Elective and Reconstructive Surgeries in the United States - Essay Example

? Elective and Reconstructive Surgeries in the United s Teacher               Outline: Elective and Reconstructive Surgeries in the United States 1. Elective Surgeries A. Costs B. Government and Insurance C. Popularity and Frequency (Past and Now) D. Reasons E. Types 2. Reconstructive Surgeries A. Costs B. Government and Insurance C. Popularity and Frequency (Past and Now) D. Reasons E. Types Elective and Reconstructive Surgeries in the United States Plastic surgery is a common procedure for people who need to make their bodies beautiful and also people who want to fix their broken body parts. Plastic surgery began after World War I but became popular only in 2006 and 2007 not only in the United States of America but also in the whole world. South Korea has 74 procedures per 10,000 people and the United States only has 42 procedures per 10,000 people so South Korea has the highest rate of plastic surgery but the United States has the highest number at 1,300,000 plastic surgeries every year so it is more common in the United States to have plastic surgery (“It’s official,” 2012). Plastic surgery is actually a big part of American life. In the United States, there were 1.6 million cosmetic surgeries last year. According to American Society of Plastic Surgeons, there were 307,000 procedures for breast augmentation, 244,000 for nose reshaping, 205,000 for liposuction, 196,000 for eyelid surgery, and 119,000 for facelift. Eyelid surgery increased by 6% and eyelid surgery 5%. For reconstructive surgery, there were around 5 million cases last year. Tumor removal was 4.2 million, laceration repair was 303,000, maxillofacial surgery was 195,000, scar revision was 175,000 and hand surgery was 120,000. Maxillofacial surgery was popular because it was up 125 percent from 2010. More reconstructive surgeries were done compared to elective surgeries so reconstructive surgeries remain popular in the United States. But maybe the reason is that it is more necessary than elective surgeries (“13.8 Million Cosmetic,” 2011). But we do not know the actual reason so this research will find out hopefully. However, another problem is cost. According to InfoPlasticSurgery.com, elective surgeries like liposuction for five areas is the most expensive because it costs $10,000 while the cheapest is spider vein because $200 (“Cost of Plastic Surgery,” 2011). Reconstructive surgeries cost around $80,000 to $200,000 if you don’t have insurance, according to Yahoo Answers but this is brain surgery so it is naturally expensive (“How much would,” 2009). However, the cost of plastic surgery is really an issue in the United States. This research paper will find out if the cost of plastic surgery is really a big issue or not. Elective Surgeries According to the encyclopedia of surgery, an elective surgery is a “planned, non-emergency surgical procedure which is medically required or optional” (“Elective Surgery,” 2012). However, in this paper, elective surgeries mean cosmetic surgeries that are optional. The cost of cosmetic surgery in the United States is extremely expensive but it depends on the type of procedure. Liposuction for five areas costs around $10,000 but spider vein costs $200 (“Cost of Plastic Surgery,” 2011). Breast augmentation is around $3,500 to $12,000 (“I’m Concerned,” 2012). Facelifts cost around $6,600 (“Cosmetic Surgeries,” 2011). However, even though cosmetic surgery is expensive, health insurance does not cover it (“Reconstructive Surgery,” 2012). The popularity of cosmetic surgery is still high even though insurance does not cover it. From 2010 to 2011, there is a 5% increase in elective cosmetic surgeries (“13.8 Million Cosmetic,” 2011). It is really popular because just in 2010, Americans spent $845 million only for facelifts (“Cosmetic Surgeries,” 2011). In 2011, the top American cities for elective cosmetic surgery are Miami, Atlanta, Dallas, San Francisco, Sacramento, Baltimore, Nashville, Louisville, Seattle, and Washington DC (“Top 10 Best US Cities,” 2011). Most Americans choose elective cosmetic surgery because “they may want to look younger for professional or personal reasons” or “they may want to change a feature they never liked” (Grayson, 2003). Other good reasons are they want to do it for themselves or because they want to have their confidence back after they break up with their lovers (Grayson, 2003). Some bad reasons are they want to please someone else, they want to save a relationship or they want to find a spouse (“12 Reasons,” 2008). Perhaps a very common reason why so many Americans choose cosmetic surgery is the social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter. They use Facebook and Twitter for asking advice instead of doctors so there is some misinformation (“Annual Survey,” 2011). Types of elective cosmetic surgeries are rhinoplasty or fixing the nose. Sometimes the nose is oversized, the nostrils are too big, the nose is too flat, or any other reason. Another type of cosmetic surgery is breast augmentation. People choose it because they are not satisfied with the size or shape of their breasts and they want to make them bigger or more attractive. Another type of elective cosmetic surgery is liposuction and it is very frequent. It means removing fat from the abdomen. Another type of elective surgery is blepharoplasty and it is used to remove fat around the eyelids when one becomes old. The facelift is another type of cosmetic surgery and it is done in order to remove wrinkles so the loose skin is tightened (“Most Popular Plastic,” 2012). Reconstructive Surgeries (Definition, Costs, Insurance, Popularity, Reasons, Types) Reconstructive surgery is a type of surgery which is used to “correct abnormal structures of the body” like a child’s cleft palate, some birth defects or some injury from a car accident (“Reconstructive Plastic,” n.d.). The cost of reconstructive plastic surgeries is around $80,000 to $200,000 but it depends on the type of surgery and the reason (“How much would,” 2009). However, insurance can help reduce this because reconstructive surgeries are usually covered by insurance (“Reconstructive Surgery,” 2012). Injuries which are caused by accidents, violence or birth defects are covered by insurance. Partial insurance benefit is also possible for drooping eyelids or other nose problems (“Cosmetic Procedures,” 2011). Reconstructive surgery is more popular in 2011 than in 2010. Reconstructive surgery was up in 2011 by 3% for breast reconstruction and tumor removal. Scar revision was up 9%, hand surgery was up 13% and laceration repair was up 15%. The reconstructive surgery which had the highest increase last year was maxillofacial surgery because it was up 125% but the most common reconstructive surgery last year was tumor removal because there were 4.2 million Americans who had it (“13.8 Million Cosmetic,” 2011). This means that reconstructive surgery is popular in the United States and it is even getting more popular. Reasons for choosing reconstructive surgery are more practical. If your child had a birth defect when he was born or if you had an accident that injured your body, reconstructive surgery is perfect for you. After the surgeon evaluates the patient’s condition, he might ask him to undergo reconstructive surgery and he will discuss the cost and the insurance (“Reconstructive Surgery,” 2012). There are several types of reconstructive surgeries. The surgeries which are covered by insurance are abdominal surgery, breast surgery, ear surgery, eyelid surgery, facial surgery, hand surgery and nasal surgery (“Cost of Plastic/Cosmetic,” 2012). Abdominal surgery is the choice if you need to get rid of some health problems or if you want to walk normally. Breast surgery is for reducing large breasts that cause problems or to reduce large male breasts. Ear surgery is for ears that are deformed or injured. Eyelid surgery is for drooping eyelids that make seeing difficult. Facial surgery is for a deformed or paralyzed face, head and neck. Hand surgery is used for carpal tunnel syndrome or injuries with the nerve, tendon or fingers. Nasal surgery is used if the nose looks abnormal from birth, if there is a disease in the nose or if it is difficult to breathe. Some Complications and Side Effects of Elective and Reconstructive Surgeries Before you choose to have plastic surgery, you must consider its risks. There are many risks from plastic surgery that you cannot treat anymore or can change your life forever. Some are even extremely dangerous and can end your life. Some complications from plastic surgery are blood clots, airway obstruction, brain damage, heart attack, malignant hyperthermia, stroke, nerve damage and death. Blood clots and stroke are difficult to predict and may cause instant death. Airway obstruction is caused by anesthesia that can disturb the airway. Brain damage can also happen if blood circulation is very low. If the blood pressure, body temperature and heart rate become too high, malignant hyperthermia can happen (“12 Reasons,” 2008). Other problems that come from plastic surgery are asymmetry, irregularities, seroma, skin necrosis, slow healing and numbness. Asymmetry happens when some part of the body is unbalanced after surgery. Irregularities like dimples and folds happen because of the surgeon’s errors or when the part heals after surgery. Seroma is the fluid that comes out of the body after surgery especially after liposuction or breast augmentation. Skin necrosis or skin death may happen to smokers after plastic surgery. Slow healing is a result of age, type of skin, or not following the doctor’s advice. Lastly, numbness may happen if the nerves are damaged after surgery and there is no more sensation in the area (“12 Reasons,” 2008). Analysis of the Survey Results Among the 21 people who answered the survey, only 4 people want to have plastic surgery but 17 people don’t want. Even though plastic surgery is popular in the United States, most people in the survey don’t want to have plastic surgery maybe because they don’t have an exact idea about the cost of the surgery. Seven people don’t know the cost even though the cost is on the Internet and you can ask some people about it. Ten people said it is over $10,000 but actually some surgeries cost less than $10,000 and some cost more than $10,000. If they don’t know the cost, maybe they are afraid to have plastic surgery. Money is a very important factor in plastic surgery. Maybe also they don’t want to have plastic surgery because most people in my survey are not Americans but only foreigners in America. American opinion is maybe different from people of Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Venezuela and Morocco. There are only 8 Americans in my survey but they cannot really show real results of the whole United States. 18 people believe that plastic surgery can give them confidence and they said it is common age for 26-44 age group to be interested in plastic surgery. Maybe confidence is very important to the 26-44 age group. But because the people who took the survey do not know the exact cost of plastic surgery and because they are not pure Americans, maybe they still do not like to have plastic surgery. However, confidence might be the true reason that so many Americans really have plastic surgery and that is why plastic surgery is becoming more popular in the United States. Conclusion Plastic surgery is a big part of the life of many Americans. There were 1.6 million plastic surgeries in America last year and this was even higher than 2010. Both elective and reconstructive surgeries became more popular in 2011. Aside from popularity, the other main issues with plastic surgeries are cost, insurance and reasons. Elective cosmetic surgeries cost up to $12,000 and the problem is that this is not covered by insurance. Even though elective surgeries are very expensive and not covered by insurance, many Americans have strong reasons for having these surgeries. Americans usually use social networking sites to discuss cosmetic surgery and they may have strong personal reasons for looking younger or better. On the other hand, reconstructive surgeries cost more than elective surgeries. Reconstructive surgeries can cost up to $200,000 if there is no insurance but usually this is covered by insurance. The reasons for having reconstructive surgeries are more practical like fixing a defect in the body part or improving the body part so that the patient can survive. However, there are many side effects that go with plastic surgeries and some of them can lead to death. Because of this, anyone who wants to go under the knife must be extremely careful and must first consider everything like cost, insurance, reasons and side effects. According to the survey, most people want to have plastic surgery because of a lack of confidence so they want to have more confidence. However, most people who answered the survey questions do not want to have plastic surgery. The reason is maybe they don’t need it or they have no idea about the true cost of plastic surgery or they are not all Americans. Maybe if you are a pure American or if you really know the true cost of plastic surgery or if you really need surgery, you will choose plastic surgery for yourself. Plastic surgery can give confidence to a person and that is good, but maybe many people don’t want it or feel uncomfortable about it because plastic surgery is expensive and maybe dangerous. If you don’t know something fully, maybe you do not like it or you do not want it. 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