Many patients are in search of an impossible perfection, often spurred by unrealistic media images. Also, people are living longer, so they want to look good longer. Renato Saltz, MD, associate professor at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City, notes that technology has played a major role. Instruments like endoscopes and lasers allow us to do less invasive procedures. That means less scarring, less pain, and less downtime.
Technology also allows for more outpatient surgery, so costs have come down.
It used to be that cosmetic procedures were relegated to industries where image was critical, such as acting and modeling. Like everything, says Dr. Flowers, it has its good and bad points. Unfortunately, many patients are in search of an impossible perfection, often spurred by unrealistic media images. And for magazine ads, computers now commonly recontour the model's chin, reshape her eyes, and perform other tricks no surgeon can match. Chasing such images is bad enough, but there are always patients with totally unrealistic expectations.