Advantages & Disadvantages of Cosmetic Surgery

There is nothing wrong with wanting to make yourself beautiful or wanting to feel better about yourself. In a society where image is everything, feeling and looking good is important. The question to ask yourself is how far would you go to look perfect? Before you consider something as drastic as cosmetic surgery, make sure you are happy with who you are on the inside, because the outside can change at a moment's notice.

Various Procedures

Cosmetic surgery encompasses a wide range of procedures. Each procedure has its own advantages and disadvantages, too. One of the most popular cosmetic surgery procedures is lipoplasty, or liposuction.

The obvious advantage of this procedure is that people can lose a large amount of body fat in a matter of hours. As such, they may feel better about themselves after the procedure and maintain a healthier lifestyle.

However, if you gain weight after undergoing liposuction, you risk the chance of dimpling your skin and requiring fat injections to fix the problem. Your body may also take a long time to get accustomed to the new weight and some people suffer chills and other problems in the weeks and months following the procedure.

Face lifts are also popular cosmetic procedures. Doctors can take 10 or 20 years off your appearance with a proper face lift. However, face lifts require four or more weeks of recovery time. During that time, your face will typically look swollen and bruised. Some face lift procedures are also obvious and they can make your face and skin look unnatural and even plastic.

Even breast implants have their disadvantages. They may make a woman feel more confident in herself and her body, but the implants have a risk of leaking or even bursting and requiring another surgery to fix the problem.

Costs

What Are the Pros & Cons of Cosmetic Surgery?

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One of the prohibitive disadvantages of cosmetic surgery is the cost.

A simple Botox injection can cost as much as $400 and even more in some parts of the country where it is more popular. Breast reductions can range between $3,500 and $6,000 depending on if you are a man or a woman.

Facelifts average about $6,500 and even liposuction costs more than $3,000.

A nose job is usually more than $4,000 and eyelid surgery is at least $3,000. These are just a few of the high costs of some of the most popular cosmetic surgery procedures.

Even though the costs of these procedures are typically expensive, there are some ways to save money on them. Most plastic surgeons offer financing options either through their own office or by working with a lender or financing company.

**Many people are able to afford these procedures by working out low monthly payments.

Some cosmetic surgery schools may also offer discounted procedures for people who are willing. ** These procedures are controlled and observed by trained professionals so adverse risks are at a minimum.

Risks

One of the most common mistakes people make when getting cosmetic surgery is using the wrong doctor.

If you choose the wrong doctor or a doctor that is not certified, you could be risking your health and your life in some cases.

At the very least, a bad doctor could make you worse than you were before you went in for the surgery.

The doctor may not use sterile equipment, which could result in infection or hematoma. Other doctors may perform a procedure that results in irregularities, asymmetries, puckers, divots and dimples.

Another disadvantage of cosmetic surgery is the anesthesia used during the procedure. Anesthetic complications are more common than many people realize and they can be fatal in rare cases. However, less serious complications resulting from anesthesia include blood clots, temporary paralysis, abnormal heart rhythm and more.

A small percentage of people also get addicted to cosmetic surgery.

They may find a celebrity in Hollywood that they want to look like and undergo several procedures in order to look like that person. Some have gone through so many procedures that they simply look like plastic clones of themselves.

Safety

Disadvantages of Plastic Surgery

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Generally, cosmetic surgery procedures are safe. The overwhelming majority of clients who undergo liposuction, face lifts, breast augmentations or other procedures are happy with the change and suffer few (if any) negative side effects.

There are, however, some statistics that pose a disadvantage to those considering cosmetic surgery. According to CosmeticSurgery.com, about four percent of cosmetic surgery procedures have some type of complication after they are completed. Procedures done in Mexico and other countries where they are much cheaper account for many of the surgeries that "go bad," but it is still something to consider.

Requirements

**In order to be an eligible candidate for cosmetic surgery, you must follow certain criteria.

** There are several health conditions that will likely disqualify you from being a candidate for cosmetic surgery, including lung disease, hypertension, diabetes, arthritis, malnourishment, severe depression obesity. These and other problems make the risks of cosmetic surgery more likely. However, if you are a fairly health person, cosmetic surgery can be a tremendous advantage.

Smokers are also not good candidates for cosmetic procedures. In fact, they must quit smoking for two entire weeks before the procedure is scheduled and they must also be smoke-free for two weeks following the surgery.

For some smokers, this may be a tremendous disadvantage to cosmetic surgery. For others, it could be the push they need to become smoke-free for life.