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Excerpted from Georgia Trend, November 1997

Cosmetic Surgery

Men Now Getting 25-30% of Makeovers As Cost Declines, Methods Improve

by Tom Barry

For the first time in years, John Greigg (fictitious name) looks like a million bucks, and he paid only $12,000 for the privilege. What prompted the 52-year-old Duluth, Ga. resident to go for a cosmetic trifecta: facelift, eyelid surgery and chin implant?

Greigg, who owns a specialty products company, recalls sitting in a restaurant one day with his 28-year-old wife and 5-year-old daughter. Suddenly, he was granted the insight the Scottish poet Robert Burns so memorably sought two centuries ago: “Oh wad some power the giftie gie us, to see oursels as others see us.”

“I’m married to a much younger woman, and I wondered how we looked together,” says Greigg. “I didn’t want us to be the odd couple. And at work, many of my sales people are in their 30s. I’d always thought of myself as a contemporary. I wanted to fit in. I looked at them and realized I was old enough to be their father. Frankly, my whole face changed between age 45 and 50.” So, Greigg decided that cosmetic surgery would be a good investment, both for the pocketbook and the psyche.

“My only regret is that I didn’t have this done 10 years ago,” he says. “For one thing, my average customer is 35 years old, and my new look has had a substantial positive impact on my business.”

Hey, it’s the 1990s. Since Greigg’s surgery, his 28-year-old wife has had liposuction.

Until recently, cosmetic surgery was virtually the exclusive province of women. “Real men” stoically accepted nature’s course, no matter how dispiriting.

But in the last few years, in Georgia and across the country, more and more men have been having their love handles vacuumed, tummies flattened, noses fixed, eyebags removed, buttocks lifted, skin lasered, hairs transplanted and double and triple chins magically reduced to a mere one again. Even men in their 20s are recasting nature’s work.

American men underwent nearly 700,000 cosmetic surgical procedures in 1996, up from 568,000 in 1994, according to the American Society of Cosmetic Surgery.

Atlanta-area surgeons have definitely recognized the trend and report a sharp rise in the number of male patients. Until the 1990s, only 5% to 10% of cosmetic surgery was performed on men. Today, it’s 25% to 30% and climbing according to the best estimates of cosmetic surgeons.

Also driving the phenomenon are rising disposable incomes, the development of less invasive surgical techniques and the fact that cosmetic surgical prices haven’t risen as rapidly as other medical costs over the last decade.

But it is the recent business environment that may best explain the increase in cosmetic surgery for men. More than ever, the middle-aged executive has reason to fear the ambitious younger executives stewing in the wings.

“Ours is a youth-oriented culture and there’s tremendous pressure on men to keep their job,” says Dr. Edmond I. Griffin of the Griffin Center, a specialist in hair restoration and facial rejuvenation. “In an aggressive corporate environment, you might be cut loose well before retirement age. And then what do you have to do? Turn around and find another job. If you’re 55 and look 65, you won’t be able to find a job as easily. Men are beginning to realize that their looks, as well as their abilities, are important on the job.”

…

To grow hair where it’s supposed to be up top, ancient Egyptian men lathered their heads with fat from the ibex, hippopotamus and serpent. The technique’s effectiveness was illustrated by Yul Brynner as the pharaoh in The 10 Commandments.

The elusive quest begun by the Egyptians has had strong historical legs. By 1983 A.D., the U.S. government had investigated some 300,000 hair-growth products fo similarly dubious merit.

But with two-thirds of Caucasian men noticeably bald by age 40—and noticeably anxious about it—the hunt continues apace. Today’s Internet advertises a dizzying array of anti-balding applications, injections, stimulants, hormones and vitamins.

Surgical hair restoration offers perhaps the best hope for this hereditary affliction. “Results are so much better than they used to be,” says Dr. Griffin.

His technique involves transplanting hair grafts of varying sizes—usually one to four hair follicles—from the sides of the head to bald areas. The smallest transplant involves some 500 grafts, the largest over 1,000. Costs range between $4,000 and $8,000.

The Spanish explorer Ponce de Leon died trying to find the Fountain of Youth. Fittingly, with all this cosmetic activity, an avenue bearing his name runs right through Atlanta.

Top 5 Procedures for Men

Hair Transplantation/Restoration: 31.4%
Chemical Peel: 9.5%
Liposuction: 7.8%
Vein Treatment: 4.1%
Eyelid Surgery: 3.8%

Finding a Cosmetic Surgeon

How do you pick a cosmetic surgeon when the Yellow Pages are thick with listings?

Consumers should know that cosmetic surgery is a largely unregulated field that includes plastic surgeons, general surgeons, dermatologists, dental surgeons and other specialists. Many physicians, frustrated by the confines of managed care, are leaving their field of specialty for cosmetic surgery.

“The fact is that almost anyone can call himself a cosmetic surgeon,” says one Atlanta surgeon. “Consumers need to be aware that many give themselves that label without any real training in the field.”

The American Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons offers the following advice in selecting a surgeon:

Learn where the surgeon received his training. Has he or she completed an accredited residency program in cosmetic surgery?
Is he board-certified in cosmetic procedures? To find a certified surgeon in your area, call the ASPRS toll-free number (1-800-635-0635). Georgia ranks 16 th among the states in the number of ASPRS members per population (1 to 55,019 people or 130 members).
Does the surgeon perform the procedure in question frequently or only occasionally? You don’t want someone getting in rare practice on you.
Shop around and not just for prices. Compare how surgeons answer your questions and explain the risks involved. In any surgery, there are risks and potential side effects. Also, the surgeon should not raise unrealistic expectations of what the operation will accomplish. (If you go in the operating room, don’t think that Brad Pitt will come out.)
Does the doctor have privileges in an accredited hospital? Even if he performs the surgery in his own office, he should have privileges granted by peers. Call the hospital to make sure.
Your family doctor may have first-hand knowledge of a skilled cosmetic surgeon. Nurses and other hospital workers often have insight, too.

No matter how skilled the physician, about one in 100 surgical patients experience a major problem.