After another year of a depressing news cycle (to put it lightly), plastic surgery news can feel like candy—indulgent, relatively harmless, and a welcome distraction from the meatier stuff. And that was especially the case for some of this year’s most noteworthy reports, like the singer who’ll never again get Botox (and what she uses instead) and a certain long-awaited confession of breast augmentation following years of denial. Consider these the group-chat-worthy plastic surgery moments worth remembering.
Linda Evangelista appeared on the cover of Vogue’s September issue after CoolSculpting complications
In our 2022 celebrity plastic surgery list, we acknowledged Linda Evangelista’s courage after she shared both details about and photos of her paradoxical adipose hyperplasia, the surprisingly common complication she endured after several rounds of CoolSculpting.
And this year, a repeat mention is merited: She appeared on the cover of Vogue’s September issue alongside her fellow supermodels—a big deal on the heels of hiding from the public for several years. After lying low for so long, “I couldn’t live with it anymore,” she told the magazine. “I wanted to go outside.”
Celebrities opened up about their Ozempic use
Oprah Winfrey, Amy Schumer, Chelsea Handler—there’s a long list of celebrities who have copped to taking the weight-loss medication (which is technically FDA approved for the treatment of type 2 diabetes) either long-term or temporarily. But even those who haven’t taken the injectable drug are still talking about it, with everyone from Khloé Kardashian to Mark Wahlberg denying that they’ve used it to lose weight.
Britney Spears swore off Botox
Over the summer, Spears posted an Instagram video explaining that despite having gotten Botox injections for the past 10 to 15 years, she’s no longer a fan of the neurotoxin. “What’s with the times when one eyebrow is up and one is down? I can’t even be seen for 2 weeks,” she wrote in the accompanying caption. At the end of it, she closed with a shout-out to her favorite (topical) wrinkle reducer: SiO Wrinkle-Fighting Silicone Patches.
Liposuction became the most popular procedure in the world
This year, liposuction finally surpassed breast augmentation, becoming the most popular surgery globally. Back in January, the International Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ISAPS) released its global survey, finding that in 2021, there was a nearly 25% uptick in liposuction procedures over the previous year, accounting for 15% of all types of plastic surgery.
Kylie Jenner came clean about getting breast augmentation
Coming as a shock to only the most gullible among us, Kylie Jenner finally admitted to getting a breast augmentation on an episode of The Kardashians following years of denials, during which she credited her larger chest to push-up bras, weight gain, and PMS. “You know I got my breasts done before Stormi,” Jenner told a friend.
After having the surgery at 19—a few months before getting pregnant with her daughter—she now regrets her decision. “I had beautiful breasts, like, natural tits. Just gorgeous, perfect size, perfect everything. And I just wish, obviously, I never got them done to begin with,” she went on to say. “I would recommend anyone who is thinking about it to wait until after children.”
Nicki Minaj got a long-awaited breast reduction
Although breast augmentation is popular among celebrities, so too is breast reduction, with stars like Drew Barrymore and Kyle Richards opening up about their experiences. Minaj is the latest to join them, posting a video to her Instagram in June to ostensibly celebrate the release of her song “Barbie World” and flaunt new cleavage. “New boobs, who dis?” she wrote in the comments.
Juvéderm’s Skinvive got FDA approval
In May, Skinvive became the the first and only hyaluronic acid microdroplet injectable to receive FDA approval—and another, called Profhilo, may be hot on its heels. Both are a new type of injectable called a skin booster, which uses hyaluronic acid that hasn’t been cross-linked. (Cross-linking increases density—so in not being cross-linked, skin boosters are more fluid and liquidy than traditional hyaluronic acid fillers.) That allows them to deliver an overall (but still very subtle) plumping effect as well as increased radiance and hydration levels.
Priyanka Chopra recalled how a botched nose surgery sent her into a “deep depression”
On an episode of The Howard Stern Show, Chopra went into detail about how a routine nose surgery gone wrong had led to lingering trauma. While she’d first written about the experience in her 2021 memoir, Unfinished—describing in detail how the bridge of her nose had collapsed during surgery to remove a polyp—she hadn’t talked before about how it had impacted her mental health.
“It was a dark phase,” she said. “This thing happens, and my face looks completely different, and I went into a deep, deep depression.” She added that she didn’t want to leave the house in the aftermath and felt that it impacted her career, leading her to be fired from three movies. However, she’s since undergone several reconstructive surgeries to restore the appearance of her nose, noting that she now feels like it’s “normalized.”
Trap Botox, or #Traptox, took over social media
Much of the body is fair game for neurotoxins, which can be injected into the face as well as the scalp and armpits. The buzzy new spot of the year, if more than 34 million views on TikTok is any indication? The trapezius muscle, which is the muscle that encompasses the lower neck, shoulders, and upper back. Not only does this placement alleviate tension in the neck area, but it can also slim the muscle for a more elongated neckline. And while trap Botox isn’t necessarily new, it may be gaining popularity as a way to offset the tension that results from hunching over while looking at computers and phones all day.
John Stamos shared that he got repeat rhinoplasties
This year, the Full House actor spilled details on his rhinoplasties in his memoir If You Would Have Told Me. He got not one but two nose jobs in the 1980s, he wrote: “Everyone who gets a nose job tries to find some excuse other than vanity, but let’s call it what it was—vanity.” Unhappy with the results of his initial rhinoplasty, which he described as “kind of pushed up,” he sought out Michael Jackson’s plastic surgeon for the revision rhinoplasty.
Cardi B credited Kim Kardashian with giving her plastic surgery tips
Cardi B is no stranger to plastic surgery, having talked openly about everything from her liposuction to (potential) tummy tuck—and her candor around the topic has always been refreshing. So we had no choice but to take her for her word when she shared that she received a list of plastic surgeon recommendations from none other than Kim Kardashian, who, incidentally, claims to have only had “a little bit of Botox.” On an episode of The Jason Lee Podcast, Cardi said, “I called a couple of people that [Kim] gave me” for a rhinoplasty following a botched nonsurgical nose job but ultimately went with another surgeon. With any luck, we’ll find out who’s on that list in 2024.
