There seems to be no question that cosmetic surgical and non-surgical procedures are not just for younger patients. Today, many older patients are looking toward procedures such as facelifts, BOTOX® injections, dermal fillers, dermabrasion, or chemical peels as ways to improve their features. Of course, there is often concern about the safety of such procedures for older patients. In fact, Dr. Paul Pin has had many of his older prospective patients express such worries when they come to see him for an initial consultation visit. In fact, not only are more older patients than ever before deciding to undergo cosmetic procedures, some interesting recent research makes a strong case for seniors' safety.

By the Numbers

First, let's look at how many older patients are undergoing cosmetic procedures today. According to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS, the largest professional organization for plastic surgeons), patients between the ages of 40 and 54 comprised the majority (49 percent or almost 7.5 million procedures) of all cosmetic surgical or non-surgical procedures performed by ASPS member surgeons in 2015. Of these, 543,000 were surgical procedures, while almost 7 million were non-surgical. Furthermore, patients age 55 and older underwent almost 4 million total cosmetic procedures, of which 373,000 were surgical and more than 3.5 million were non-surgical.

For both age groups, non-surgical procedures were more popular than surgical ones, with BOTOX® injections proving to be the most popular one: More than 3.8 million procedures for patients from ages 40 to 54, and more than 1.5 million for patients over the age of 55. Other popular procedures included dermal fillers, chemical peels, and laser resurfacing of the skin.

Are Cosmetic Procedures More Risky for Older Patients?

Given the number of older patients opting for cosmetic procedures, asking about risk makes sense. A paper presented at the 2014 ASPS Annual Meeting looked at complication rates for older patients undergoing cosmetic procedures. In looking at medical record databases from May 2008 to May 2013, the researchers found that older patients (average age 69) had a post-operative complication rate of 1.94 percent, which was almost identical to the 1.84 percent complication risk for younger patients (average age 39). When the researchers expanded their study to look at complication rates for patients in their 80s, there was still little difference (2.2 percent) from that of the other two age groups. Interestingly, these rates were all similar, even though the older patients had more health issues than younger ones. These included a higher Body Mass Index (25.4 percent vs, 24.2 percent) and a higher incident of diabetes (5.7 percent vs. 1.6 percent).

The lead researcher explained, "With increasing number of elderly patients seeking aesthetic surgery there is a need to better understand the complications of cosmetic procedures unique to this population. Our study demonstrated that patients over 65 years old can safely undergo cosmetic procedures with a complications rate similar to younger patients when surgery is performed by a board certified plastic surgeon."

It is clear that not only are more older adults enjoying the benefits of cosmetic procedures, but there is very little additional risk of postoperative complications when compared to younger patients.