The Boob Indicator

PLASTIC SURGEONS: Cosmetic Procedures Are Growing Right Along With The Economy

A blog post titled The Boob Indicator by The Reformed Broker Josh Brown caught evreyone attention.

Brown points to new statistics published by the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (via USA Today), which show some correlation to U.S. economy.

In 2011, 13.8 million cosmetic plastic surgeries--surgical and minimally invasive--were performed.  This is up 5 percent from 2010.

This was the second consecutive year for growth.  In 2009, the number of cosmetic procedures fell 1 percent year-over-year, with surgical procedures falling 9 percent.

"While the rate of economic recovery in the U.S. is still uncertain, 2011 proved to be a good year for plastic surgery," said ASPS President Malcolm Z. Roth, MD. "Consumer confidence was up, auto sales rose 10 percent, so it is not surprising that we would also see increased demand for plastic surgery procedures."

Here's a look at the top five surgical procedures performed:
    Breast augmentation (307,000 procedures, up 4 percent)
    Nose reshaping (244,000 procedures, down 3 percent)
    Liposuction (205,000 procedures, up 1 percent)
    Eyelid surgery (196,000 procedures, down 6 percent)
    Facelift (119,000 procedures, up 5 percent)

And here are the top five minimally invasive procedures:
    Botox (5.7 million procedures, up 5 percent)
    Soft tissue fillers (1.9 million procedures, up 7 percent)
    Chemical peel (1.1 million procedures, down 3 percent)
    Laser hair removal (1.1 million procedures, up 15 percent)
    Microdermabrasion (900,000 procedures, up 9 percent)

Here's a complete roundup of all of the procedures performed in 2011: