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A woman consults with a plastic surgeon before undergoing a nose operation in Seoul. Photo: Reuters

Mask acne, Zoom face: how coronavirus gave a nip and tuck to Singapore’s cosmetic surgery industry

  • Closed borders mean Singaporeans seeking cosmetic procedures must choose local services – and the virus is boosting demand in other ways too
  • Treatments for mask-induced acne are booming, as is demand for eyelid surgeries, while post-op recoveries are easier for people working from home
Ng, a 27-year-old Singaporean, used to travel to neighbouring Malaysia three times a year for skin tightening treatments as well as Botox and filler injections. Sometimes she would venture even farther, to Thailand.
“The prices are cheaper in Johor Bahru and I also do my shopping there. For Bangkok, it’s more like a holiday and I will usually do some treatments at the same time,” said Ng, who estimated the costs compared to Singapore are 30 per cent cheaper in Malaysia and 20 per cent in Thailand.
Last year, however, the outbreak of the coronavirus meant Ng had to seek out local clinics to get her treatments and, with many others like her in a similar predicament, the city state’s cosmetic surgery industry received something of a nip and tuck of its own. It’s a phenomenon not unique to Singapore.
In South Korea, the industry is reported to have grown 9.2 per cent in a year to reach US$10.7 billion in 2020, while in Britain cosmetic surgery procedures ranging from breast reductions to liposuction soared 500 per cent during lockdown.

And it’s not only border closures that are driving business. The coronavirus has itself brought around a new set of issues for people concerned about their appearance to fret about. Mask-induced acne, or “maskne” has become “a thing”, as have worries about uneven skin pigmentation being picked up by the harsh lights of laptop cameras, or “Zoom face”. Eyelid surgery has become more popular as people seek to enhance one of the few parts of the face not covered by a mask and people are more willing to contemplate invasive surgeries knowing that post-operative recoveries can be done in relative secrecy while working from home.

A patient undergoes plastic surgery clinic in Seoul, South Korea. File photo

Dr Gabriel Tan, resident doctor at Dr Cindy’s Medical Aesthetics Clinic in Singapore, said facial and laser treatments for maskne were increasingly fashionable while surgeries that normally required a downtime for recovery had also become more popular as more people worked from home.

Dr Matthew Yeo, an adjunct associate professor at the Nanyang Technological University and a plastic surgeon, agreed.

“Surgery seems to be increasingly popular as mask-wearing and remote working are now required in many parts of the world, which allows people to conveniently conceal post-operative swelling during their recovery,” said Yeo. “People who may not have previously contemplated surgery may also feel that the opportunity has now arisen for them to try.”

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With mask-wearing now placing an “unprecedented emphasis” on the appearance of the eyes, Yeo said more people were interested in having work done on their eyelids, frown lines and foreheads.

Dr Gabriel Wong, medical director of SL Aesthetic Clinic in central Singapore, said clients were increasingly seeking help for pigmentation issues. This was because women were less likely to wear sunscreen when working from home.

“Sitting near a brightly-lit window at home exposes them to a high level of ultraviolet rays which they do not normally experience when in the office. This accumulated UV exposure then accelerates the formation of pigmentation such as freckles, sun spots and melasma,” he said.

Added Wong: “More of us are seeing more of ourselves at home and through Zoom meetings and may also be rudely shocked by the signs of ageing which have been neglected during our busy times.”

The coronavirus has changed Singaporean’s plastic surgery habits. Home working means people are more likely to consider operations with significant recovery periods. Photo: Reuters

TRAVEL REPLACEMENT

The uptick in demand for such surgeries has come at the same time that travel bans have meant people like Ng have little option but to seek treatment locally.

Wong said that before the pandemic Thailand and Malaysia had attracted many locals seeking treatments at a lower cost, while South Korea was popular “among those who enjoy the Korean pop culture and want to try novel aesthetic treatments which may not be available in Singapore”.

Major procedures, including plastic surgery, were often more affordable in South Korea as there were more clinics in the country, Wong added.

Tam said Singaporeans who travelled abroad for treatments were usually seeking more invasive treatments as the cost savings would be more significant than for smaller procedures. Some were also seeking treatments not approved in Singapore, such as stem cell therapy.

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However, some Singaporeans who travelled abroad for treatment were seeking expertise rather than lower costs. For instance, Yeo said he had seen patients travel to the US, Britain and Hong Kong for treatment.

This was the case for Evelyn, 30, who in 2018 went to Taiwan for nose and eyelid surgeries and fat grafting procedures, even though it was more costly than in Singapore.

She said the doctors there seemed more professional and trustworthy, adding that she had read multiple testimonials.

Evelyn, who has also had procedures in Malaysia, said she was now receiving multiple treatments in Singapore as it was “convenient” and she was unsure if she would return to visiting overseas clinics once the pandemic was over.

Eyelid surgery has become increasingly popular as the eyes are one of the few facial areas not covered by a standard coronavirus mask. Photo: AFP

MORE SPARE MONEY

Song Seng Wun, an economist at CIMB Private Banking, said that being unable to travel had left Singaporeans with more “spare money” to spend on luxurious items, including surgery.

There was also a “revenge spending” effect, in which people were spending more to celebrate being out of lockdown, he said, noting that when the city’s two-month circuit-breaker eased in June retail sales excluding motor vehicles jumped 42.8 per cent from the previous month, according to official statistics.

This boom would probably be sustained as people grew more aware of their options locally, Song said: “The longer people cannot travel, the longer they are going to [clinics] here,” he said. “It’s a chicken-and-egg scenario. The more business you attract, the more word [gets out], and that could become entrenched.”

Wong of SL Aesthetic Clinic also foresaw a sustained trend. He noted that air travel was likely to remain more expensive and complicated for some time, even after international borders reopened.

As for Ng, replacing her trips to Malaysia and Thailand might have made her treatments more expensive, but the results had been “excellent” and she had saved time on travelling and money on the airfare and hotel.

“I feel that the extra money we pay is worth it even though the procedures are cheaper overseas,” she said. “There is also peace of mind as I believe that the industry here is safer and better regulated.”

This article appeared in the South China Morning Post print edition as: Mask acne gives cosmetic surgery sector a quick lift
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