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Upper arm lifts for women increased more than 4,000% since 2000
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Upper arm lift procedures, including liposuction and brachioplasty, increased by 4,378% in women between 2000 and 2012, according to data released by the American Society of Plastic Surgeons.
“Women are paying more attention to their arms in general and are becoming more aware of options to treat this area,” American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) President Gregory Evans, MD, said in a press release. “For some women, the arms have always been a troublesome area and, along with proper diet, liposuction can help refine them. Others may opt for a brachioplasty when there is a fair amount of loose skin present with minimal elasticity.”
There were 14,629,276 cosmetic procedures performed in 2012, according to the ASPS 2012 Plastic Surgery Statistics Report, representing a 5% increase from 2011 and a 98% increase from 2000. Of those, 1,594,526 were surgical procedures, a 2% reduction from 2011 and a 16% reduction from 2000. Minimally invasive procedures comprised the remaining 13,034,750 cosmetic procedures in 2012, a 6% increase from 2011 and a 137% increase from 2000.
Females accounted for 91% (12.8 million) and males the other 9% (1.3 million) of all cosmetic procedures in 2012, a 5% increase from 2011 for each group.
There were 15,457 upper arm lifts performed in 2012, compared with 14,998 in 2011 (3% increase) and 338 performed in 2000 (4,473% increase), according to the ASPS. Of all upper arm lifts, 15,136 (97.9%) were performed on women in 2012, which was a 4,378% increase from 2000, and 321 (2.1%) were performed on men, with no 2000 data for comparison.
There were 286,274 breast augmentations performed in 2012, a 7% decrease from 2011 (35% increase from 2000), but still the top cosmetic surgical procedure. “Botulinum toxin type A” was the top cosmetic minimally invasive procedure (6,134,621) in 2012, up 8% from 2011 and 680% from 2000. The top reconstructive procedure continued to be tumor removal (4.2 million), which had a 1% increase from 2011.
Other top cosmetic minimally-invasive procedures in 2012 included soft tissue fillers (1,988,767), with a 205% increase from 2000; chemical peel (1,133,821), a 1% decrease from 2000; laser hair removal (1,118,254), a 52% increase from 2000; and microdermabrasion (973,556), a 12% increase from 2000.