KTCosmetic Surgery — Mohan Rangaswamy

KTCosmetic Surgery

By Priya Mathew for womenone.org.

"It's not for us."That has been the thinking of the general population ever since cosmetic surgery arrived on the scene with the promise to turn plain Janes into pretty women. Etched deep in their minds was the notion that it was something for the rich and the famous. Not anymore, says Dr Mohan Rangaswamy, Consultant Plastic Surgeon with Welcare Hospital. According to him, the trend is changing and cosmetic surgery is fast broadening its base.

Womenone.org caught up with Dr. Rangaswamy to know how vibrant cosmetic surgery is in the UAE and what has brought about the change in perception of the people.

1. How is the cosmetic surgery scene in the UAE?
Cosmetic surgery is very vibrant in the private sector hospitals in the UAE. With the hospitals in the government sector focusing more on reconstructive surgery, cosmetic surgery forms a major chunk of the plastic surgery conducted in the private sector though Welcare Hospital has its hands both in cosmetic as well as reconstructive surgery.

2. What are the common cosmetic procedures conducted in the UAE?
In females, liposuction is the most common procedure. It forms about 40-50% of the cosmetic procedures conducted here. Many people have a misconception that liposuction is a solution for overweight people which it is not. Liposuction is a body-contouring tool that removes fat from deposits beneath the skin and a cosmetic surgeon decides whether liposuction is advisable to a particular person.

Liposuction is followed by breast corrections, which form about 25 % of the procedures and are seen more in Arab women and Russians. Arab women come in mainly for breast reduction. For them, physical discomfort brought about by multiple pregnancies and weight swings far outdo the cosmetic reasons for coming for surgery. For breast size increase (augmentation) we get people from all nationalities.

Tummy tucks or abdominoplasty come up next which make up for 20 % of the procedures. Nose reshaping, removal of eyelid bags, lip enhancements, Botox injections to remove wrinkles etc make up for the rest.

Facelifts have become less common nowadays as people are going in for smaller procedures which have lesser recovery periods.

3.How effective are Botox injections and what are its side effects?
Botox injections are very popular as it is very effective in removing the wrinkles in the forehead and the areas around the eyes by paralyzing the muscles. There is no downtime as the injections will start showing results from the fourth day onwards and will last for 3-4 months. With subsequent injections, the results last longer.

Usually we see Western and Lebanese women in their early forties coming in for Botox injections. Some of the patients might develop mild headache and bruising but side effects of Botox injections are extremely rare and uncommon.

4. What's the age range of your patients?
The female patients belong to the older age limit while the male patients are in the younger age limit. Majority of the male patients are in their early 20s and come in for post acne scars, chin changes, nose reshaping. For nose correction, the male to female ratio is 50:50

5. So who forms a major part of the patients?
The multinational community of Dubai. Compared to the US and the private sector in the UK, cosmetic surgery is cost effective here. Americans, British, Russians, people from former soviet blocs form the majority. Among the Arab population, UAE nationals, Lebanese and Syrians appear more keen about cosmetic surgery. We also get south Asians mainly coming for tummy tucks and body contour procedures.

6. You said that cosmetic surgery is fast gaining grounds among the general public. What has brought about the change in attitude in people about cosmetic surgery?
People have been hesitant to try cosmetic surgery on account of several things. One was the fear of the unknown. Not many people had any idea about the procedures involved in cosmetic surgery. But with the advent of many women's magazines and their coverage of issues concerning cosmetic surgery, the awareness level has increased.

Another reason was the mindset of the people -a little bit of 'don't fix it until it is not broken'attitude. I am not ill, then why should I go see a doctor?

But with affluence, lifestyles have changed, leisure avenues have increased, the quality of life has improved considerably. People have begun to value the quality of life more. Now a lady with two or more children does not accept abdominal sagging due to repeated pregnancies. She still wants to wear jeans and t-shirts. She sees cosmetic surgery as an option to improve her appearance and goes and does it.

Yet there are many others who agonise over a problem [that can easily be fixed] thinking that "plastic surgery is not for me". One has to understand that cosmetic surgery is not exotic any more.

7. Would the cost of cosmetic surgery be a factor in it not being accepted widely?
The cost is a perceived factor. Cosmetic surgery is not necessarily costly compared to other types of surgery when you take into consideration the time, magnitude and complexity involved. For instance, liposuction costs between dhs 12000-20,000 and breast corrections between dhs 18,000-28,000.

Moreover it is a one-time expense with permanent effect. It has to be seen against recurrent expenses like going to beauty parlours for temporary contouring procedures such as body wraps and such.

8. Then is it the lack of awareness on the part of the general public that has been acting as a dampener in the wide spread adoption of cosmetic surgery?
We cannot say that there is necessarily a correlation between awareness levels and adoption of cosmetic surgery. People might be aware of cosmetic surgery as a means to enhance their appearance. But that doesn't entail that they go to a cosmetic surgeon to improve their looks.

If we take a look at the number of people who come for cosmetic surgery, only about 10 % come having been sufficiently aware of cosmetic surgery procedures. Most of them come because they have a problem and they need a solution to it without being aware that a solution exists.

Many people still consider cosmetic surgery as a solution for people belonging to the upscale high society, people who are in the media glare. But the situation is changing with more and more people coming forward to have cosmetic surgery. And the type of people who come forward is broadening.