Cosmeticsurgeon.co.uk - UK Cosmetic Surgeons

The amount of men having breasts reduction surgery or ‘Moob’ operations had doubled in the last 5 years and more and more men turn to surgery to remove extra fat from their chest. Figures show that almost 800 men had breast surgery last year; experts believe this may be down to the rise in obesity levels and an imbalance in testosterone levels. The medical term for male breasts is ‘gynaecomastia’ and thousands of men across the word are developing this condition.

Embarrassing condition

Having this condition can cause embarrassment for many men as well as adolescent boys which can often be the time in which the condition develops. Although obesity is one of the main causes of this condition there are other factors as well.  Certain medications can also cause gynaecomastia such as heart and liver pills and certain anti-depressants. An imbalance of sex hormones can also be a cause of this issue. There is also a link between some drugs taken during cancer which can lower testosterone and using anabolic steroids can also increase breast tissue growth.

Psychological effect

One 29 year man had the surgery and felt that not only has it changed his physical appearance, it has also changed him psychologically as well. Ayp Adesina developed the problem when he was only 8 years old. He became so desperate and ashamed of his breasts that he had private surgery after being taunted for having ‘man boobs’ when he was a child. Many men have admitted to having been taunted for their chests prior to surgery which affects how they feel about themselves. Most of the men surveyed after having breast reduction surgery said they felt more confident afterwards.

The American Society of Plastic Surgeons has reported a significant increase in the number of men having Botox treatment, giving rise to the nickname, ‘the Brotox generation’.

Most people associate Botox with middle-aged women who are eager to combat wrinkles and fine lines and restore their youthful complexion, but statistics from the States show that Botox is becoming increasingly popular among men.

According to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, there was a 258 percent increase in the number of men having Botox between 2000 and 2010, making Botox the most common cosmetic treatment for men. In 2010 alone, more than 330,000 men had the facial aesthetic treatment, which is designed to reduce the visibility of lines and wrinkles by preventing muscle contraction.

Why has Botox become so popular?

Dr Stephen B Baker, associate professor and programme director of the department of plastic surgery at Georgetown University Hospital in Washington, said that the stigma attached to male surgery and cosmetic treatment has all but gone and men feel that they are now free to have treatments to make themselves look better in the same way as women.

The most common reason men want Botox is to reduce furrowed brow lines, according to Dr Baker; many men feel that lines on their foreheads make them look angry and unapproachable, as well as ageing them and the Botox procedure is very simple and minimally-invasive. Dr Sherman, who works with Dr Baker, admitted that men tend to ask for targeted treatment on specific areas of their face, while women tend to plump for a full facial treatment.

Botox is also incredibly popular among men because it is temporary and the recovery time is extremely short and the effects are also very natural, which is a major draw for any patients. Marcus Gogas, a 49 year old man from Virginia, said that he chose to have Botox because he had seen people who had undergone cosmetic surgery on television and the results were too radical, but with Botox, he knows that he will still look the same, just younger and fresher.

Cosmetic surgery has long been considered a woman’s pursuit, yet figures indicate that male treatments and procedures are becoming more popular year on year.

Cosmetic surgery is an increasingly appealing option at this time of year as the sun appears and people prepare to bare their bodies on holiday. Treatments such as liposuction and body contouring, breast augmentation and breast lifts are very popular among women, but the summer body panic is not restricted to females, with cosmetic surgeons reporting an increase in the number of men seeking treatment to enhance their physique.

Why are more men having surgery?

Men who are familiar with Men’s Health covers, Abercrombie and Fitch models and posters of well-known Euro 2012 stars may be dreading baring their bodies on the beach, fearing that what they have to offer doesn’t quite match the tanned, toned torsos on parade in magazines and billboards. Thankfully, for those who are worried about ‘moobs’, love handles or wrinkles, there is an array of treatments now available to men.

Which treatments do men go for?

In the past, the most popular treatments for men included rhinoplasty (more commonly known as a nose job) and otoplasty (pinning back the ears), but over the course of the last few years,  body contouring treatments have become increasingly popular, as men look to replicate the muscular, taut physiques showcased by elite athletes and gym bunnies. Developments in cosmetic surgery mean that treatment is simpler, safer and quicker than ever before and cosmetic surgery is no longer a taboo subject, meaning men do not have to fear ridicule for having surgery.

Treatments, such as Vaser Hi-Def liposuction, are popular because they create definition and tone, while male breast reduction, designed to remove excess fat from the chest, has also become increasingly popular. Male boobs commonly referred to as ‘moobs’ have appeared in many television programmes and are discussed in health magazines. People may joke about moobs, but for some men, this is a serious issue, which affects their confidence, especially in the summer months when you want to wear less clothing. A simple procedure can now eradicate these problems and help men to feel confident in time for trips to the beach.

Once considered a part of the female sphere, with the words ‘plastic surgery’ bringing to mind a plethora of celebrity boob and nose jobs, cosmetic surgery is fast becoming an integral part of the male domain too. Indeed, BAAPS (the British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons) has found that between 2010 and 2011, the number of cosmetic procedures undergone by men increased by 5.6 percent—a rate only marginally slower than that for women’s surgery, which was 5.8 percent.

Popular types of male surgery

Gynaecomastia operations (the reduction of breast tissue in men), liposuction and tummy tucks are among the most increasingly popular types of cosmetic surgery for men in the UK, each rising  at a rate between seven and 15 per cent. According to the current President of BAAPS, Fazel Fatah, this should come as no surprise in light of the heightened demand for surgical treatment of obesity, which has resulted in a rising number of gastric bands in men. Procedures such as this (as well as other, non-surgical methods of losing weight) can result in loose, excess skin where fat has been removed, consequently leading to the rise in demand for tummy tucks.

Why do more women than men get tummy tucks?

Tummy tucks (the colloquial term for abdominoplasty) is the process by which excess fat and skin is removed from the stomach area, giving the appearance of a firmer abdomen. In 2011, BAAPS recorded 124 male tummy tucks in contrast with a staggering 3251 in women. However, the disparity between these numbers is easily explained. For men, the chief reason for getting a tummy tuck is following major weight loss, via either a gastric band or non-surgical methods such as exercise. The tummy tuck gives the man a more toned stomach than would be achieved solely with the gastric band. For women, however, pregnancy is another key cause of loose skin around the stomach area. Following giving birth, many women restore their body confidence with a tummy tuck that firms up the abdomen.

The rise of male tummy tucks

Last year in the UK, not a single area of cosmetic surgery decreased in popularity. Overall, the number of procedures performed by BAAPS members increased by 5.8 per cent, with male tummy tucks increasing by a considerable 15 per cent. This may be surprising in the current economic climate, but the nation’s intensifying scrutiny of its health, as well as the safety of certain cosmetic procedures, may go some way to explaining this increase.

In the past, it seemed to be the general consensus that cosmetic surgical remedies were unmanly and reserved for the female species alone. This is no longer the case, however, and an increasing number of men are turning to cosmetic surgery to fix or improve areas of their bodies.

According to the 2011 report from the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, cosmetic procedures performed on men accounted for around 800,000 of the total procedures reported for the year, which makes up only 8 percent. However, that 8 percent is a more than a 120 percent increase on statistics recorded back in 1997.

Among the top surgical procedures sought by men were liposuction (the removal of fatty deposits from different areas of the body), rhinoplasty (commonly known as a “nose job”), eyelid surgery (remove fatty deposits or fix sagging), ear surgery (to “pin back” larger ears), breast reduction (to remove excess fat) and even total facelifts.

Today’s men are really no different from the men one, ten or twenty years ago. However, attitudes toward work and casual, everyday life have changed. Men are more conscious of how they look, and how those looks are perceived by the world around them. According to the same research from the ASAPS, men are judged by what they look like more now than ever before. That translates into possible difficulty in finding jobs and maintaining relationships. Men today are more self-conscious of their flaws and how these flaws may be holding them back – and a growing number of men are seeking remedies to what they see as physical imperfections.

Cosmetic surgery among men is also becoming increasingly popular due to the emergence of more stylised male celebrities, openly expressing their strong desires for physical perfection. Celebrities such as Al Pacino and Robert Redford have spoken openly about undergoing facelifts in the past, while lifelong heartthrob Burt Reynolds has admitted to getting a hair transplant. The late Patrick Swayze was among the first male celebrities to seek porcelain veneers to improve the look of his teeth.

Men and women, rich and poor, celebrity and everyday Joe, have one thing in common, and that is the pursuit of perfection in all of its forms. There is no longer any shame in a member of the male species seeking that perfection through a cosmetic surgeon.

Experts in the field of science located in Phoenix, AZ, have found a new development involving hair loss. Scientists were researching a gastrointestinal disease and learned accidentally that treatment for this disease may also help prevent baldness, pattern hair loss and alopecia.

Hair loss is a condition that affects approximately 25 per cent of men prior to their reaching age 30. Additionally it affects two thirds of them prior to age 60, some even experience hair loss in their teen-age years.

Reports issued by scientists have described examining mice when they tested a chemical substance on them. These particular mice had been changed genetically to increase their production of corticotrophin-releasing factor, a stress hormone, which caused the mice to drop their coat when they became older.

For this research the mice that were losing their hair were injected five times daily with a new stress reducing hormone called astressin-B. Once injections were completed the mice were placed back into their habitat.

After a three month time period the researchers followed up on their study, and were surprised to find that all of the mice had regrown their coats. The study found this to be the case 100 percent of the time. The scientists used the injections with mice that had not lost their coat yet, and found that the treatment prevented the loss of their fur.

The researchers also discovered that the anti-stress hormone was beneficial for the gastrointestinal system, the cardiovascular system and other areas of the mice’s bodies where receptors are found.

Scientists were excited by the fact that the hormone reactivated the hair follicles. They are hoping that these results can help those who suffer from baldness, hair loss when having chemotherapy and for individuals with alopecia.

Researchers involved with the study have stated that it will take time to discover if the hormone will help humans who suffer from hair loss. The next phase in the study will involve investigating how the stress reducing hormone is able to reactivate the hair follicles. They will also look into which cells in particular are benefiting from the treatment.

For those who aren’t yet ready to embrace a clean shaven head, this treatment may be able to regrow lost hair. It can help regain lost self-confidence that can happen when hair is lost and may be safer because it causes the follicles to reactivate. It may also help other parts of the body.

High profile men have been seeking plastic surgery to prolong their careers and bring back their younger selves with small nip and tucks and non-invasive procedures like Botox. With these men enjoying the benefits of prolonged youth, many other business men have been finding plastic surgery helps in the workforce.

The average of male patients in Melbourne has risen from 10 percent ten years ago to about 20 percent currently. The men who received surgeries ten years ago were mostly in need due to medical reasons whereas the surgeries now are mostly cosmetic in nature. These procedures range from rhinoplasty and eyelifts to Botox and fillers.

Career advancement and preservation are sited as reasons for needing these facial enhancement surgeries and upkeep. Men are afraid of losing their jobs for looking “tired” or “worn down.”

A businessman who has reached the age of 61 had a neck lift to get rid of the dangling skin. He claimed the presence of the skin was disrupting his confidence which was hurting his ability to attend meetings and network properly.
Melbourne doctors believe divorce is also a factor in the rise in men who are seeking surgeries. The men have a need to make themselves feel attractive to the single community.

Many high profile men have claimed good genes rather than good surgeons when they suddenly appear to look a few years younger. Crocodile Dundee hero, Paul Hogan, claimed he had never had surgery or injections to make his wrinkles disappear.

Another handsome star who feared loss of career choices without finding a fountain of youth was Dancing With the Stars judge, Todd McKenney. He has talked candidly of his past ventures with the cosmetic surgeon. He states he has had Botox, pulsed light therapy and even Thermage treatments to tighten his skin and remove wrinkles.

The majority of men, famous or not, tend to be more private about their surgeries even if it is no longer a stigmatism to go under the knife.

Although, Australian figures for 2009 have not been reported, American figures for 2009 from the American Society of Plastic Surgeons has about 26 percent of all nose jobs, or rhinoplasty, as being performed on men. Cheek implants were reported at 27 percent and eye lifts were at 25 percent. Lifts on the other parts of the face, forehead, 11 percent, and facelifts, 9 percent were much lower but ever increasing.

“We are getting to the age of robotics,” said Dr. Ricardo Meija at the annual meeting of the Florida Society of Dermatologic Surgeons.

Dr. Meija is referring to technology that would allow donor strip and follicular unit extraction to become a reality. Currently new technology is in the works for robotic hair transfers and even hair cloning. There is also technological work being done that would help new growth. All of this technology has been long awaited and would significantly change current obstacles in hair transplantation.

Already, hair transplantation technology has seen remarkable advances. In the past, it took three to eight sessions to reach a rate of 10-200 grafts, and resulted in an unnatural look. Now surgeons are able to accomplish a more natural looking hairline and more transplantation in fewer sessions. While 200 grafts per session used to be common, it’s now standard to accomplish 2,500 grafts.

Even more advances are on the way. In 2009, the United States Food and Drug Administration approved marketing for a new device called the Neograft Automated Hair Transplant System (Neograft) . The device works by utilizing rotating punches to make scores in the skin, and then a pneumatic suction device extracts the hair follicle within. The device can also implant grafts.

In addition technology for hair transplantation, other new devices that use low level light therapies for hair growth have been approved by the US FDA as well; the HairMax LaserComb for men and the MPE-90 Hair Growth Stimulation System for women.

There is also a lot of research being conducted on auto cloning and hair multiplication technologies. The technology would begin with dermal papilla cells or fibroblasts, and attempt to cause the fibroblasts to create enough hair follicles in a culture to replace an entire scalp.

TricoCyte is another cell based hair regeneration technology that uses the proprietary dermal papilla cell process. However, developers of the product aren’t quite satisfied with the product yet. Though many are crossing their fingers for it, as more than half of participants in a study for proprietary cell treatment processes showed significant hair growth up to a year afterwards. The study was conducted at Aderans Research Institute.

Needless to say, with all of the current developments in hair transplantation technologies, hair cloning is not far away from being a realistic option.

“How far out are we?” asked Dr. Meija. “I say 5-10 years.”

Though previously considered to be an undertaking reserved for ageing women, the number of men turning to cosmetic surgery has significantly increased in recent years. For many men, including a number of celebrities, their acclimation towards plastic surgery occurs as an effort to further their professional careers. The British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons reported that the number of men who are going under the knife increased by 21 percent within the last year, in spite of the increasingly poor state of the economy.

When looking at specific surgeries, rhinoplasty (nose jobs), liposuction, otoplasty (ear correction), and blepharoplasty (removal of under eye bags), were noted as the most popular plastic surgeries undergone by men, in addition to gynaecomastia, a procedure that removes what many refer to as “man boobs,” which alone increased by 80 percent. Many physicians who specialize in aesthetic medicine are reporting a distinct increase in the percentage of their male patients.

One physician in particular associated this increase in male aesthetic procedures to the economic crisis. These male patients are most likely either looking for jobs, or trying to keep the job they have. As a result, they want to look their best, and turn to these procedures in order to assure that they do. For most men, the perceived edge that these procedures will give them in the workplace is the motivating factor in undertaking them.

Many men report a new self confidence following cosmetic surgery, which translates positively in the workplace. It removes any self consciousness that they may have, allowing them to perform at their best at all times. Scott Jowett, of Nottingham, had his ears pinned back at age 31, and reported feeling a self-assurance that he had never before experienced, following his surgery. He thought that his former self-consciousness had definitely held him back from progressing at work. Most of the men who are undergoing surgery for their careers positions in industries where their appearance is perceived to be extremely important. This includes industries such as sales, advertising, TV, and hospitality. In addition, older men feel that they are in a position where they need to compete with their younger peers, and believe a fresher appearance will help them achieve that. For both men and women, appearance has become increasingly important, and when it potentially affects their futures in their professions, they are prone to turning to surgical means to maintain them.

The number of plastic surgery procedures performed in 2009 hit record numbers. In fact the British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons (BAAPS) reported nearly a seven percent increase in surgical procedures over 2008. Besides the overall numbers of procedures performed there has also been an increasing number of cosmetic surgeries performed on men. Mr. Rajiv Grover, BAAPS Secretary, said, “This year we have recorded a dramatic rise in the number of male surgical procedures, probably due to heightened media attention, which has allowed men to realise the positive outcomes that can be achieved.” The BAAPS actually reported a 23% increase in procedures performed on men in 2009.

The Harley Medical Group also reported an impressive increase in procedures performed on men in 2009, seeing a 5 percent increase over 2008. Men actually accounted for 18 percent of all procedures performed by The Harley Medical Group. Most of the increase can be attributed to men opting for non surgical procedures such as ‘Boytox’ (male Botox and Sweatox).

Men’s busy lifestyles are indeed causing their skin to be at risk for premature wrinkles. Dr. Nick Milojevic is a Botox doctor, voted as the best for Botox in the Daily Express. Concerning men receiving Boytox he revealed, “Young men in the City have been spending a lot of time frowning over the last year and we’re seeing the fallout .. Men coming into the clinics are telling us that they want to stay looking wrinkle-free despite their demanding lifestyles.”

A report by the Dailey Mail reported that much of the increase in cosmetic procedures performed on men is attributed to City bankers spending their bonuses on Boytox. The City clinic saw huge growth once the banker bonuses returned to the agenda with a ’24 percent month by month sales increase in September alone’. Other non-surgical procedures that grew in 2009 were dermal fillers with a 26 percent increase and chemical peels with a 306 percent increase.

Jeremy Baker, Consumer Analyst at ESCP Europe Business School said, “There’s a huge emphasis on grooming in popular culture and the job market is tough – people need to be younger, fitter, and better and this is reflected in the maintenance of personal appearance. Men have now caught up with the times and don’t want to be left behind so I’m sure we’ll see big increases in this sector in particular.” Men have surely
become comfortable with beautifying themselves with cosmetic surgery.