title: Differential trends in racial preferences for cosmetic surgery procedures.
abstract: There appears to be an increasing acceptance of cosmetic surgery procedures among minority populations in America. Our objective was to determine trends in elective cosmetic procedure utilization as they apply to racial/ethnic differences. A retrospective analysis was performed using  the Nationwide Inpatient Sample. Adult patients undergoing elective cosmetic procedures defined by the appropriate International Classification of Disease 9 Clinical Modification procedure codes were included. Demographic characteristics and hospital course particulars were evaluated. There  were 71,775 patients meeting the inclusion criteria. Median age was 48 years. The majority were female (90%), and white (65%). The median household income for the patient's zip code was most commonly in the highest economic quartile (4th quartile, 40%). The most common cosmetic procedure was  liposuction (67%). The overall mean percentage change in the frequency of these procedures showed a 1.8 per cent decline among white patients, whereas Black, Hispanic, Asian, and Native American patients had an increase of 7.5 per cent, 4.7 per cent, 14.5 per cent, and 105.5 per cent, respectively.  We conclude that there is an identified increasing trend in the proportion of racial/ethnic minorities represented among the recipients of cosmetic surgery procedures.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Howard University College of Medicine, Washington, DC, USA.
authors.forename: Tahira I
authors.initials: TI
authors.lastname: Prendergast
authors.forename: Sharon K
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Ong'uti
authors.forename: Gezzer
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Ortega
authors.forename: Amal L
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Khoury
authors.forename: Ekene
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Onwuka
authors.forename: Oluwaseyi B
authors.initials: OB
authors.lastname: Bolorunduro
authors.forename: Edward E
authors.initials: EE
authors.lastname: Cornwell
authors.forename: Henry
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Paul
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D015331:Cohort Studies; D016208:Databases, Factual; D004954:Esthetics; D005006:Ethnicity / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008913:Minority Groups / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D057240:Patient Preference / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D017060:Patient Satisfaction / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D015995:Prevalence; D044469:Racial Groups / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012737:Sex Factors; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013518:Surgery, Plastic / Q000379:methods / Q000639:trends*; D014481:United States; D055815:Young Adult