Cosmetic Surgery for Teenagers

The recent news about Charice Pempengco receiving Botox and Thermage treatments has stirred up controversy worldwide. The controversy centers mainly on the question on whether teenagers should be undergoing cosmetic treatments at a relatively early age. In my practice, I do not encourage cosmetic surgery in teens unless there are serious issues about a teenager's self-esteem that can only be corrected with a surgical procedure. If there is a history of the teenager suffering emotionally because of a body feature such as a saddle nose or a flat chest, there may be justification for performing cosmetic surgery to improve the teenager's self-esteem.

In the case of the procedures Charice Pempengco underwent, we are not dealing with deformities brought about by a congenital deformity (such as cleft lip or palate) or due to trauma (such as car accidents or burns) but instead, doing procedures on a normal-looking teen. There have been conflicting reports about why she underwent these procedures. If she was experiencing jaw pain, this can be an indication for treatment with botulinum toxin injections. If done for cosmetic reasons, the question is whether she underwent these procedures because she herself was bothered about the fullness of her face. I believe that a doctor should not convince a patient that she needs a certain procedure if she herself does not bring up a concern about a certain feature. Even parents should not convince their children to undergo cosmetic procedures. It can be harmful to a child's self esteem to be told she/ he needs a cosmetic procedure.

Aside from the issue of Charice Pempengco's age, another concern is the fact that the procedures were done publicly, with entertainment reporters witnessing the event and writing about it. As a plastic surgeon, this concerns me because we don't want to send the wrong message about these procedures. First of all, we don't want full-faced individuals, especially teenagers, to come to the conclusion that having a full face is something that needs correcting. Because she is a public figure and she underwent these procedures publicly, Charice Pempengco seems to have given this message, even if unintentionally.

Also, doing the procedures publicly seems to trivialize cosmetic procedures because people can get the impression that these are beauty parlor procedures. In my practice, I have seen many patients who have undergone some procedures in places like beauty parlors and who require some kind of corrective surgery. Cosmetic procedures should not be taken lightly and even seemingly simple procedures like nose augmentation and eyelid surgery can have serious complications when not done by qualified, board certified doctors.

Read more of these articles:How to Select a Qualified Plastic SurgeonThe Cosmetic Surgery Scene in the Philippines

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