Why Go Abroad For Cosmetic Surgery?

During the past decade there has been a growing trend in the number of people seeking cosmetic surgery abroad, and if you are thinking about having surgery, then this is something that you may also have considered.

Having cosmetic surgery in your own country has several advantages. First, you won’t have to travel very far, which means you will save money on travel expenses and will be able to afford to meet your surgeon during the consultation phase. Because you aren’t leaving your country, you won’t have to worry about any language barriers either.

If you live in a western country, such as the UK, USA or somewhere in Europe, you may also feel safer having cosmetic surgery in your own country as you know that it has a good standard of health care. However, despite the many advantages of having cosmetic surgery at home, some people still choose to have their cosmetic surgery done overseas. Below, we will look at some of the most common reasons as to why this is the case.

Why Have Cosmetic Surgery Abroad?

Because cosmetic surgery has become so popular and there is such a great demand for it, cosmetic surgeons are popping up all over the place throughout the world. As a result, a country which has a favourable exchange rate to your own currency can make the cosmetic procedure you want to have done very inexpensive.

To get an idea as to how much cosmetic surgery will cost in another country you can use a currency converter, such as this one, to quickly determine the cost in your own currency.

Due to the fact that you can get plastic surgery done less expensively abroad, also means that you can probably get your procedure done sooner than you would be able to in your own country as it will take you less time to save up the money required to pay for the procedure.

One word of caution though when going abroad purely for low cost bargain cosmetic surgery. Make sure that you are in fact going to a surgeon who is fully qualified to do the procedure you want to have done, and operates from a reputable medical facility or hospital.

There is no point in having plastic surgery done abroad if you are going to get a bad result, as that will just mean that you will end up having to pay for a revision surgery in order to correct the mistakes your surgeon made when he first operated on you.

So going overseas can end up costing you more if you are not careful of where you go. The best way to minimize your risk of going to a bad cosmetic surgeon is by only going to cosmetic surgeons who have been recommended to you by past patients.

You should be able to find such recommendations quite easily online by visiting cosmetic surgery forums that talk about having cosmetic surgery abroad.

Travel Costs & Related Factors

Whilst you are likely to find that cosmetic surgery certainly can be cheaper abroad, you also need to factor in the cost of transport which will usually involve flying. But providing you book your flight well in advance, it shouldn’t cost you too much.

Due to the travel costs associated with going abroad, having cosmetic surgery in another country is therefore not a cost effective option for minor procedures, such as Botox or liposuction, as these are usually cheaper to do in your home country. For this reason, people who do choose to have plastic surgery abroad very often get multiple procedures done at once in order to make their journey cost effective and worthwhile.

Another point to consider is how far you have to travel, or how far you are willing to travel to have your procedure done as that will make up a big part of the overall cost of your cosmetic surgery.

Generally, it is recommended that you try to travel to a country that is as close as possible to your own country. The reason for this is that by travelling to a nearby destination you will be able to save a significant amount of money on travel expenses than if you were going half way across the world.

Also, if your surgeon is in a nearby country, it won’t be so difficult for you to go see them post surgery, which you may need to do for a check-up or if you suffer from any post surgical complications that require medical attention. So where you should go for cosmetic surgery really depends on where you live. But here are some suggestions:

If your home country is Canada or the United States, you might want to look into having your cosmetic surgery done in Cuba or Latin America.

If you live in Australia, Asia can be a good place to have cosmetic surgery done cost effectively.

For those in Western Europe and the United Kingdom, Eastern Europe is probably your best bet for getting low cost cosmetic surgery.

Of course, you may in fact have to travel further than you had hoped, for example, if you are seeing a specialist surgeon who practices in a country very far away from your own. Typically, this will usually be for speciality procedures such as a sex change operation which tends to be predominantly done in Asia.

Plastic Surgery With Privacy

You may not feel comfortable getting plastic surgery done where you live because you don’t want other people to know about it.

If you get plastic surgery done abroad however, you can tell people that you are going on holiday while you get your operation done. This is a great way to be discrete about your cosmetic surgery and something which celebrities often do.

For example, when Britney Spears was reported to have been released from hospital after breaking her leg, many people suspected she had actually undergone breast augmentation.

Greater Range Of Nip & Tuck Procedures

You may find that the operation you want to have done isn’t performed in your country, or if it is, you feel that you would receive better results if you went abroad.

One of the most common cosmetic procedures that people prefer to go abroad for is gender reassignment surgery, also known as a sex change operation, as countries such as Thailand can offer better results than what many people could get at home.

Some people also choose to have cosmetic surgery abroad in order to receive a medical device that has not yet been approved in their own country. For example, women who wanted to have “gummy bear” silicone breast implants were required to travel outside the United States due to this type of implant having not yet received approval by the FDA.

So in some cases, you may be forced to undergo a surgical or medical procedure abroad due to restrictions in your home country which prevent you from getting what you want.

Reduced Waiting Times

An added benefit of having plastic surgery abroad is that you will usually experience much shorter waiting times than you would experience at home for any particular type of surgery. For example, in the UK, you can expect to wait 3-6 months for rhinoplasty surgery if you are going with a well known large national firm.

However, if you want to go with a private surgeon because you feel that they would give you better results, you could be looking at a waiting time of 6-12 months for your rhinoplasty surgery! So if you are in a rush to get your surgery done, then going overseas may be your best option for getting a speedy result.

Some medical tourism surgery destinations for example, such as the Bumrungrad International Hospital in Thailand, can offer you surgery pretty much instantly within days or weeks of your desired surgery date. The reason such medical facilities can do this is because they largely operate on patients from abroad, as most local residents are unable to afford the cost of cosmetic surgery.

As a result, not only do you get a low cost plastic surgery, but you will usually also be operated on in a first class establishment that is designed to meet western standards both in terms of the quality of the treatment and care that you receive.

More Skilled Plastic Surgeons

If you find that you could receive better results from having your plastic surgery done abroad, then it is likely because that country has better surgeons which specialize in the procedure you want to have done. For example, sex change operations are relatively uncommon in western countries but are carried out quite regularly in countries such as Thailand.

This means that the surgeons in Thailand are much more experienced at sex change operations than surgeons in Great Britain or the United States and so can give better results.

Cosmetic Surgery Vacation

If you are going to visit a new country it’s nice to look around, do some shopping and experience the local culture which is why some people like to combine cosmetic surgery with a vacation. If you know the date of your procedure, you can arrive in advance and enjoy yourself first. Then when you eventually return home, you will have had a great holiday and a great looking new body too!

People who travel with the intention of having a cosmetic procedure done in addition to seeing a country for leisure reasons is referred to as medical tourism, and is something that has steadily been increasing in popularity over the past few years as the price of surgery and the price of airline travel have both decreased.

Popular destinations for medical tourism include Turkey, Malta, India, Poland, China, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, the Philippines, Brazil, Mexico, Costa Rica and some Eastern European countries such as Estonia.

Typically, the people who travel to such exotic destinations are usually individuals from wealthier countries such as the UK, USA, Germany, France and Australia where the exchange rate makes the cost of a procedure cheaper in less wealthier countries.

If you are interested in medical tourism, or having a so called “cosmetic surgery vacation”, then it may be worth speaking with the company that you are thinking of having your procedure with as they will likely be able to offer you some kind of package deal where you are provided with accommodation, transportation and food.

Such package deals may be advertised under a variety of names such as Cosmetic Vacations, Med Journeys, Surgeon and Safari, and a Health Escape, so keep a look out for anything that sounds like it combines cosmetic surgery with travel abroad.

Any sightseeing that you do should be planned for before you have your procedure as once your procedure is completed you should be resting in order to avoid doing something which could affect how you heal and the results that you get.

Some of the things you may not be able to do after your cosmetic surgery are: swimming, playing tennis, water sports, sun bathing and drinking alcohol. So if you want to do any of these things, do them before you have your surgery and not after!

Since you will need some time to recover after your surgery, you can either choose to go home shortly after your procedure or spend the rest of your time recovering abroad.

If you do choose to go home shortly after your plastic surgery, be sure not to go home too soon. Ideally, you should give yourself a few days, perhaps a week, to recover abroad just in case there are any complications that you experience post surgery.

If there are any complications, then being in the country that you had your procedure done will mean that you will quickly be able to see your cosmetic surgeon if necessary. Of course, the downside to staying longer in another country is the added cost that it will entail. But providing you can afford it, recovering from cosmetic surgery in another country can be quite a good place to recover.

Not only will you be able to recover in privacy, but you will also probably be recovering in quite a nice hotel or apartment due to the favourable currency rate that allows you to stay in a higher standard of accommodation than you probably could afford if you were in your home country.

Safety

Providing that you go to a well known medical facility, then having cosmetic surgery done overseas should be relatively safe in terms of how the actual procedure itself is carried out and the aftercare that you receive. However, travel and surgery posses certain risks which may increase the likelihood of you suffering from post surgical complications.

Of particular concern is the risk of swelling which may be made worse during airline travel due to the high altitude that you are travelling at. For long journeys, you may also not be able to attend to your wounds adequately resulting in an increased risk of infection.

For these reasons, it is usually not a good idea to fly back home immediately after your plastic surgery. Instead, give yourself a week to recover from your surgery, as your first week is when you will do doing the most amount of recovery and also when your risk of suffering from a medical complication is at its highest.

Another risk you may face in terms of the safety of having surgery done abroad, is the type of medical devices that are used. Some countries for example, use soybean oil filled breast implants or other fillers which have not yet been found to be safe or are deemed to be unsafe by medical agencies such as the FDA.

You should therefore, enquire as to what a plastic surgeon will use to perform the procedure that you are looking to have done. This also applies to any drugs or pain medication that you are given. So double check with your home doctor just to make sure that they are in fact safe to use.

Finally, just as you would do with a plastic surgeon at home, you should check up on a surgeons qualifications, enquire as to what sort of training they have received, find out whether they are a member of any cosmetic surgery societies and how often they have performed the procedure that you are looking to have done.

Any plastic surgeon that you go to should be board certified. If you have a particular surgeon in mind, you may be able to check up on them at the following websites:

The American Society Of Plastic Surgeons

The American Society For Aesthetic Plastic Surgery

The International Society Of Aesthetic And Plastic Surgery

The British Association Of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons

If you take the time to research your potential plastic surgeon, you can greatly reduce your risk of something going wrong when you have your cosmetic surgery done abroad.

Summary

Now that you have read about some of the reasons as to why people go abroad for cosmetic surgery, the following summary will provide you with a quick overview of the advantages and disadvantages of having plastic surgery overseas.

Advantages

Some of the advantages of having plastic surgery done overseas are:

•    Lower cost

•    Get to see another country / have a vacation

•    Privacy

•    Get a procedure done not available at home

•    Less time to wait

•    Specialist surgeons

Disadvantages

Some of the disadvantages of having plastic surgery in another country are:

•    Travel costs may bump up price

•    Possibility of complications from surgery

•    More difficult to see surgeon once you return home

•    Possible concerns over safety & standards