It’s been more than three years since the COVID-19 pandemic, a disease that exposed the weak links of almost every country’s health system คลินิกศัลยกรรมจมูก, the US included. Indeed, the Coronavirus pandemic changed many things in the health, education, corporate, business, finance, and even informal sectors. Even now, four years on, things are yet to return to their pre-pandemic state.
Studies into the pandemic’s effects are still ongoing, and recently, it has emerged that the COVID-19 pandemic may have caused an uptick in patients looking to get cosmetic facial upgrades in the US.
How?
According to recent reports, the pandemic may have given Americans a perfect opportunity to consider getting cosmetic procedures. It’s an understandably confusing trend. At a time when the international community was brought to its knees, Americans had other things occupying their minds.
But upon a closer analysis of how the pandemic reshaped American lifestyle, the reasons behind the surge in plastic surgeries become apparent, as you will see below.
The Rise of the Work From Home Phenomenon
According to data from the U.S. Census Bureau, between 2019 and 2021, the number of American citizens working from home tripled from a meager 5.7 percent to a staggering 17.9 percent of the US working class.
The primary means of inter-office communication during this period?
Zoom.
According to testimonies from plastic surgeons around the US, these frequent Zoom meetings allowed people to scrutinize themselves and analyze facial features more keenly, which may have led to the business boom.
This phenomenon has led to the term “Zoom dysmorphia.” According to a study published in the International Journal of Women’s Dermatology, this refers to a condition where individuals experience a distorted self-image due to using video conferencing platforms like Zoom.
According to the study, self-pointing cameras used during such sessions can point out facial features that the individual would not have noticed before, causing self-awareness and an eventual uptick in plastic surgery procedures as Americans sought to enhance facial features.
“Travel restrictions are another factor that perfectly blended with Zoom dysmorphia to elevate the rates of plastic surgeries across the US,” says Dr. Dave Lee of PURE Cosmetic Center. During this period, travel restrictions restricted movement across US cities and states, meaning less money spent on vacations.
This, coupled with an increased self-image awareness, created the perfect recipe for individuals to seek cosmetic enhancements. The money that would have otherwise been spent on vacation was now being spent on surgical procedures. Additionally, with more time at home, there was enough space to allow for healing and recovery.
Popular Procedures
What kinds of procedures were Americans seeking out? According to findings from a survey conducted by the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, here are the most popular procedures from the period of 2021 to June 2022:
- Liposuction
- Facelifts
- Breast Augmentation
- Tummy tucks
- Breast Lifts
Moving on to minimally invasive cosmetic procedures, here are the most common ones:
- Botox
- Soft tissue fillers
- Non-invasive fat reduction
- Non-surgical skin tightening
International Trends
Looking at data from around the world, it’s clear that demand for plastic surgery increased with the pandemic. Data from the International Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery points to an 11 percent drop in plastic surgery procedures around the world due to business shutdowns. This dip was quickly mitigated by an aggressive demand for plastic surgery procedures once businesses opened up.
