American seniors aged 65 and over accounted for 7.3 percent of cosmetic plastic surgery procedures, a total of 685,000, last year according to the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery. Other countries are seeing the same trend. In the United Kingdom, plastic surgeons report a staggering 303 percent rise in the number of women in their 60s undergoing plastic surgery, and a 168 percent rise among men of the same age group. Those figures flip-flop a bit when patients reach their 70s. A full 175-percent growth is seen among men, and a 133-percent growth among women 70 and older.

Plastic surgeons point to several driving factors. Seniors are generally healthier today that their parents were at the same age, thanks in large part to medical advances and to the Internet providing easier access to medical and health information. Today's financial crunch has many seniors working into their would-be retirement years or even launching new businesses and careers. Plus, divorce and remarrying after a spouse's death is no longer the taboo that it was for the elderly of prior generations, so larger numbers of seniors are back in the dating game. Such was the impetus for a recent headline-grabbing story about an 83-year-old woman undergoing a breast augmentation.

"I was reading an online article about this patient recently and saw a commenter post that '83-year-olds shouldn't be going on dates. They should be knitting sweaters and baking cookies,'" said Dr. Roberto Garcia of Garcia Facial Plastic Surgery in Jacksonville. "It's a laughable statement at best. Today's seniors are active and physically fit, they're far savvier about their health than generations before, they're dating, they're dancing and they want their outside appearance to match the vitality they have on the inside."

Dr. Garcia does have a few health tips for prospective elder patients, however. It's critical that patients 65 and older be in relatively good health, that prospective patients with certain medical conditions be thoroughly screened prior to cosmetic surgery, and that they have realistic expectations of a surgery's outcome. Exercise, eat nutritious meals, drink lots of water and maintain an effective skincare routine, Dr. Garcia recommends.

Still, advances in healthcare have significantly reduced many prior risks. For instance, local anesthesia is more commonly used than general anesthesia today, meaning that a patient's heart and lungs are performing in the same conditions as when a patient is awake. And a recent study by the Cleveland Clinic concluded that elderly patients are at no significantly greater risk for plastic surgery complications today than are younger patients.

If you're a senior considering plastic surgery, Jacksonville's Garcia Facial Plastic Surgery is your top choice. Call 904-247-8522 to schedule a consultation.