‘Image Enhancement’: A New Profile

Cosmetic surgery, once considered the province of wealthy, appearance-conscious celebrities, is gaining favor among the masses. Doctors say they’re seeing younger and lower-income patients, as well as more men.

Here are some facts about cosmetic surgery in this country:

* Up to 3 million “image-enhancement” operations are performed each year, according to a 1990 congressional report.

* The American Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons says the number of cosmetic procedures performed by its 4,500 members rose 63% from 1981 to 1988. Liposuction, the vacuuming of fat, is the most popular operation, followed by breast enhancement and eyelid surgery.

* About 30% of plastic surgery patients earn $25,000 or less a year, the surgeons’ society says. About 65% earn less than $50,000.

* Enough patients are teen-agers that the surgeons’ society has published a guide to surgery for teens. Usually appropriate, the group says: improving a teen’s self-image with ear surgery or a nose job. Inappropriate: enlarging breasts before age 18. The group recommends patience here, not surgery.

* Men accounted for 22% of facial surgery done by the surgical society’s members in 1988, and for 30% of procedures done by doctors in another professional group, the American Academy of Cosmetic Surgery.

* The latest fads in cosmetic surgery: women plumping up their lips with collagen or silicone for a pouting, kissable look; men pumping up their pecs with plastic inserts for the Arnold Schwarzenegger look.

* More than 2 million women had their breasts enlarged in the last 25 years. The Food and Drug Administration, concerned about ruptured implants and new research suggesting a cancer risk, told implant makers last month that they must prove the devices are safe or stop selling them.