The increasing intimacy of cosmetic surgery

The initial standard for a sensitive, intimate cosmetic surgery procedure was breast augmentation. However the trend recently seems to be more and more toward alteration of the most intimate areas of a woman’s body. First, increasingly non-invasive liposuction techniques were applied to what is sometimes called the FUPA (Fat Upper “Pudendum” Area). Then, labiaplasty was offered to correct features that were sometimes an area of self-consciousness during intimate situations. These procedures are both intended to address women’s concerns and self-consciousness about their bodies, and are in line with the goals of more traditional cosmetic surgery.

However, the more recent innovation, the G-Shot, is designed to increase women’s sexual pleasure through g-spot augmentation, and seems an entirely different phase in cosmetic surgery.

What is striking is that intimate procedures for men are still as underground as ever. There is no movement toward making penile implants or penile augmentation a popular procedure, and this seems directly related to the cultural perception that it is women who must change to meet men’s desire, while men are under no obligation to change for women. I do not know whether the better solution is to back away from modifications of the female body, or to move forward with modification of the male body, but I do know that we might all feel more comfortable with the profession as a whole if there were more parity between the sexes.