: Lipoplasty Country Rank In 2010: 22
#19: Venezuela
Total Non-Surgical Procedures: 61,027 Top Non-Surgical Procedure: Botulinum Toxin Type A Total Surgical Procedures: 81,158 Top Surgical Procedure: Lipoplasty Country Rank In 2010: 17
#18: Greece
Total Non-Surgical Procedures: 82,065 Top Non-Surgical Procedure: Botulinum Toxin Type A Total Surgical Procedures: 60,329 Top Surgical Procedure: Breast augmentation (with lipoplasty a close second) Country Rank In 2010: 20
#17: Taiwan
Total Non-Surgical Procedures: 108,903 Top Non-Surgical Procedure: Botulinum Toxin Type A Total Surgical Procedures: 72,909 Top Surgical Procedure: Lipoplasty Country Rank In 2010: 19
#16. United Kingdom
Total Non-Surgical Procedures: 116,343 Top Non-Surgical Procedure: Botulinum Toxin Type A Total Surgical Procedures: 95,063 Top Surgical Procedure: Breast augmentation Country Rank In 2010: 16
#15: Canada
Total Non-Surgical Procedures: 139,239 Top Non-Surgical Procedure: Botulinum Toxin Type A Total Surgical Procedures: 81,893 Top Surgical Procedure: Breast augmentation Country Rank In 2010: 15
#14: Russia
Total Non-Surgical Procedures: 125,169 Top Non-Surgical Procedure: Botulinum Toxin Type A Total Surgical Procedures: 104,223 Top Surgical Procedure: Breast augmentation Country Rank In 2010: 14
#13: Turkey
Total Non-Surgical Procedures: 161,378 Top Non-Surgical Procedure: Botulinum Toxin Type A Total Surgical Procedures: 104,767 Top Surgical Procedure: Lipoplasty Country Rank In 2010: 12
#12: Spain
Total Non-Surgical Procedures: 151,020 Top Non-Surgical Procedure: Botulinum Toxin Type A Total Surgical Procedures: 125,103 Top Surgical Procedure: Breast augmentation Country Rank In 2010: 13
#11: Colombia
Total Non-Surgical Procedures: 159,629 Top Non-Surgical Procedure: Botulinum Toxin Type A Total Surgical Procedures: 211,879 Top Surgical Procedure: Lipoplasty Country Rank In 2010: 10
#10: Germany
Total Non-Surgical Procedures: 228,255 Top Non-Surgical Procedure: Botulinum Toxin Type A Total Surgical Procedures: 187,193 Top Surgical Procedure: Breast augmentation Country Rank In 2010: 11
#9: France
Total Non-Surgical Procedures: 248,247 Top Non-Surgical Procedure: Botulinum Toxin Type A Total Surgical Procedures: 207,049 Top Surgical Procedure: Breast augmentation Country Rank In 2010: 9
#8: India
Total Non-Surgical Procedures: 274,792 Top Non-Surgical Procedure: Botulinum Toxin Type A Total Surgical Procedures: 191,439 Top Surgical Procedure: Lipoplasty Country Rank In 2010: 5
#7: South Korea
Total Non-Surgical Procedures: 391,588 Top Non-Surgical Procedure: Botulinum Toxin Type A Total Surgical Procedures: 258,350 Top Surgical Procedure: Lipoplasty Country Rank In 2010: 8
#6: Italy
Total Non-Surgical Procedures: 388,440 Top Non-Surgical Procedure: Botulinum Toxin Type A Total Surgical Procedures: 316,470 Top Surgical Procedure: Breast augmentation Country Rank In 2010: 7
#5: Mexico
Total Non-Surgical Procedures: 494,731 Top Non-Surgical Procedure: Botulinum Toxin Type A Total Surgical Procedures: 299,835 Top Surgical Procedure: Breast augmentation Country Rank In 2010: 6
#4: Japan
Total Non-Surgical Procedures: 579,878 Top Non-Surgical Procedure: Botulinum Toxin Type A Total Surgical Procedures: 372,773 Top Surgical Procedure: Lipoplasty Country Rank In 2010: 4
#3: China
Total Non-Surgical Procedures: 635,720 Top Non-Surgical Procedure: Botulinum Toxin Type A Total Surgical Procedures: 415,140 Top Surgical Procedure: Lipoplasty Country Rank In 2010: 3
#2: Brazil
Total Non-Surgical Procedures: 542,090 Top Non-Surgical Procedure: Botulinum Toxin Type A Total Surgical Procedures: 905,124 Top Surgical Procedure: Lipoplasty Country Rank In 2010: 2
#1: United States
Total Non-Surgical Procedures: 2,011,100 Top Non-Surgical Procedure: Botulinum Toxin Type A Total Surgical Procedures: 1,094,146 Top Surgical Procedure: Breast augmentation Country Rank In 2010: 1

Comments
2
Pending Comments
0
View FAQ

Post Comment Preview Comment

To reply to a Comment: Click "Reply" at the bottom of the comment; after being approved your comment will appear directly underneath the comment you replied to.

Share your Comment:

Post to Facebook.

Post to Blogger.

Post to Twitter.

Post to WordPress.

Post to TypePad.

Post to Tumblr.

View All

Recency |

Popularity

Rhys Branman

1 Fans

04:32 PM on 03/19/2013

It's true. One has to screen patients carefully. I am very careful to look for signs of BDD, health problems, and unrealistic expectations. I will generally only perform cosmetic surgery on the ears and the nose for a teenager under the age of 18, and only after a thorough consultation with the teen and his or her parents. Physical is not the only concern in performing surgery for teens, also emotional maturity must be taken into consideration. This is one population I suspect unnecessary surgeries are performed upon.

Dr Rhys Branman
Little Rock Cosmetic Surgery Center

Permalink | Share it

chloeg

8 Fans

07:17 PM on 03/18/2013

I'm very against cosmetic surgery. It really troubles me that people would want to spend so much money and go through all that pain purely for the sake of their self-image. I know some people say they do it for themselves to increase their confidence, but if you need to do something that drastic to your appearance to be confident then it means you care too much what other people think of you. The biggest empowerment you can have is to feel comfortable in your own skin regardless and for your happiness not to depend one iota on other people and their superficial judgments on a superficial aspect of your appearance.