Borrowed beauty? Understanding identity in Asian facial cosmetic surgery.

This review aims to identify (1) sources of knowledge and (2) important themes of the ethical debate related to surgical alteration of facial features in East Asians. This article integrates narrative and systematic review methods. In March 2014, we searched databases including PubMed, Philosopher's Index, Web of Science, Sociological Abstracts, and Communication Abstracts using key terms "cosmetic surgery," "ethnic*," "ethics," "Asia*," and "Western*." The study included all types of papers written in English that discuss the debate on rhinoplasty and blepharoplasty in East Asians. No limit was put on date of publication. Combining both narrative and systematic review methods, a total of 31 articles were critically appraised on their contribution to ethical reflection founded on the debates regarding the surgical alteration of Asian features. Sources of knowledge were drawn from four main disciplines, including the humanities, medicine or surgery, communications, and economics. Focusing on cosmetic surgery perceived as a westernising practice, the key debate themes included authenticity of identity, interpersonal relationships and socio-economic utility in the context of Asian culture. The study shows how cosmetic surgery of ethnic features plays an important role in understanding female identity in the Asian context. Based on the debate themes authenticity of identity, interpersonal relationships, and socio-economic utility, this article argues that identity should be understood as less individualistic and more as relational and transformational in the Asian context. In addition, this article also proposes to consider cosmetic surgery of Asian features as an interplay of cultural imperialism and cultural nationalism, which can both be a source of social pressure to modify one's appearance.

The body dysmorphic disorder patient: to perform rhinoplasty or not?

By virtue of being a (primarily) aesthetic rather than a functional procedure, rhinoplasty is unique among rhinological operations. As such, it raises moral, philosophical and social issues that no other procedure does. The preoperative assessment of a rhinoplasty patient includes a number of considerations that are unique in this type of surgery; during the outpatient consultation, the patient's motivation for surgery, stability and overall psychological evaluation, with a special emphasis on body dysmorphic disorder, have to be taken into consideration. Body dysmorphic disorder is a relatively common obsessive-compulsive spectrum disorder defined by a constant and impairing preoccupation with imagined or slight defects in appearance. Body dysmorphic disorder is associated with poor quality of life, extremely high rates of suicide and--following cosmetic surgery--high rates of dissatisfaction, occasionally manifesting as aggressiveness. A combination of psychological and medical management is the treatment of choice and this review aims to address the frequently controversial rhinoplasty indications for these patients.

[Aesthetic augmentation of the dorsum, mid-term results]. / Augmentation esthétique du dorsum, résultats à moyen terme.

PURPOSE OF THE STUDY: Dorsum aesthetic augmentation can be divided according to their objective, total and partial increase or camouflage. The objective of this original article is to define the valid techniques in each indication through a cohort study, clinical cases, and current data from the literature. PATIENT AND METHOD: It is a monocentric mono operator retrospective study from 2005 to 2010 included. On 171 rhinoplasties, 57 were augmentation rhinoplasties of which 40 were of interest to the dorsum. Excluded patients were bone grafts, lost and one patient operated on a active Wegener desease. Thus 26 rhinoplasties were analyzed by an independent observer. RESULTS: All grafts confused there were 11.5% of resorption which corresponds to the data from the literature, 17% of resorption in the camouflage indications and 7% in augmentation, as well as a higher resorption for crushed cartilage (33%) rate. There was more mobility in augmentation (28%) than in the camouflage (8%) and greater visibility of the banks of the graft in augmentation (35%) compared to the camouflage (8%). CONCLUSION: In the mild to severe saddle nose, the DCF is greater than cartilage monobloc or crushed in terms of stability and visibility, its indications could be expanded to harmonisation. Camouflage crushed cartilage is not sustainable and the temporal aponeurosis could it be preferred. Resorbable fillers can offer an alternative to surgery or improve its results.

Ethical considerations in revision rhinoplasty.

The problems that arise when reviewing another surgeon's work, the financial aspects of revision surgery, and the controversies that present in marketing and advertising will be explored. The technological advances of computer imaging and the Internet have introduced new problems that require our additional consideration.

Ethical considerations in aesthetic rhinoplasty: a survey, critical analysis, and review.

Although the practice of medicine is built on a foundation of ethics, science, and common sense, the increasing complexity of medical interventions, social interactions, and societal norms of behavior challenges the ethical practice of aesthetic surgeons. We report a survey of the opinions, practices, and attitudes of experienced and novice facial plastic surgeons. The survey consisted of 15 clinical vignettes addressing ethical quandaries in aesthetic rhinoplasty. The vignettes are based on the experience and observations of the senior author (P.A.A.) over nearly 30 years of practice and teaching. Fellowship directors and facial plastic surgery fellows of the American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery were surveyed anonymously. Five of the 15 vignettes demonstrated significant differences between the responses of the fellowship directors and the fellows. No single vignette had a unanimous consensus in either group. Aesthetic rhinoplasty surgeons encounter ethical issues that should be reflected on by both experienced and inexperienced facial plastic surgeons, preferably before being faced with them in practice. We present a practical approach to ethical issues in clinical practice. Our survey can also be used as a stimulus for further discussion and teaching.

Gender and nasal shape: measures for rhinoplasty.

BACKGROUND: Gender-specific nasal shapes are recommended for rhinoplasty. This study was conducted to clarify whether there truly are gender-related differences and to determine optimal nasal shapes in a Caucasian population. METHODS: The authors created female and male composite photographs of "average" (n = 128 each), "optimal" (n = 16 each), and "most unpleasant" (n = 8 each) noses stratified on the basis of each photographed subject's (n = 311) own evaluation of the attractiveness of her or his nose, using a visual analogue scale. These composites were also assessed by 308 independent judges. RESULTS: Optimal female noses showed a horizontally and vertically lower nasion and were concave to straight in profile as compared with optimal male noses, which had a vertically and horizontally higher nasion and a straight profile. A supratip break was not found in any of the composites. At least half of the judges rated average and optimal male composite noses as female. A significant majority mistook the composite of the most unpleasant female noses as male (frontal view, 62.0 percent; lateral view, 72.4 percent; p < 0.001). Optimal and average female and male noses were found to be independently significantly more attractive than the most unpleasant ones (p < 0.001, n = 308 judges). Women and men with a straight or concave profile were significantly (p = 0.017 and p = 0.006, respectively) more satisfied with the appearance of their nose than those with nasal humps. CONCLUSIONS: Gender-related differences in nasal shape appear to be subtle, with nasion position being one of the main factors. A nasal hump and a supratip break are not desirable.

Philosophical pitfalls in cosmetic surgery: a case of rhinoplasty during adolescence.

In the process of deciding to undergo cosmetic surgery for aesthetic reasons, people may err in various ways. Adolescents in particular run the risk of making errors, and both parents and surgeons have special moral responsibilities to avoid disappointments. Parents should face a number of moral issues; if they fail to do so, surgeons have a moral if not legal responsibility, to raise these issues and take a moral stand. In this paper, a number of pitfalls are specified from a philosophical perspective. A request for surgery should not be granted if patients do not meet the standards required for stable decision making and a balanced judgment, and particularly in those case where patients fail to understand the assumptions--in terms of human values--underlying the surgical intervention. Assessments of competence should go beyond formal conceptions of autonomy, and should, as will be shown, be made on an individual basis. Substantive questions of personal identity and identity formation, within the context of often rapid psychosocial development and emotional turmoil peculiar to adolescents, should be addressed. The key to the moral evaluation of this surgery therefore lies primarily in a patient's life story.