The Psychological Impact of Aesthetic Surgery: A Mini-Review

The purpose of this summary is to outline the available research on the psychological factors associated with aesthetic surgery. Aesthetic procedures such as abdominoplasty, breast augmentation, face lift, and rhinoplasty are shown to have unique preoperative and postoperative psychological factors. Depression and anxiety may occur after aesthetic procedures with an increased incidence in patients with certain depression prone personality traits. The pre-existing psychology of patients is also an important contributing factor to consider when evaluating surgical candidates. Pre-existing mood disorders such as depression and anxiety are shown with higher incidence in individuals pursuing aesthetic procedures and can predispose such individuals to worsening mood symptoms postoperatively. This article aims to equip surgeons with a better understanding of the common psychological factors seen in the field of aesthetic surgery, so patients can be better supported throughout all parts of the surgical process.