TV makeovers lift cosmetic surgery niche

June 27, 2005
By DARLA MARTIN TUCKER: THE BUSINESS PRESS

Five years ago the Temecula area had one cosmetic surgeon. Now there are four, according to the Temecula Valley Chamber of Commerce.

The boom in local cosmetic surgery business may be a result of local physicians entering the fast-growing, cash-based business to make money rather than cosmetic surgeons moving to the area, said Diane Sessions, executive director of the Economic Development Corp. of Southwest Riverside County.

The growth of cosmetic surgery services likely is tied to publicity generated by television shows like the popular "Extreme Makeover," Sessions said.

A Temecula area phone book lists five plastic and reconstructive surgeons.

While it is difficult to ascertain actual numbers of cosmetic surgeons operating in the Inland Empire, the industry is spiking upward, according to two associations and several Inland Empire cosmetic surgery and treatment businesses.

Allure Image Enhancement in Upland offers surgical and non-invasive cosmetic services including wrinkle-smoothing Botox injections, laser removal of varicose and spider veins and plastic surgery consultation. The company has increased its staff from four to 25 employees and its nursing staff from one to seven registered nurses over the 2-1/2 years since her arrival, office manager Susan Lanot said.

Euclid Cosmetic Surgery Center in Fountain Valley derives 72% of its patients from the Inland Empire, a surge tied to an advertising blitz focused on the inland area for the past 18 months, administrator Salem Jeiroudi said.

The surgery center's monthly $35,000 marketing budget covers print and Internet advertisements and radio spots on Redlands stations KOLA-99.9FM and KCAL-96.7FM. The broadcasts tout special rates on surgical procedures in the staccato style of car dealership ads.

"There's been a huge growth in the industry," said Charlie Baase, spokesman for the American Academy of Cosmetic Surgery in Chicago. The academy has 1,500 members.

The industry has grown steadily for several years as more people from middle income brackets opt for cosmetic surgery and the media have brought the practice further into the mainstream, Baase said.

"Every year there are more and more physicians entering this field," he said. "Mostly it goes back to demand." Cosmetic surgeons set their own hours and need not deal with insurance companies. Most cosmetic surgery clients pay with cash or credit cards.

From 2003 to 2004, the number of cosmetic procedures carried out in the United States increased 44%. Surgical procedures increased 17% and non-surgical procedures spiked 51%, according to the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery in New York City.

The society has 1,769 surgeon members across the United States and Canada. Of those, 14 are in the cities of Claremont, Riverside, San Bernardino, Redlands, Palm Springs, Palm Desert, Rancho Mirage, Corona and Murrieta.

Since 1997, the number of cosmetic procedures increased 465%. Surgical procedures shot up 118% over the past eight years while non-surgical treatments increased 764%, according to the society.

The top five surgical procedures in 2004 were: liposuction, up 24% from 2003; breast augmentation, up 19% from 2003; eyelid surgery, up 8% from 2003; rhinoplasty, down 4% from 2003; and facelifts, up 25% from 2003, the society said.

The most popular non-surgical procedure in 2004 was Botox injections, up 25% from 2003.

As medical devices and procedures improve and surgical techniques employ less cutting, the procedures are more attractive and less expensive, Adams said. "People are looking for edges that get them ahead (professionally)," and may pursue cosmetic surgery to enhance their careers. "Everybody does it for different reasons," he said.

Adams said he turns away potential clients if their expectations of cosmetic surgery are unrealistic or if their surgical requests cannot be achieved.

"But we're always looking for solutions," he said.

Media frenzy

"With the TV shows, we're getting more and more patients (who want multiple surgical procedures)," said Jacob Haiavy, a cosmetic surgeon and owner of Inland Cosmetic Surgery Medical Corp. in Rancho Cucamonga. "I tell them about the risks and they say, `That's not the way it was on TV,'" Haiavy said. Cosmetic surgery participants on reality television shows undergo many hours of surgery and months of recovery. Health risks increase the longer a patient remains unconscious under general anesthesia, Haiavy said.

Haiavy performs an average of 40 procedures a month since taking over the practice from colleague Marc Leventhal in 2003. Leventhal opened the practice about 10 years ago.

Business has grown over the past four or five years as the area has become more populated and televisions shows have made cosmetic surgery popular, Haiavy said.

Haiavy operates a satellite office in Beverly Hills. He consults with patients before any surgical treatment to determine whether they are viable candidates.

Haiavy offers body contouring, liposuction, tummy tucks, breast lifts and breast reduction. He performs breast augmentation through a transumbilical, or belly button technique that leaves no visible scars on the breast and allows faster recovery, Haiavy said.

On June 20 Haiavy met with reporters to discuss endoscopic mid-region face lifts that employ small incisions and video imaging. He unveiled his first batch of 28 new Contour thread lifts that use barbed sutures in facelift procedures.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration cleared the Contour neck lift and mid-face surgical suture threads respectively on March 4 and April 1. They enable doctors to use local anesthesia. Patients return to work in three days. The lifts provide a "temporary measure of elevation before a patient is ready for a facelift," Haiavy said.

Haiavy will charge $1,000 to $5,000 for the thread lift procedure.

Surgical Specialties Corp. of the Wound Closure Products Group in Reading, Pa. sold the thin, clear plastic-like threads to Haiavy for $100 each.

Haiavy and others believe reality television shows such as "Extreme Makeover," talk show segments on cosmetic surgery and other media reports have pumped public interest in looking good and enhancing one's quality of life through surgical procedures and treatments.

"It's [business] increased dramatically," said Lanot of Allure Image Enhancement.

Whenever a television show about cosmetic procedures airs, the Upland business fields as many as 30 calls the following day from people interested in enhancing their looks, Lanot said.

"It's all fueled by the media. There's no doubt about it," she said.