Cosmetic Surgery Quick Facts 2012
According to the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, over 10 million cosmetic surgical and nonsurgical procedures were performed in the United States in 2012. Breast augmentation was the most popular surgical cosmetic procedure with more than 330,000 procedures performed.
All of the information presented on this page is from the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ASAPS) Cosmetic Surgery National Data Bank.
2012 Cosmetic Surgery Highlights
- More than 10 million surgical and nonsurgical cosmetic procedures were performed in the United States in 2012. Surgical procedures accounted for 17% of the total number of procedures and 61% of total expenditures, with nonsurgical procedures making up 83% of total procedures and 39% of total expenditures
- Americans spent almost $11 billion on cosmetic procedures in 2012. Of that total, $6.7 billion was spent on surgical procedures, $2 billion on injectables procedures, $1.8 billion on skin rejuvenation procedures, and over $483 million on other nonsurgical procedures, including laser hair removal and laser treatment of leg veins.
- From 2011 to 2012, there was a 3.1% increase in the total number of cosmetic surgical procedures, with almost 1.7 million surgical procedures performed in 2012.
- In 2006, saline breast implants were used in 81% of procedures and silicone implants were used in 19%. In 2012, silicone implants were used in 72% of procedures and saline implants were used in 28%.
- Since 1997, the total number of cosmetic procedures has increased by almost 250%. Surgical procedures have increased by more than 80% and nonsurgical procedures by 461%.
- Where cosmetic surgeries in 2012 were performed: office facility 59%; free-standing surgicenter 24%; hospital 15%
Top 5 Surgical Procedures
The top five cosmetic surgical procedures in 2012 were:
- Breast Augmentation: 330,631
- Liposuction: 313,011
- Tummy Tuck (Abdominoplasty): 156,508
- Eyelid Surgery: 153,171
- Nose Surgery (Rhinoplasty): 143,801
Top 5 Surgical Procedures for Women
The top five cosmetic surgical procedures for women in 2012 were:
- Breast Augmentation: 330,631
- Liposuction: 271,369
- Tummy Tuck (Abdominoplasty): 148,984
- Eyelid Surgery: 129,920
- Nose Surgery (Rhinoplasty): 127,776
Women had more than 9.1 million cosmetic procedures in 2012, 90% of the total. The number of cosmetic procedures for women has increased over 252% since 1997.
Top 5 Surgical Procedures for Men
The top five surgical procedures for men in 2012:
- Liposuction: 41,642
- Nose Surgery (Rhinoplasty): 29,966
- Eyelid Surgery: 23,251
- Male Breast Reduction: 22,736
- Ear Surgery: 12,053
Men had almost 1 million cosmetic procedures in 2012, 10% of the total. The number of cosmetic procedures for men increased over 106% from 1997.
Top 5 Nonsurgical Procedures
The top five nonsurgical cosmetic procedures in 2012 were:
- Botulinum Toxin Type A: 3,257,913
- Hyaluronic Acid: 1,423,705
- Laser Hair Removal: 883,893
- Microdermabrasion: 498,821
- Chemical Peel: 443,824
When procedures performed by physician assistants and nurse injectors are included, the total number of cosmetic surgical and nonsurgical procedures performed in the United States in 2012 increases to over 12.6 million.
For the second year in a row, the survey asked doctors for the total number of non-surgical procedures performed in their practices by both physicians and their physician assistants and nurse injectors. The total number of procedures performed in the practices surveyed were 4,125,179 for Botulinum Toxin Type A, 1,806,806 for hyaluronic acid, 1,224,920 for laser hair removal, 718,465 for chemical peel and 672,430 for microdermabrasion.
Cosmetic Surgery Age Distribution
- Ages 35-50: 43%
- Ages 51-64: 29%
- Ages 19-34: 19%
- Ages 65 & over: 8%
- Ages 18 & under: 1%
The most common surgical procedure for each age group was:
- Ages 35-50: Liposuction
- Ages 51-64: Eyelid Surgery
- Ages 19-34: Breast Augmentation
- Ages 65 & over: Facelift