Black women report disparities between aesthetic concerns, treatment willingness
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Key takeaways:
- The degree of concern over aesthetic issues did not correlate to the likelihood of seeking treatment for these issues.
- More research is needed to elucidate the reasons behind these disparities.
ORLANDO — A survey found Black women were less likely to seek treatment for certain highly bothersome aesthetic concerns, according to a speaker at the American Society for Dermatologic Surgery Annual Meeting.
“In our attempt to expand and diversify the aesthetics patient, we often ask ourselves many questions,” Michelle Henry, MD, FAAD, a dermatologist at Skin & Aesthetic Surgery of Manhattan, said during her presentation. “One of which is what is cultural and ethnic identity and how does that affect one’s aesthetic preferences, their aesthetic concerns and ultimately the treatments they seek out?”
According to Henry, previous published data have shown that Black women have different aesthetic concerns than white women; however, Henry wanted to take her findings a step further by looking at how their concerns correlate to the actual treatments they pursue.
To do this, Henry and colleagues conducted a survey in which 3,273 women, 796 of whom were Black, were asked to rank how likely they would treat 41 different facial characteristics and 31 different body characteristics. Investigators then took those answers and compared them with what Black women have listed as their top aesthetic concerns.
Among facial characteristics, results showed that the top four aesthetic concerns, in order from most to least concerned, were dark under-eye circles, hair loss/thinning, uneven skin color/hyperpigmentation and unwanted hair on face. However, the degree of concern over these issues did not correlate to the likelihood of these issues being treated.
For example, among these top issues, dark under-eye circles were listed as the most bothersome but the least likely to receive professional treatment. On the other hand, unwanted hair on face was listed as less aesthetically concerning but the most likely to receive professional treatment.
Among body concerns, stubborn body fat in the stomach and sides were the most bothersome and the most likely to be treated. However, stubborn body fat in the bra and back area was listed as a higher aesthetic concern compared with uneven skin color/hyperpigmentation on the body, but patients were more likely to seek professional treatment for the latter than the former.
“This is an area of interest,” Henry said. “Why don’t these areas overlap?”
The study also found that Black women, compared with white, Asian and Hispanic women, were the only population to look at facial concerns and body concerns as almost equal, Henry explained in her presentation.
Overall, Henry concluded that further research is needed to explain why patients may express high concern over aesthetic issues but low willingness to treat those concerns.
“As we are developing new technology and protocols, it is really important that we think about this patient population and really understand these areas of disparity,” Henry said.