2008 Statistics on Cosmetic Plastic Surgery from ASAPS

By Denise Mann

For the first time ever, liposuction is not the most popular cosmetic surgery procedure performed in the United States. This fat suctioning procedure has been usurped by breast augmentation, according to the 2008 statistics from the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ASAPS).

In 2008, there were 355,671 breast augmentation surgeries performed in the United States, compared with 341,144 liposuction procedures.

Overall, there were nearly 10.2 million cosmetic procedures (surgical and nonsurgical) performed in the United States in 2008. This marks a 12 percent decrease from 2007, likely a result of the current economic downturn. Americans spent slightly less than $12 billion on cosmetic procedures in 2008. Of this, approximately $7.2 billion was spent on surgical procedures, and $4.6 billion was spent on nonsurgical procedures.

Cosmetic Surgery: Highlights from 2008

The top five surgical cosmetic procedures in 2008 were:

  1. Breast augmentation
  2. Liposuction
  3. Eyelid surgery (blepharoplasty)
  4. Rhinoplasty (nose job)
  5. Abdominoplasty (tummy tuck)

The top five nonsurgical cosmetic procedures in 2008 were:

  1. Botox injection
  2. Laser hair removal
  3. Hyaluronic acid injections
  4. Chemical peel
  5. Laser skin resurfacing

Men and Women of All Ages Nipped and Tucked Less in 2008

Overall, women had 92 percent of cosmetic procedures in 2008. The number of surgical and nonsurgical procedures performed on women was more than 9.3 million, a decrease of 11 percent from 2007. Surgical procedures performed on women decreased by 15 percent in 2008, while nonsurgical procedures decreased by 11 percent.

Men had approximately eight percent of cosmetic procedures in 2008, with the number of total procedures (both surgical and nonsurgical) decreasing by more than 22 percent from 2007.

People aged 35 to 50 underwent the most cosmetic work in 2008: 4.6 million procedures, or 45 percent of the total procedures performed. The top surgical procedure in this age group? Liposuction. The top nonsurgical procedure? Botox injections.

People aged 51 to 64 had 26 percent of the cosmetic surgery procedures in 2008. The most popular surgical procedure in this group? Eyelid surgery (blepharoplasty). The most popular nonsurgical procedure? Botox injections.

People aged 19 to 34 had 22 percent of the cosmetic surgery procedures in 2008. The most popular surgical procedure in this group? Breast augmentation. The most popular nonsurgical procedure? Laser hair removal

Senior citizens aged 65 and older had six percent of cosmetic surgery procedures in 2008.

Teens aged 18 or younger had less than two percent of the cosmetic surgery procedures in 2008.

Among the teen set, the two most popular procedures were laser hair removal and nose job (rhinoplasty).

Traditional racial and ethnic minorities accounted for 20 percent of all cosmetic procedures in 2008. Hispanics had eight percent of the procedures, followed by African-Americans (six percent), Asians (four percent) and other non-Caucasians (two percent).

Charts of Selected Statistics

SurgicalNumber of
Procedures		NonsurgicalNumber of
Procedures
Breast augmentation 355,671Botox 2,464,123
Lipoplasty (liposuction) 341,144 Laser hair removal 1,280,964
Eyelid surgery 195,104 Hyaluronic acid (including Hylaform,
Juvederm, Perlane/Restylane)		 1,262,848
Rhinoplasty 152,464 Chemical peel 591,808
Abdominoplasty 147,392Laser skin resurfacing 570,880
SurgicalNumber of
Procedures		NonsurgicalNumber of
Procedures
Breast augmentation 355,671Botox 2,239,024
Lipoplasty 309,692 Hyaluronic acid (including Hylaform,
Juvederm, Perlane/Restylane)		 1,200,420
Eyelid surgery 166,426Laser hair removal 1,101,255
Abdominoplasty 143,005 Chemical peel 554,492
Breast reduction 139,926 Laser skin resurfacing 532,008
SurgicalNumber of
Procedures		NonsurgicalNumber of
Procedures
Liposuction 31,453Botox injection 255,099
Rhinoplasty 30,174Laser hair removal 179,708
Eyelid surgery 28,678Hyaluronic acid (including Hylaform,
Juvederm, Perlane/Restylane)		 62,428
Gynecomastia 19,124 IPL laser treatment 46,887
Hair transplantation 18,062 Microdermabrasion 39,824
% of
Total		AgeNumber of
Procedures		Top Surgical
Procedure		Top Nonsurgical
Procedure
45%35-50 4.6 millionLiposuctionBotox
26%51-64 2.7 millionEyelid surgeryBotox
22%19-34 2.2 millionBreast augmentationLaser hair removal
6%65 and over 634,667Eyelid surgeryBotox
2%18 and under 160,283 RhinoplastyLaser hair removal

To create this snapshot of the year in cosmetic surgery, ASAPS sent out more than 16,000 surveys to board-certified plastic surgeons, dermatologists and otolaryngologists. A total of 894 completed responses were received in time for tabulation.

Related Topics

Source: American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery

[page updated October 2009]