At the Austin Plastic Surgery Institute my partners and I have performed a procedure called labiaplasty for many years. Labiaplasty is a surgical procedure to reduce the size of the labia minora. Women who had hypertrophic or enlarged labia minora often had significant problems with chafing or frictional irritation when wearing tight fitting clothes, participating in sporting events or having sexual intercourse. These issues can arise after pregnancy or as women age.
Over the past several years we have noticed an increase in the request for this type of surgery. This reflects an increase nationwide. In 2016, according to statistics from the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, there were 12,000 labiaplasty procedures performed in this country, and this was a 39% increase from the previous year.
We believe this increase in the request for labiaplasty is the result of societal changes, grooming preferences and increase in the use of social media. With new grooming techniques such as waxing and laser hair removal, women are much more familiar with the appearance of their own genital region. Modern advertising, more revealing clothing styles, sexually graphic movies and internet web sites have helped define what some women perceive as the “normal†appearance of the genital region. Even though we realize there is a large variation in what might be considered normal in the appearance of genitalia, social media and access to more information has given rise to a new “ideal.†So now, we are frequently seeing women who are concerned about the appearance of their vaginal area.
As Board-Certified Plastic Surgeons, we are frequently asked about other procedures that can be classified under “female genital plastic surgery.â€
Monsplasty is a procedure often used to reduce the fullness in the soft tissue