The technical aspects of plastic surgery have been advanced rapidly for the past several decades in Korea.
In addition to the technical advances made in esthetic surgery, the more recent development and refinements of surgical operations in the areas of maxillofacial and craniofacial surgery, reconstruction of head and neck, microsurgery, burn care now offer hope and relief to patients in ways not thought possible in the past.
As we know, one of the most important object of plastic surgery is to offer the patient mental relief and satisfaction.
The study about social and psychological aspects of deformity in plastic surgery has been done sporadically in contrast to the development in surgical arena.
Although the geographic, cultural and economic status can be the important factors in this field of study, we can hardly find the literatures about the social and psychological aspects of deformity in this country.
Hence we decided to illuminate the psychosocial aspects of the patients seeking plastic surgery by administering the MMPI test on 86 clients who wanted plastic surgery in our clinic and several local clinics in Seoul. And then we can observe the following results.
Global impression obtained by socring and profiting the MMPI answers individually revealed that 24% showed neurotic profile, 8% psychotic or adjustment disorder profile, 6% personality disorder profile.
In study of grouping the patients into congenital deformity, acquired deformity and cosmetic surgery candidates, we found high incidence of psychotic and adjustment disorder profile in cogenital deformity group comparing to the other groups. Also we found low incidence of psychopathological disorder profile in cosmetic surgery candidates group.
This finding is very interesting comparing with incidence of psychopathological disorders in cosmetic surgery candidates in foreign literatures.
In our study model, 74% of cosmetic surgery candidates wanted double eye operation or augmentation rhinoplasty.
And their motivation was thought to be different from that of cosmetic surgery common in western country.
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