'What women want'-the UK's largest cosmetic surgery survey

The cosmetic surgery market is rapidly expanding and changing. This survey is the largest of its kind in the UK and aims to study the motivation and attitudes of UK women towards aesthetic surgery. Five thousand women completed an online cosmetic surgery survey undertaken by an independent polling company. Respondents' ages ranged from 16 to over 56 years old and they were recruited from all over the UK. A further survey of 57 plastic surgeons was undertaken to establish surgeons' attitudes and practices. Of the patient respondents, 6.5% had already had aesthetic surgery but over 45% would want to undergo a cosmetic operation if funds allowed. Over half of these women would choose either breast or abdominal surgery. Ninety-two percent said the surgeon should provide the initial consultation. Seventy-five percent believed their surgeon should have a recognised qualification or membership of a recognised organisation. Sixty-six percent claimed they would never consider surgery abroad. The UK cosmetic surgery market is large and is likely to continue to grow. Despite the rise of nurse-led cosmetic surgery companies, the public appear to want consultations and surgery to be performed by accredited surgeons. We discuss our findings from this large-scale survey in the context of the changing UK cosmetic surgery market. © 2011 Springer-Verlag.