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CC BY-NC 4.0 · Arch Plast Surg 2015; 42(05): 567-571
DOI: 10.5999/aps.2015.42.5.567
Original Article

Effects of Bariatric Surgery on Facial Features

Vardan Papoian
MedStar Washington Hospital Center, Washington, DC, USA
,
Vartan Mardirossian
Department of Surgery, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, USA
,
Donald Thomas Hess
Department of Surgery, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, USA
,
Jeffrey H Spiegel
Department of Surgery, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, USA
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Background Bariatric surgeries performed in the USA has increased twelve-fold in the past two decades. The effects of rapid weight loss on facial features has not been previously studied. We hypothesized that bariatric surgery will mimic the effects of aging thus giving the patient an older and less attractive appearance.

Methods Consecutive patients were enrolled from the bariatric surgical clinic at our institution. Pre and post weight loss photographs were taken and used to generate two surveys. The surveys were distributed through social media to assess the difference between the preoperative and postoperative facial photos, in terms of patients' perceived age and overall attractiveness. 102 respondents completed the first survey and 95 respondents completed the second survey.

Results Of the 14 patients, five showed statistically significant change in perceived age (three more likely to be perceived older and two less likely to be perceived older). The patients were assessed to be more attractive postoperatively, which showed statistical significance.

Conclusions Weight loss does affect facial aesthetics. Mild weight loss is perceived by survey respondents to give the appearance of a younger but less attractive patient, while substantial weight loss is perceived to give the appearance of an older but more attractive patient.

Keywords

Bariatric surgery - Age factors - Aesthetics - Weight loss - Weight reduction


Publication History

Received: 02 December 2014

Accepted: 01 June 2015

Article published online:
05 May 2022

© 2015. The Korean Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons. This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License, permitting unrestricted noncommercial use, distribution, and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commercial purposes. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/)

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