Nipping and Tucking In Boulder

The Boulder Daily Camera Publication Date 2/29/2004

By Mary Butler, Camera Staff Writer

Allen Brunke says the changes in his 61-year-old wife`s face are undeniable since she underwent cosmetic surgery.

She appears more youthful, and her eyes open wider, he said. Even so, "she looked good before," he said. "We are all eventually going to look old."

Or are we?

Cosmetic surgery, dentistry and nonsurgical procedures such as Botox injections and skin resurfacing have become a multibillion-dollar-a-year industry in the United States.

Just as you can get a loan to buy a car, you can also finance a new nose, face-lift or a full set of movie-star perfect, porcelain-capped teeth.

People have become so unabashed about the once hush-hush practice that they parade their remodeled body parts at fashion shows and beg the reality TV show "Extreme Makeover" to fund and chronicle their transformations.

The trend -- though perhaps not so overtly flaunted -- is thriving in fitness-and-beauty-minded Boulder County, says Louisville Dr. Eve Bluestein, who performed Janice Brunke`s face-lift, brow-lift, lower and upper eye-lifts, neck-lift and facial resurfacing in November.

Inspired by "Extreme Makeover," Bluestein and Boulder cosmetic dentist Mark Birnbach gave two free "facial rejuvenations" last year to Brunke and another local woman.

"There`s a tremendous volume of work, ranging from the very wealthy down to those who don`t have the financial wherewithal, but they find a way," Bluestein said.

In 2002, doctors nationwide performed nearly 6.9 million cosmetic procedures, a 228 percent jump since 1997, according to a Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery survey.

Dr. Claude "Todd" Burrow agreed that Boulder County mirrors national trends.

He has seen the industry change dramatically since 1980, when he opened his local practice. Burrow was one of two plastic surgeons in Boulder. Today that number has only doubled to four.

But that doesn`t count dozens of other doctors -- such as Bluestein, who is board certified as a maxillofacial surgeon -- whose specialties allow them to perform cosmetic procedures.

The Boulder phone book lists 23 doctors who perform cosmetic and reconstructive procedures.

"There are dermatologists performing liposuction and dentists who do eye lifts," Burrow said.

A true plastic surgeon, however, has been trained to perform everything from reconstructive breast surgeries to the treatment of spider veins.

Demand for the procedures -- and quick cash -- provides plenty of incentive for doctors to turn to cosmetic surgery.

Burrow said he planned to give his first Botox injections this week because his patients have been asking for it. Ten years ago, he said, his practice was split almost evenly between reconstructive and cosmetic work.

Now, 85 percent of what Burrow does is cosmetic, he said.

"There`s a wealth of cosmetic surgery done in Boulder and Boulder County," Burrow said. "But people here are not open about it.

"They don`t want people to think critically of them. The culture is to be outdoorsy, thin and athletic and not to do anything that`s not necessary."

Makeover nation

In her contest essay to receive Bluestein and Birnbach`s free makeover, Brunke wrote:

"I love being a grandma, I just don`t like looking like one. When all is said and done, acne as a teen did my face in. I have a lot of holes on my skin; zits, blackheads, holes and spots."

In addition to the facial work completed by Bluestein, Birnbach whitened Brunke`s teeth, wiping away decades worth of coffee and red wine stains.

"The outcome I can tell it in my neck, my eyes look wider, my skin is softer, more smooth. It`s all very good," she said.

Looking younger, she said, makes her feel better about herself.

As the nation`s baby boomers age, such sentiments are expected to further fuel the cosmetic surgery explosion.

Since baby boomers first began turning 50 in 1996, cosmetic surgery for 51- to 64-year-olds went up about 50 percent, according to the American Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons.

The most popular procedures for older Americans are eyelid surgery, face-lifts, liposuction and laser skin resurfacing.

In 2002, women received the bulk of the work -- about 85 percent. However, more men are opening up to the possibilities.

For example, in 2002, 14,343 men received breast reductions. And it`s safe to assume that most of the nearly 30,000 people who received hair transplants that year were also male.

Youth injection

For Dona Alexis, cosmetic surgery was part business decision, part ego boost, she said.

"I`m competing for jobs against people 20 years younger than me," said Alexis, who works in video production and is "over 50."

The eyelid surgery and brow-, face- and neck-lifts, as well as teeth bleaching and veneers, she said, gave her more confidence.

Like Brunke, she also received the cosmetic work free as part of Bluestein and Birnbach`s "facial rejuvenations" essay contest.

"It was a gift," she said.

Alexis, however, says she has mixed emotions about cosmetic surgery.

While she is critical of society`s placing so much emphasis on physical beauty, she said, "my ego is very happy, and I don`t get freaked out when I look in the mirror."

Her female friends older than 40 are especially envious -- and always want to know all the details, Alexis said.

Using her hands to tighten the skin on her face, Alexis said, "I don`t know many women who don`t look in the mirror and wonder what they would look like."

She said she wants to keep copies of her before-and-after photos as a reminder of what she will look like later in life.

Although her adult son says she looks the same, Alexis said most people notice the difference right away -- even if they can`t quite put their finger on what has changed.

On a recent morning while at a restaurant, Alexis saw a former co-worker.

After Alexis jogged her acquaintance`s memory, the woman exclaimed, "Dona, I didn`t recognize you!"

Alexis explained that she had "gone into hibernation" during menopause.

The woman responded, "Well, menopause looks great on you."