Cosmetic surgery in South Korea

Cosmetic surgery is voluntary or elective surgery for beauty enhancement. The motivation for plastic surgery has been debated throughout Korean society. Holliday and Elfving-Hwang suggest that the pressure of success in work and marriage is deeply rooted in one's ability to manage their body which is influenced by beauty. As companies helping with matchmaking for marriage and even job applications require a photo of the individual, Korean population inevitably feels pressure to undergo plastic surgery to achieve the "natural beauty". South Korea has emerged as a major destination for medical tourism. Over the past four years, the number of foreign patients who visited plastic surgery clinics was 190,000, with Thailand and China accounting for the largest number. According to ISESP data as of 2021, South Korea has estimated the highest number of plastic surgery cases per capita in the world. History The...