Plastic Surgery: Its History and Its Future
Written By: Ananya Venkatachalam
This is the golden age of plastic surgery — with the social media and entertainment surge, more and more ordinary people are visiting plastic surgeons with a desired “celebrity” look in mind. There has always been a 50/50 divide when it comes to this branch of surgery; some would say there’s no harm in wanting to enhance your look, while others would argue that it’s extremely harmful, and can even lead to death. But this practice, regardless of the argument, is deeply rooted in history and has both an extensive past and a bright future.
Let’s start at the beginning. The word “plastic” in plastic surgery means “modeling” or “reshaping”, and it usually pertains to the flesh. Records can be seen dated from 1598. There are also manuscripts from India regarding facial reconstruction, especially that of the nose. Early on, surgery had branched out into cosmetic and reconstructive subtypes. Around the 18th century, European doctors and medical professionals began to experiment with skin grafting, performing minor surgeries in areas like the mouth. In the Civil War era, many soldiers were the first to get plastic surgery done when they lost noses or ears in battle. The history of American plastic surgery is rich as well. The first American plastic surgeon, John Peter Mattauer, performed the first operation on a cleft palate. Noses had always been popular in plastic surgery history, but in the 19th century, noses went from being reconstructed to being cosmetically altered. Additionally, as the age of Hollywood arrived and beauty standards heightened, more and more people, especially women, went in to have cosmetic surgery. It was the first time in modern history where people truly discovered that they could alter their looks voluntarily and that they did not always need surgery. Over time, sub-specialties have arisen as well, such as aesthetic surgery and craniofacial surgery.
The prospects of plastic surgery seem to be high. As beauty standards are constantly changing and social media grows more and more, we can only look ahead in terms of look-alteration. There have already been unthinkable advancements, like the usage of one’s own skin cells to repair burns, but as time passes, we only begin to imagine the leaps plastic surgery will take.
Sources
https://www.plasticsurgery.org/about-asps/history-of-plastic-surgery
https://crispinplasticsurgery.com/20-interesting-facts-about-cosmetic-surgery/
