More men go under the knife

Face off: Julian McMahon and Dylan Walsh star as vain plastic surgeons in Nip/Tuck on Sky One, Tuesdays at 10pm

Cosmetic surgery is rapidly becoming as popular among men as it is among women, it emerged today.

New figures reveal that the number of males signing up for procedures such as liposuction and nose jobs is soaring.

Almost half of all treatments carried out by one top clinic are now on male patients - while a rival clinic says male clients have doubled in the past two years.

Experts say the demand reflects growing pressure on men to look good, with increasing numbers willing to take drastic measures to improve their appearance.

But the boom will fuel fears over standards in the industry - with mounting concern over shoddy practices by some clinics. Spot checks by government inspectors in London last year revealed that many firms do not even check their surgeons' qualifications and identities, raising serious questions over patient safety.

The report prompted Chief Medical Officer Sir Liam Donaldson to order a full review of the industry.

The new statistics were released by cosmetic surgery giants Transform and rival clinic the Harley Medical Group. Both companies have a network of clinics across the UK.

Two years ago, just a handful of men a year approached Transform about surgery, with male clients making up just five per cent of the overall customer base. Latest figures from the company show that one in 10 of its cosmetic surgery operations are now carried out on men - with at least 1,500 male patients undergoing treatment every year.

The majority of those prepared to go under the knife are aged between 31 and 40, with nose jobs by far the most popular procedures.

However, liposuction - sometimes on the chest - penis extensions and eye bag removal are also in heavy demand.

Lindsay Mullins, spokeswoman for Transform, which is now opening a specialist men's division, said: "These figures prove that more and more men are opting for surgery to change both their body shape and facial features."

Last month, it emerged that Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi had undergone cosmetic surgery on his eyes to make him look less tired. Ms Mullins said: "As more and more high-profile celebrities and public figures undergo surgery, the subject has become more widely discussed and accepted as the norm among men."

Rival cosmetic surgery firm, the Harley Medical Group, which has 10 clinics nationwide, says male patients now account for 40 per cent of all annual procedures.

The majority of cosmetic surgery procedures at UK clinics cost between £3,000 and £5,000.

Louise Braham, director of the Harley Medical Group, said: "Most requested procedures among male patients are gynaecomostia - liposuction to the male chest - nose reshaping, ears pinned back, and penis extensions."

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in