4 Global Trends Changing Aesthetic Plastic Surgery
Traveling internationally in his current leadership role with the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, Dr. Bob Basu shares new insights from around the world that have less to do with trends and more to do with people feeling healthier and wanting to look the part.
Across countries and cultures, a global rise in cosmetic surgery is taking place as people are losing significant weight, living longer, and paying more attention to how their face and body reflect that change.
But that growth comes with challenges. In many countries, it takes only months of training to start doing cosmetic procedures, versus years for board-certified surgeons in the U.S., and social media suggests everyone is equally qualified.
Dr. Basu explains why safety and progress don’t have to be mutually exclusive, and why high standards still matter no matter where surgery happens.
Read more about Houston plastic surgeon Dr. Bob Basu
Dr. Bob Basu, MD, MBA, MPH, FACS, is a nationally recognized, board-certified plastic surgeon and President-Elect of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS). As founder and managing director of Basu Aesthetics + Plastic Surgery in Houston, Texas, he has performed more than 18,000 procedures and is trusted by patients across the nation to deliver natural, beautiful results in breast and body contouring, facial rejuvenation, and complex revision surgery. Dr. Basu is a leading voice in surgical safety, innovation, and modern aesthetic standards. Known for his artistry, compassion, and elevated patient experience, he combines surgical precision with a deeply personal approach to help every patient feel confident and empowered.
Basu Aesthetics + Plastic Surgery is located in Northwest Houston in the Towne Lake area of Cypress. To learn more about the practice or ask a question, go to https://www.basuplasticsurgery.com/podcast
On Instagram, follow Dr. Basu and the team @basuplasticsurgery
Behind the Double Doors is a production of The Axis
Theme music: Be Your Light, CLNGR
Dr. Basu (00:11):
You're listening to Behind the Double Doors. I'm Dr. Bob Basu, board certified plastic surgery in Houston, Texas. I'm also serving as the president of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, which is the world's largest organization of board certified plastic surgeons with over 11,000 members globally. This podcast, I'd like to share some presidential observations as I travel domestically around the world, representing our great specialty and engage with surgeons around the world. So there's a few observations that I've made. One is that cosmetic plastic surgery demand is booming worldwide. Regardless of the local culture, what language you're speaking, what they look like, demand is booming. And I think there's a common denominator regardless of cultural background, religion, and what we look like, what we eat, is that patients around the world are getting healthier and they want to look as good as they feel. Just like in the United States, GLP-1s are also around the world.
(01:08):
Patients are losing weight globally and they're getting healthier and they want to look as good as they feel. And with weight loss, there's volume loss, there's loose skin. And so we are seeing global demand for cosmetic plastic surgery. The second observation I'm making is even though we may be practicing in different countries, there's different regulations, plastic surgeons share some common challenges. With this increase in demand, we are seeing non-plastic surgeons, people who are not trained or especially coming in wanting to be cosmetic surgeons. And look, there's the financial driver, right? Cosmetic plastic surgery is not covered by insurance. It's cash pay. It can be potentially profitable. But the problem is you're having people who are not properly trained doing these surgeries. And I think this is a common problem that my colleagues around the world face is that you're seeing people that are taking weekend courses or a three to six month fellowship to train and offer services that normally take five, six, seven, nine years to train to have a mastery and expertise to take care of patients safely.
(02:15):
So scope of practice, meaning people who are pretending to be plastic surgeons is a common problem around the world. And so solutions to address these challenges are that we have to tell patients, not just in the United States, but around the world, you have to do your homework. And that means make sure you go to a board certified plastic surgeon, someone who's properly trained in the specialty, someone that has the right experience, someone has that extensive experience in terms of before, after pictures, that they're doing the surgical procedure at a fully accredited or licensed surgery center or hospital. So I think patients around the world, the messaging is common. Do your homework. And because remember, plastic surgery is a real surgery. There are risks and you want to go to someone that has the right experience to minimize their risks. And God forbid, you have a complication or slow healing, you're with a surgical team that knows how to get you healed to happy place.
(03:10):
The third observation I'm making is about innovation. As American surgeons, we've always prided ourselves to be leaders globally in healthcare in terms of the quality and outcomes that we achieve for our patients. And I think that's still true, but there's a certain unease that I'm seeing. And that discomfort comes from the challenges American surgeons, particularly plastic surgeons are facing accessing new technologies because of government regulations. And what I mean by that is the FDA. Around the world, our colleagues are getting access to new technologies and modalities where we don't have access to some of those technologies until five, 10, 15 years later. And that puts American surgeons behind and who suffers are patients. Now, I understand that with the FDA, they have to balance innovation and access to new technology with safety.
(04:00):
I'm not trying to say we should throw safety to the wind. Safety is always the most important thing, but there's a balance. And I think we can do better as a country in allowing our physicians and surgeons access to new technologies so we can safely innovate and provide better care for our patients. And I hope the FDA is listening that if we don't open up innovation, then not just plastic surgeons, but American surgeons and physicians will fall behind one day. We're not there yet, but I think we need to do a better job as a country helping our physicians and surgeons get better access to new technologies so we can help patients faster and better. Last but not least, observation. As I travel the world, despite my commentary about innovation, I still think the standards for quality and safety are the best in the United States and the world as I travel.
(04:54):
Now, other countries are doing a great job emulating what we're doing, but emulation or imitation is the best form of flattery. I think the standards that we have in the United States are by far the best, the quality and safety standards. Now, I understand that there are a lot of challenges in our healthcare system. The costs are simply too high. I get it. And that's a complex discussion likely outside of the scope of this podcast that we're not going to solve today, but I still think we should feel proud that the standards for quality and safety, the expectations for what we deliver are high. And I think we should feel proud of the system that we have in terms of quality and safety. Those are just four brief observations that I've been making during my travels internationally, serving this role as president of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons.
(05:42):
And I hope this was helpful to share some insights from a high level view for our specialty. As I continue my travels, you can follow me on Instagram at Basu Plastic Surgery, and I'll come back in a few months with more observations.
Announcer (05:59):
Basu Plastic Surgery and Aesthetics is located in Northwest Houston in the Towne Lake area of Cypress. To learn more about the practice or ask a question, go to basuplasticsurgery.com/podcast. On Instagram, follow Dr. Basu and the team @BasuPlasticSurgery. That's B-A-S-U Plastic Surgery. Behind the Double Doors is a production of The Axis, T-H-E-A-X-I-S.io.