How Old Is Too Old For Plastic Surgery?
Here’s a question I get asked a lot: “how old is too old for someone to have plastic surgery?” Before I answer that, let me break the question down into two distinct ideas. The first concept is that there is an average age range for specific procedures – breast lifts, for instance. The second, trickier question, is whether there’s such a thing as “too old for plastic surgery.”
Let’s explore this. With a procedure such as breast augmentation, the typical patient age range includes women in their twenties and early thirties. A Mommy Makeover, on the other hand, tends to be performed in peak childbearing years, or around a woman’s mid-thirties to her early fifties.
In our practice, we have what’s called a bimodal distribution (two separate ranges) for procedures such as rhinoplasty, which sees peaks in patients in their early twenties and rising again for those in their forties and fifties. With facelifts, we tend to see patients – both male and female – who are over 45, but a mini facelift or in-office facelift can certainly be performed on people who are younger.
These age ranges should hardly be considered limits on having a procedure done. Rhinoplasty is a type of procedure that can be performed at nearly any age. Rather, we look at these numbers as mere averages that help us know our clientele better. There is such a thing as too young for plastic surgery, which we’ve previously discussed and feel passionate about as a practice.
So, back to the heart of the question: can you be too old for plastic surgery? In short, the answer is no. If you are healthy enough for surgery, we do not place age limits on our procedures. Someone who is very healthy and in their seventies would make a great candidate for nearly all of our procedures and we’d welcome them at Janiga MDs.
A word of caution: there are a few reasons to avoid surgery at any age. These include:
- Blood clots
- Heart problems
- Lung issues
- Kidney failure
- Severe reaction to anesthetics
I’d welcome the chance to discuss whether you’re a candidate for any of our plastic surgery procedures. Please contact me, Dr. Timothy Janiga, at 775-398-4600 or schedule a consultation online.
