Page 42 - Plasticos-Vol-3

Another interesting aspect concerns the the repercussions of a slower economy,
trend in the last decades of the costs meeting the needs of their patients. This is
of aesthetic surgery, regardless of any achieved primarily by reducing the costs of its
extemporaneous economic situation. performance. According to the Association of
The aesthetic surgery market has some Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ASAPS) the average
peculiarities that make it unique in the cost of breast augmentation has continued
context of all the health services. First of all, as to decline over the past few years. In 2007, for
we said, the operations of aesthetic surgery example, it was about 4,000 dollars, while in
are not covered neither by the national health 2009 it fell to just under 3,800. The same goes
system nor by the insurances: the patients for Italy where five years ago the cost of breast
must in other words pay their own treatment augmentation was around 6,500-7,000 euros,
for the treatment. For this reason, patients while today it may fall to 5,000- 5500 euros.
of aesthetic surgery are very attentive to the
costs of the operation they wish to undergo
and often compare the prices offered by
various surgeons. All this promotes a fierce
competition among professionals in the
same geographical areas and promotes cost
transparency that does not exist in any other
medical area. The end result is a progressive
reduction over the years of the cost of many
surgical interventions. For example, in an
in-depth study of 2007 the authors found
that between 1992 and 2005 the number of
cosmetic surgery treatments increased by
600% while their cost grew by only 22%, much
less than to all other health treatments (+
77%) and consumer goods in general (+ 39%).
This is yet another demonstration of how a
very competitive market like that of aesthetic
surgery has responded to a greater request
from the customers with a progressive
decrease of the costs. Many plastic surgeons
have learned to adapt to these changes in
economic trends and are able to absorb

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