A chiseled chin may be the latest "must have" body part.
A new report shows "chinplants," otherwise known as chin augmentation or chin implants, are the fastest-growing plastic surgery trend among men and women. The popularity of chin implants rose by 71% in 2011, more than breast augmentation, botulinum toxin injection, and liposuction combined.
Researchers say the trend appears to be fueled by a combination of increasing use of video chats, an aging baby boomer population, and competition in the workplace.
"The chin and jawline are among the first areas to show signs of aging," Malcolm Z. Roth, MD, president of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, says in a news release. "We also know that as more people see themselves on video chat technology, they may notice that their jawline is not as sharp as they want it to be."
Other cosmetic procedures that experienced the biggest increases in popularity in 2011 also focus on the face, including:
- Lip augmentation: 49% increase
- Cheek implant: 47% increase
- Laser skin resurfacing: 9% increase
- Soft tissue fillers: 7% increase
- Facelift: 5% increase
Top Cosmetic Procedures
Although the number of chin implants grew from 12,077 to 20,680 in 2011, those numbers are dwarfed in comparison to the most popular cosmetic procedure, breast augmentation.
The report shows plastic surgeons performed more than 300,000 breast augmentations in 2011, a 4% increase from 2010.
Other top cosmetic surgical procedures in 2011 were:
- Nose reshaping: 243,772 (down 3%)
- Liposuction: 204,702 (up 1%)
- Eyelid surgery: 196,286 (down 6%)
- Facelift: 119,026 (up 5%)
Researchers say facelifts are back among the top five cosmetic plastic surgeries for the first time since 2004 and knocked tummy tucks out of the top five.
Among minimally invasive cosmetic procedures, laser hair removal and soft tissue fillers were among the fastest growing.
The top five minimally invasive procedures in 2011 were:
- Botulinum toxin type A (Botox, Dysport): 5.7 million (up 5%)
- Soft tissue fillers (Juvederm, Perlane, Radiesse, Restylane, Sculptra, and others): 1.9 million (up 7%)
- Chemical peels: 1.1 million (down 3%)
- Laser hair removal: 1.1 million (up 15%)
- Microdermabrasion: 900,000 (up 9%)
Plastic Surgery Among the Sexes
Researchers say women accounted for 91% of all cosmetic procedures, and the majority of procedures were among people between the ages of 40 and 54.
Among women, the most popular cosmetic plastic surgery procedures in 2011 were:
- Breast augmentation: 307,000 (up 4%)
- Nose reshaping: 182,000 (down 4%)
- Liposuction: 182,000 (up 1%)
- Eyelid surgery: 168,000 (down 5%)
- Tummy tuck: 111,000 (no change)
For men, the most popular cosmetic plastic surgeries were:
- Nose reshaping: 62,000 (down 2%)
- Eyelid surgery: 29,000 (down 9%)
- Liposuction: 23,000 (down 3%)
- Breast reduction: 20,000 (up 8%)
- Facelift: 11,000 (up 3%)
SOURCES:American Society of Plastic Surgeons, "2011 Plastic Surgery Statistics Report," April 16, 2012.News release, American Society of Plastic Surgeons.
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