Some High School Grads Consider Plastic Surgery

With millions of high school students graduating this month, many can look forward to jewelry or expensive watches as they celebrate their achievements. For some high school grads, however, it looks like cosmetic procedures have gained popularity as graduation gifts.

According to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, the number of number of cosmetic procedures for American teenagers rose from 60,000 procedures performed in 1997 to 225,000 in 2003, and has continued to climb since then.

In 2010, nearly 219,000 cosmetic procedures were performed on teenagers (ages 13 to 19).

While many teenagers may desire a cosmetic enhancement, each case must be considered individually so that a plastic surgeon can determine whether a patient is emotionally prepared and the procedure is medically appropriate.

Many plastic surgeons will advise younger patients to wait. Plastic surgeon Dr. John Nguyen says that he usually advises teenage clients to “spend a year in college or work; it gives you that additional year of maturity and it gives you an idea of who you are and it gives you just a bit more time to decide what it is that you want to enhance that would make you happier.”