A late-January report from the American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery revealed a significant increase in patients telling their surgeons they were choosing their procedures with the goal of looking better in selfies. Numbers from the annual survey by the AAFPRS showed a 13-percent increase in that driving factor from 2016 to 2017—which means a full 55 percent of the patients approaching member surgeons did so because of how they look (or want to look) on social media.

“Selfies” first landed on the survey radar three years ago, when doctors began reporting the photographic self-portraits as a reason cited by patients coming to them for a facial change, whether surgical or nonsurgical. Chosen treatments and procedures include Botulinum toxin type A injections (a simple injection that relaxes wrinkle-forming muscles) and blepharoplasty (a surgery that can improve the look and function of the upper eyelids, lower eyelids, or both).

Given that selfies have gone from zero to a major driver in the industry in just a few years, the academy dubbed them a “cultural force, not fad.”

Also among the results, 57 percent of the facial plastic surgeons in the survey noted that patients reported a desire to remain competitive in the workplace as a motivator for making a cosmetic change. A full 73 percent of the AAFPRS members said that blepharoplasty was a rising trend in 2017, performed on patients who wanted to look less tired.

Whether it’s for Instagram or a shot at a promotion and a raise, facial procedures are clearly growing in popularity throughout the United States.

Dr. Stanley Jacobs is an American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery member devoted to facial plastic surgery at Sonoma County’s Jacobs Center for Cosmetic Surgery. Find out more about blepharoplasty, wrinkle-reducing injectables, and other options for facial rejuvenation by contacting his office in Healdsburg at (707) 473-0220. Or book a consultation online via his Contact Us page.