Life satisfaction, self-esteem, and body image: A psychosocial evaluation of aesthetic and reconstructive surgery candidates

Psychology should be an important part of a plastic surgery procedure in or der to buoy up the patient so that he gains a consequent relief of psychiat ric and social problems. It is a fact that reconstructive surgery patients also seek psychological stability and a better appearance that is acceptabl e to society. While the life satisfaction, self-esteem, and body image of t he individual who seeks aesthetic plastic surgery has been a special concer n in the plastic surgery literature, data about reconstructive surgery pati ents are usually lacking. To understand the factors influencing the aim of an individual seeking plastic surgery, this prospective controlled clinical study was designed. We hypothesized that they should have lower life satis faction and self-esteem and more distorted body images than the ''normal" p opulation. Three hundred individuals were included in the study. Both the a esthetic surgery group (AG) and the reconstructive surgery group (RG) consi st of 100 (n = 100) subjects. Individuals chosen randomly from the total po pulation seen in the 12-month period were included regardless of the type o f procedure, body region, or type of trauma as well as whether or not their wish for surgery was justified by the staff. The third group, the control group (CG), also consists of 100 (n = 100) subjects and was chosen from the "normal" population. All 300 subjects were asked to complete four scales: the Socio-Demographic Questionnaire, Life-Satisfaction Index (LSI), Self-Es teem Inventory (SEI), and Body-Image Inventory (BII). Results were collecte d and compared. The LSI results for the two surgical groups were found to b e similar to those for the CG, with the RG demonstrating the lowest level. For the SEI there was a significant difference between the two surgical gro ups, being in favor of the AG, and a greater difference was noted between t he CG and the RG. BIT results showed no significant difference among the th ree groups. As a result, although there may be some, a regular person who s eeks an aesthetic procedure should not be considered a psychologically dist urbed individual at face value and each case should be evaluated individual ly in the preoperative consultation. Similarly, individuals who present for reconstructive procedures and wish further aesthetic refinements should be evaluated and treated exactly as pure aesthetic candidates.