INTRODUCTION
Cosmetic procedures have increased since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020. The ASDS reports a nearly 63% increase in facial cosmetic surgeries between 2020 and 2021, with a steady increase in the following years.1,2 The increased demand for cosmetic care seems to be correlated with substantial increases in pricing, particularly among non-invasive cosmetic dermatological procedures. Between 2025 and 2030, there is an expected increase in the cost of 10.3% for non-invasive cosmetic procedures such as injectable filler.3 However, no studies to date have explored consumer interest in the cost of various cosmetic procedures since the onset of COVID-19. Thus, this study aimed to evaluate interest in the cost of common cosmetic dermatology procedures since March of 2020.
Google Trends was used to explore interest in the cost of common cosmetic dermatological procedures. This platform normalizes search terms to a scale from 0 to 100, which represents the range of interest on a given topic.4 This database does not provide exact measurements of search terms but rather tracks trends based on how often a term is searched in the Google engine. No identifying information was collected in this analysis. Data were collected from March 1st, 2020, to March 1st, 2024. The term “cost” followed by various cosmetic dermatological procedures (Table 1) was queried on Google Trends. Searches classified in “Web” and “all search categories” were included in the analysis.
Search terms for the cost of PRP injections (243%) and microneedling (162%) had significant increases since March of 2020. Interest in the cost of filler (136%) also increased drastically over this time period, with lip (189%), cheek (115%), and facial filler (146%) being the most common search terms. While interest in the cost of nearly all other cosmetic procedures increased during this time period, search terms for CoolSculpting® and microdermabrasion cost decreased by 20% and 13%, respectively (Table 1). The average percent change for the cost of all cosmetic dermatological procedures was an overall increase of 10% since March 2020.
Google Trends was used to explore interest in the cost of common cosmetic dermatological procedures. This platform normalizes search terms to a scale from 0 to 100, which represents the range of interest on a given topic.4 This database does not provide exact measurements of search terms but rather tracks trends based on how often a term is searched in the Google engine. No identifying information was collected in this analysis. Data were collected from March 1st, 2020, to March 1st, 2024. The term “cost” followed by various cosmetic dermatological procedures (Table 1) was queried on Google Trends. Searches classified in “Web” and “all search categories” were included in the analysis.
Search terms for the cost of PRP injections (243%) and microneedling (162%) had significant increases since March of 2020. Interest in the cost of filler (136%) also increased drastically over this time period, with lip (189%), cheek (115%), and facial filler (146%) being the most common search terms. While interest in the cost of nearly all other cosmetic procedures increased during this time period, search terms for CoolSculpting® and microdermabrasion cost decreased by 20% and 13%, respectively (Table 1). The average percent change for the cost of all cosmetic dermatological procedures was an overall increase of 10% since March 2020.
The drastic increase in search terms for PRP injections, microneedling, and facial fillers suggests that concerns over the cost of facial cosmetic procedures have drastically increased since the onset of COVID-19. These findings may be due to what has been termed in social media as the “Zoom-Boom effect”.1 As more individuals transitioned to online virtual workspaces such as Zoom during the pandemic, interest in enhancing facial aesthetics began to increase.2,3 Additionally, the transition away from wearing masks in public spaces may have contributed
