Here are the procedures making headlines in 2015. You be the judge: are they hot or not?
The cosmetic surgery arena is ever-evolving. With male cosmetic surgery more popular than ever before, and a rise in demand for certain treatments, we bring you the most unusual procedures on the cards for 2015. Some are certainly here to stay – for example, buttock augmentation and neck lifting are reaching unprecedented levels of popularity – while others remain on the fringes of public consciousness. How hot are they? It’s your call.
Eyebrow transplants
With Cara Delevingne’s rein on the fashion world last year, thick, boisterous eyebrows definitely made a comeback. Now, using surgical eyebrow transplants, even the most fair-haired and feathery among us can recreate her runway-ready brows.
This procedure involves designing your ideal eyebrows with a stencil. Surgeons then use Follicular Unit Transplant surgery – just like that performed in regular hair restoration – to harvest hair follicles from the back of the head and replant them into the new eyebrow zone. Once inserted, these follicles develop their own blood supply and continue to grow naturally.
Reduce dark eye circles – HOT
Looking tired? Sad? Lack-lustre? Dark circles under the eyes are a major cause of concern for countless men and women. They can detract from an otherwise youthful, vibrant complexion, and – apart from fatigue or vitamin deficiencies – are often caused by simple genetics.
Until now, a successful treatment for dark circles has been somewhat non-existent. Topical skincare can go someway in lightening the skin and correcting under-eye wrinkles, however dark circles are often more than
skin deep.
Now, a hyaluronic acid-based dermal filler called PureSense Redensity [II] Eyes by Teoxane is combating dark circles one eye at a time around the world. Hyaluronic acid (HA) is a molecule naturally found in the skin’s dermis; it helps maintain hydration, elasticity and firmness in the skin. PureSense Redensity [II] Eyes incorporates HA into a dermal filling gel, specifically designed for treating the under-eye area.
The results are immediately visible after injection and last an average of 12 months. Dark circle sufferers, rejoice!
Lobe lift
You may never have noticed them before, but you certainly will now. Earlobes age along with the rest of the face, and there’s been a recent surge in women in the US hoping to restore more youthful volume and contours to the body of the earlobe.
Ageing earlobes can appear stretched, thinner and flatter than their more youthful counterparts. An earlobe lift involves removing some tissue from the bottom of the earlobe, and then suturing the remaining tissue into a more youthful position. Cosmetic injectables using dermal fillers are also a non-surgical alternative to give the earlobe a fuller, more youthful appearance.
Chubby cheeks
Baby faced or jowly? It can be a very fine line. Chubby cheeks can make some adults look overweight or heavy at the jawline. A buccal lipectomy is surgery where a gumball-sized pocket of fat is removed via a small incision inside the cheek. This can create subtle cheek hollows, and improve the balance of the facial contours.
PRP – HOT
Back in 2011, Angelina Jolie propelled Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) injections into the public eye, when it was rumoured the actress had received the treatment to boost collagen in her face. Since then, stars like Kim Kardashian have jumped on board the “vampire facial” phenomenon, even using social media to share mid-treatment selfies!
But what exactly is PRP, and what does the treatment involve? PRP calls upon the body’s own repair mechanisms to kick-start cellular process in the skin. During treatment, a sample of the patient’s own blood is extracted and centrifuged to create a concentration of blood platelets. This concentration is then reinjected into the treatment site. Once injected, the platelets deliver growth factors to the tissue and communicate with the body’s own stem cells to boost natural rejuvenation processes.
Cosmetically, PRP can be used to reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, homogenise skin texture and clear impurities. By fuelling the skin with a concentrated cocktail of rejuvenating powerhouses, PRP can help turn back the ageing clock.
Belly button surgery
Innies vs outies? It can now be surgically rigged. Belly button surgery came into fruition solely to transform protruding belly buttons to look like their internal counterparts.
Most ‘outie’ belly buttons are actually small umbilical hernias. Surgeons can repair the hernia with an umbilicoplasty – or a small incision on the upper surface of the belly button that turns it into an innie. The associated scar will be invisible, located on the roof of the resulting ‘innie’.
Bra line back lift
Rolls of fat on the back can be uncomfortable – especially when wearing a bra – and can be a great aesthetic concern to the patient. In the past, these pockets of fat were reduced using liposuction, however today – with the introduction of the Bra Line Back Lift – there is a more efficient way to smooth the back’s curves. The back lift surgically removes the back rolls, and excises any excess skin, creating a flatter, more youthful silhouette. The resulting scar is hidden in the bra line.
Beautifying the buttocks
Buttock enhancement is on the up. According to the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ASAPS), there were 11,527 buttock augmentation procedures performed in 2013, a 58 percent increase from 2012.
Indeed, the president of ASAPS Dr Jack Fisher explains there’s an increasing call for shapely buttocks in today’s cosmetic surgery population. ‘Over the past decade, we’ve seen a cultural shift towards a greater acceptance of and a desire for a rounder, more prominent derriere in specific regions across the country, so the increase in buttock augmentation procedures is not that surprising,’ he says.
While not to the same extreme here in Australia, there is definitely more and more patients investigating either fat transfer to the buttocks or augmentation using implants. The fat transfer procedure involves suctioning fat from other parts of the body using liposuction, purifying it, and then reinjecting it to boost the buttock area. Augmentation using implants is a more extensive procedure where an implant is inserted through a single incision across the tailbone. It is placed inside a surgically created pocket in the gluteus maximus muscle.
Buttock facial
Similar to the standard facial, a buttock facial cleanses and exfoliates the skin of the buttocks to remove clogged pores, clear impurities and reduce textural irregularities. This is usually followed by a cream mask and massage to nourish, rejuvenate and beautify the buttocks’ complexion. (And yes, this treatment really exists.
Neck lifting – HOT
The saying “you can tell a woman’s real age by the appearance of her neck” is no longer valid. A neck lift is a surgical procedure designed to lift the sagging skin of the neck and jowl area. This can reduce the appearance of a “turkey neck” and, when combined with liposuction, can create a thinner, more youthful-looking contour. The procedure is often combined with a facelift for more universal, anti-ageing results.
Surgery aside, skin tightening in the neck and jowl area can also be achieved using less invasive methods such as ultrasound and radio frequency technology. Laser and light therapies are also commonly used to improve the appearance of the skin on the neck and décolletage. This can help remove sunspots and textural irregularities for a smoother, more youthful-looking surface.
Cryolipolysis – HOT
Freeze your fat off, literally! Cryolipolysis is a method of killing fat cells through the skin, without surgery, by freezing them. Devices such as CoolSculpting and CoolShape in Australia deliver controlled cooling to localised areas of stubborn fatty tissue – for example, the lower abdomen or love handles. Importantly, the frosty temperatures are only targeted to the fatty layer, so the skin’s surface remains undamaged.
The treated fat cells are crystallised (frozen) at treatment, and will die soon after. In the weeks following the procedure, the dead fat cells are flushed from the site via the body’s natural processes. Thankfully, the results are there to stay, as, once treated, the fat is gone for good.
