South Korean Plastic Surgeons woo the Chinese Surgery Market

South Korean Plastic Surgeons woo the Chinese Surgery Market

By Chandana Banerjee

South Korea is fast becoming known as the plastic surgery capital of Asia. Now its doctors are looking to China as the next frontier of the cosmetic surgery market.

In order to look like this, some Chinese women are turning to surgery. The strength of the beauty industry in South Korea gives them confidence in the surgical procedures.

Doctors from South Korea have picked up on this business opportunity. South Korean plastic surgeons hope that their plastic surgery will continue to develop and gain a good and safe reputation in China.

So far, the government in Shanghai has approved more than 10 South Korean clinics, with more expected to come.

Credit from http://www.surgerywatch.com

Woman dies after Liposuction

Woman dies after Liposuction

By Chandana Banerjee

A woman in Toronto died after having liposuction and this is raising concerns about doctors who are performing cosmetic surgery procedures despite not being licensed as plastic surgeons.

Thirty-seven-year-old Krista Stryland, a successful Toronto real estate agent and mother, underwent a liposuction operation at the Toronto Cosmetic Clinic located on Yonge Street in North York last Thursday.

Sources told CTV Toronto that the woman's heart stopped following the operation to remove fat from her abdominal area

She was taken to North York General Hospital and died despite attempts to revive her.

There are reports that the family doctor who performed the operation had training in cosmetic surgery but was not a licensed plastic surgeon, said CTV Toronto.

The situation highlights what many plastic surgeons claim is a major problem in Canada's medical system.

While plastic surgeons are required to adhere to strict regulations and undergo licensing, little can be done to stop family doctors or general practitioners from deeming themselves 'cosmetic surgeons' and performing similar procedures under far less stringent guidelines.

Credit from http://www.surgerywatch.com

Diego Maradona and Cosmetic Surgery

Diego Maradona and Cosmetic Surgery

By Chandana Banerjee

Argentine football legend Diego Maradona last month visited a clinic in Colombia to iron out some wrinkles and shrink his double chin. Maradona arrived in Bogota on August 28 to undergo what his personal doctor, Alfredo Cahe, at the time said was aesthetic dental work.

The 46-year-old former player took advantage of his stay to also undergo other procedures and "lose a few years," Alejandro Rada, a Colombian doctor who worked on the star, said on Caracol broadcast network.

Maradona's double chin was reduced, and "we diminished the number of wrinkles on his forehead and between his eyebrows," Rada said.

"We also raised his eyebrows so that he could have an even more expressive look," Rada added.

Regarded as one of the greatest figures in world football, Maradona played for Barcelona and Napoli, and guided Argentina to World Cup victory in Mexico in 1986 and to the 1990 final.

Credit from http://www.surgerywatch.com

Chinese favor South Korea for Cosmetic Surgery

Chinese favor South Korea for Cosmetic Surgery

By Chandana Banerjee

South Korea is known as the plastic surgery capital of Asia – celebrities in Asia like prefer heading to South Korea for nips and tucks. Now South Korean plastic surgeons are trying to crack the lucrative Chinese market. Chinese in fashion centers such as Shanghai see South Korean plastic surgeons as safer and more skilled than local doctors. Chinese men and women want ears, chins and chests just like the South Korean stars popular in China.

Kim, who runs South Korea's largest plastic surgery hospital BK Clinic and is one of the country's most successful surgeons, envisaged a bonanza in China after noting that 40 Chinese women a month were flying to his Seoul clinic for cosmetic surgery.

"I wanted to be the first Korean surgeon to make inroads into the booming Chinese market," Kim said in an operating room, talking to Reuters while performing eye and nose surgery on a client who will also receive liposuction.

"Unlike South Koreans, most of my Chinese patients come with photographs of a Korean actress and ask me to make them look like her," Kim said, citing two popular stars - Song Hye-kyo and Kim Tae-hee - as having the most mimicked faces.

Credit from http://www.surgerywatch.com

Time – A Korean Movie on Cosmetic Surgery

Time – A Korean Movie on Cosmetic Surgery

By Chandana Banerjee

'Time' is a Korean movie that deals with the subject of cosmetic surgery. Starring Ha Jung-woo, Park Ji-yun and Seong Hyeon-ah and Directed and written by Kim Ki-duk, this 97 minute movie is in Korean with English subtitles.

It's been estimated that as many as 50 percent of South Korean women in their 20s — and an increasing number of men — have undergone cosmetic surgery in their quest for ul-jjang ("the perfect face"). If this suggests that South Koreans are suffering from an irrational plague of body-image insecurity, you might consider Kim Ki-duk's "Time" to be a pathological case study disguised as a romantic melodrama.

Young, attractive and two years into her relationship with Ji-woo (Ha Jung-woo), Seh-hee (Park Ji-yun) is so insecure that she flies into a rage when Ji-woo so much as glances at another woman. She later apologizes for having "the same boring face every day," then vanishes for six months — the time it will take her extensive facial surgery to heal. She returns as a new woman, her name slightly changed to See-hee (now played by Seong Hyeon-ah), determined to make Ji-woo (still devastated by Seh-hee's disappearance) fall in love with her again.

'Time' will make you ponder about what we see when we look in the mirror.

Credit from http://www.surgerywatch.com

TV Shows on Cosmetic Surgery banned in China

TV Shows on Cosmetic Surgery banned in China

By Chandana Banerjee

It’s common knowledge that cosmetic surgery shows have encouraged many people to go in for cosmetic surgery. Cosmetic surgery TV shows are very popular all over the world. But The Chinese government banned television shows about cosmetic surgery and sex changes.

A headline on the Web site of the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television said would no longer allow "shows about cosmetic surgery, (or) sex changes that involve public participation."

China has tightened controls on TV programs lately. At mid-month, state media reported that the broadcast agency had banned Chongqing Broadcasting Group's talent show "The First Time I Was Touched."

Credit from http://www.surgerywatch.com

Busan is the Destination for Cosmetic Surgery

Busan is the Destination for Cosmetic Surgery

By Chandana Banerjee

Korean cosmetic surgeons are in demand. Asians are flocking to Korean cosmetic surgeons in an effort to be made to look like their idols, Bloomberg news agency reported.

About 10,000 people journeyed to Korea last year for plastic surgery, the report said. While the industry is still in its infancy, tourists who want rounded cheekbones or flat tummies can choose from 80 clinics along Busan's Seomyon Street, known as Beauty Town.

Apparantly, Korean cosmetic surgery procedures are as good as procedures carried out in the U.S. and Japan, but much cheaper. Eyelid operations cost about US$1,100 to $1,600 in Korea, compared with $1,700 in Thailand, $1,900 in Japan and $4,600 in the U.S., according to Health Ministry research cited by Bloomberg.

Credit from http://www.surgerywatch.com

Are Aussies less or more comfortable with Surgery?

Are Aussies less or more comfortable with Surgery?

By Chandana Banerjee

Are Australians more comfortable with cosmetic surgery or is it the other way around?

When it comes to embracing boob jobs and facelifts, young Australians are still far more cautious than their American counterparts, new research shows.

The study of Melbourne university students found that most were familiar with a huge range of cosmetic procedures, from botox injections to nose jobs and liposuction, but only 1% had actually gone under the knife.

And overall, the sample of 284 students was negative about the procedures, with half saying they would be "fearful" about the surgery.

A third said it was a waste of money and about the same number said it was wrong to get the operations to boost self esteem.

"Most respondents indicated they would be embarrassed to let others know if they had had such surgery," University of Melbourne researcher Dr David Castle wrote in the Medical Journal of Australia.

"And the majority - 70% - would not consider cosmetic surgery in later years, even if their partner wished them too."

The results are in stark contrast to a new US study of female students.

The Australian research found the one third of those questioned knew someone who had had surgery, and 11% said a family member had had a procedure.

But in the US, 5% had had it themselves, 67% knew someone else who had, and for 33% this included a family member.

Credit from http://www.surgerywatch.com

She’s got the Looks!

She’s got the Looks!

By Chandana Banerjee Chandana Banerjee

Tara Mahoney draws people to her. Men are attracted to her like bees to honey. Women too are impressed by the way she looks. So is Tara a diva in real life? Or is she a former beauty queen? Well, she’s neither a diva nor a beauty queen. The interesting thing is that Tara, a 28-year-old business writer, is not a classic beauty.

She can’t squeeze into those tiny black dresses or tight skirts with tiny waists. She doesn’t strut about in stilettos and is your regular jean-and-tee girl. So what’s so special about Tara? Well, she’s totally comfortable with the way she looks and maybe that’s what attracts others to her.

In fact, it’s quite common to get attracted to people who regard themselves highly. Sometimes it’s the right attitude that can make you look more appealing that a just-so nose or doe eyes or plump lips.

Here are some ways to look and feel good:
Falling in love with the face in the mirror doesn't always come easily, but with a little effort you can learn to do it.

Remind yourself that there's no such thing as an "ideal" appearance. Human beings come in all shapes and sizes and there is beauty in all of them.

Understand that the images you see in magazines, on TV and in the movies are anything but real. Models and actors are professionally made up.

Play up the features you like and forget the ones you're not so keen on.

Credit from http://www.surgerywatch.com

Aussies choose to go Under the Knife

Aussies choose to go Under the Knife

By Chandana Banerjee

More and more Aussies are considering going in for cosmetic surgery, an independent survey into cosmetic intervention has revealed. A survey of 2211 people by NEWS.com.au and research company CoreData found 60.8 per cent of respondents have thought about having plastic surgery while 58.5 per cent have considered non-surgical procedures such as wrinkle treatments and laser hair removal.

Feelings of self-worth and confidence are the biggest drivers of cosmetic surgery and non-surgical treatments, with the majority of respondents doing it to feel better about themselves, followed by looking more attractive for their partner.

Improving appearances in a bid to further careers was the least popular reason for both types of procedures.

Australian Society of Plastic Surgeons president Dr Howard Webster said a number of studies had shown "appropriate" plastic surgery had long-term positive effects on self esteem, with less than 1 per cent of people becoming addicted to it.

The stigma associated with plastic surgery has also fallen, with the majority of respondents not shy of telling their fiends and family that they had work done.

The lure of big breasts hasn’t lost its grip, with breast enlargement the most popular cosmetic surgery procedure, followed by rhinoplasty and liposuction. Penis enlargements also scored a mention with 17.9 per cent of males who have undergone plastic surgery braving the operation.

Wrinkle treatment is the most popular non-surgical treatment for both sexes, with not a great deal of difference between the percentage of men and woman who have had it.

Treatments to reduce acne scarring or “skin needling” where the skin is punctured with small needles to inject collagen and improve scars and wrinkles were by far the least popular procedures with only 5.6 per cent of people having them done.

Despite many of us secretly considering cosmetic treatments, the leap from thought to action is a big one with only 10 per cent of respondents actually undergoing cosmetic surgery and non-surgical procedures.

While many Australians are considering cosmetic intervention, when it comes to paying for it only 3.3 per cent would consider spending their tax return on enhancements.

The majority of respondents, or 53.4 per cent, preferred to spend their money on reducing debt, followed by improving their homes.

Credit from http://www.surgerywatch.com