Liposuction and Plastic Surgery Information - Suicides linked to cosmetic surgery

Suicides linked to cosmetic surgery

Monday, 23 October 2006

Women who have received breast implants are up to three times more likely to commit suicide. One theory that has been put forward for the statistic is that leaks from breast implants could alter the patient's brain chemistry thereby making them more vulnerable to suicide or self harm. However surgeons and psychological experts suggests that while there may be a statistical link between having cosmetic surgery and committing suicide, the relationship between the two is not causal, i.e. the suicide is not caused by the cosmetic surgery, and that a third factor actually links the two issues.

The discovery of a statistical link between cosmetic surgery and suicide was serendipitous, since it was only discovered as a result of studies looking for a possible link between silicone breast implants and cancers, auto-immune diseases and other disorders. These studies failed in their intended purpose of discovering any such link, but researchers were amazed to discover that women who had undergone breast augmentation surgery were 2 to 3 times more likely to commit suicide than the general population.

In one of the studies Dr Sarwer, of the Centre for Human Appearance and the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine in Philadelphia, found that nearly 1 in 5 of patients undergoing cosmetic surgery was taking medication for a psychiatric condition, usually an anti-depressant. However, only 1 in 20 of patients undergoing non-cosmetic surgery were taking similar drugs.

"The only consistent finding from all the studies has been the unexpected one of suicide," said Dr Joseph McLaughlin, director of the International Epidemiology Institute in Rockville, Maryland, responsible for conducting some of the studies.

The most plausible explanation for the link between cosmetic surgery and suicide lies in a combination of lower self-esteem of patients electing for cosmetic surgery and a separate condition of body dysmorphic disorder, or "imagined ugliness". Patients with this psychiatric condition will either identify features of their body that are perfectly normal, or slight imperfections that they then exaggerate in terms of importance or noticeability, focusing on this condition until it assumes a disproportionate influence on their happiness and wellbeing.

Consequently, a woman with, for example, moderately sized breasts, or mild breast asymmetry, may convince herself that breast augmentation surgery is necessary for her wellbeing, only to discover that post-surgery, her mental state has not improved, and she will most likely feel that the operation has not been a success, or she will shift her focus to another area of her body that she feels is a problem that needs to be corrected through further cosmetic surgery.

The link between cosmetic surgery, BDD and suicide is not confined to females only, with one researcher commenting on the relatively high rate of suicide among males who had opted for rhinoplast or penile cosmetic surgery.

A study by Dr Sarwer of the Centre for Human Appearance and the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine in Philadelphia showed that 2.5 per cent of female American college students suffer from BDD. A separate study found that a person suffering from BDD is 45 times as likely as normal to commit suicide, more than twice the suicide rate of people with major depression and three times that of people with bipolar disorder.

According to a recent survey, over 56 per cent of women and 43 per cent of men are dissatisfied with their appearance, although this level of dissatisfaction with appearance and body shape should not be confused with the more extreme condition of BDD.

Tags: addiction, breast implants, depression, self esteem,