# What is "cosmetic gynecology"? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 28, 2005, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-cosmetic-gynecology/301573 "2005-04-28T17:17:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Drum\_God](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drum_god/32/44_2.png) [@Drum\_God](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drum_God)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2005, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-cosmetic-gynecology/301573/1 "2005-04-28T17:17:16Z")
In East Austin, I saw a billboard advertising “cosmetic gynecology.” What in the world is this? I can imagine some sort of reconstructive surgery after an accident or to correct a defect, but neither of those seem the sort of thing that would be advertised on a billboard. It doesn’t sound like breast augmentation, since that would be advertised as, well, breast augmentation. “Cosmetic gynecology” sounds like some sort of dressing up of the female “privates”, but I can’t imagine what athat would entail. Okay, I can imagine, but it seems a little creepy. By the way, this billboard was on Airport Blvd. near Pleasant Valley Rd. That’s a major street through East Austin. It’s not the wealthiest part of town. I wouldn’t have expected a lot of expensive, elective surgery going on over there. ---
**Author:** ![Pullet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/edb3f5/32.png) [@Pullet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pullet)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2005, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-cosmetic-gynecology/301573/2 "2005-04-28T17:22:31Z")
For transsexual men who are ready for surgery? ---
**Author:** ![tremorviolet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e47774/32.png) [@tremorviolet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tremorviolet)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2005, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-cosmetic-gynecology/301573/3 "2005-04-28T17:26:31Z")
I’ve seen that billboard, there’s several around town. I wonder what the average income level is for a cosmetic surgery patient; I know there a lot of financing plans being aggressively pushed. Anyway, it’s pretty much what you think it is. There was a thread in IMHO a couple of weeks back talking about comparitive sizes of labia, both minor and major. The ideal is smaller and that’s generally what the surgery is. I think it’s stupid that here’s a totally new body part for women to obsess about. Alos, I’m not sure and maybe someone will chime in here, but “tightening” (for those that have had children) may also be included in “cosmetic gynecology”. ---
**Author:** ![Gfactor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9de053/32.png) [@Gfactor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gfactor)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2005, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-cosmetic-gynecology/301573/4 "2005-04-28T17:48:55Z")
Here is a great article about the topic. > **[Does this make my labia look fat?](https://www.metrotimes.com/detroit/does-this-make-my-labia-look-fat/Content?oid=2180886)** > > The names of the patients interviewed for this story have been changed. Kim is a 27-year-old woman with a shy face and perfectly shaped pink... Here is Carol Queen, one of my favorites, riffing on labioplasty and “rejuvenation”. [http://www.spectator.net/EDPAGES/1137\_cq.html](http://www.spectator.net/EDPAGES/1137_cq.html) **link has some suggestive images (no nudity) and some swear words.** ---
**Author:** ![Pullet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/edb3f5/32.png) [@Pullet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pullet)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2005, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-cosmetic-gynecology/301573/5 "2005-04-28T17:56:23Z")
creepy. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2005, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-cosmetic-gynecology/301573/6 "2005-04-28T18:00:57Z")
> [@Pullet](#): > > creepy. extremely. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2005, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-cosmetic-gynecology/301573/7 "2005-04-28T18:01:54Z")
This is a very popular surgery in Japan, I am told. Sort of the ooposite of collagen injections in the upper lips…a trimming of the lower ones! :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2005, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-cosmetic-gynecology/301573/8 "2005-04-28T18:54:32Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > This is a very popular surgery in Japan, I am told. Sort of the ooposite of collagen injections in the upper lips…a trimming of the lower ones! :eek: Perhaps they could just snip here and add there; you know, recycle, reuse, reduce. ::shudder:: But it does offer the opportunity to quote from one of my favorite films: “Faces are a doddle compared to tits and ass. No hairline.” and “There’s been a little complication with my complication.” Stranger ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2005, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-cosmetic-gynecology/301573/9 "2005-04-28T19:11:23Z")
They probably can rebuild the hymen. :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2005, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-cosmetic-gynecology/301573/10 "2005-04-28T19:39:30Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > They probably can rebuild the hymen. :eek: We have the technology? But why in Og’s name would you want to. It’s such a pain to get rid of in the first place. (I speak here from secondhand, or perhaps more properly, thirdhand experience, not being equipped or Biblically familiar with anyone who is.) Stranger ---
**Author:** ![Gfactor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9de053/32.png) [@Gfactor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gfactor)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2005, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-cosmetic-gynecology/301573/11 "2005-04-28T19:52:02Z")
The Plastic Surgery Centers of Beverly Hills and Agoura Hills talk about their procedures [here](http://www.plasticsurgerybeverlyhills.net/procedures/vulva.htm). Elsewhere on the site they have before and after photos. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2005, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-cosmetic-gynecology/301573/12 "2005-04-28T19:54:17Z")
It’s sort of like rolling back the odometer on a used car…making the “buyer” think they are getting a undriven vehicle, instead of a high-milage rental. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Cynical\_Optimist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Cynical\_Optimist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cynical_Optimist)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2005, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-cosmetic-gynecology/301573/13 "2005-04-28T20:06:08Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > It’s sort of like rolling back the odometer on a used car…making the “buyer” think they are getting a undriven vehicle, instead of a high-milage rental. 😃 Shit, now I have to explain why I’m laughing out loud. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2005, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-cosmetic-gynecology/301573/14 "2005-04-28T20:10:12Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > It’s sort of like rolling back the odometer on a used car…making the “buyer” think they are getting a undriven vehicle, instead of a high-milage rental. 😃 Yeah, but how do they feel when the bondo starts spalling off? A few miles are a good thing; then you’ve got all the rattles and shimmies exposed. Who the hell wants to go through a shakedown cruise on a new boat if you don’t have to. And I agree with **'violet** : it’s just another way to make women feel like they need to change something else about their bodies. It’s not as if guys give this a second thought, as in “Gee, she’s got a really big labia. I don’t think I’m going to sleep with here again.” Uh-huh. Or as [Roger](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0299117/) says, “You can’t sell a product without first making people feel bad…it’s a substitution game. You have to remind them that they’re missing something from their lives…And when they’re feeling sufficiently incomplete, you convince them your product is the only thing that can fill the void. So instead of taking steps to deal with their lives, instead of working to root out the real reason for their misery, they go out and buy a stupid looking pair of cargo pants.” Stranger ---
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2005, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-cosmetic-gynecology/301573/15 "2005-04-28T21:43:34Z")
> [@Stranger On A Train](#): > > “You can’t sell a product without first making people feel bad…it’s a substitution game. You have to remind them that they’re missing something from their lives…And when they’re feeling sufficiently incomplete, you convince them your product is the only thing that can fill the void. So instead of taking steps to deal with their lives, instead of working to root out the real reason for their misery, they go out and buy a stupid looking pair of cargo pants.” > > Stranger Wouldn’t work for me, I like all my girly parts [well except for the cramps once a month, but this can’t help with that…] and mrAru seems to like my girly parts…so I guess we will be saving thousands of dollars that _could_ be spent redecorating my bits… ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2005, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-cosmetic-gynecology/301573/16 "2005-04-29T02:04:22Z")
Is anyone else reminded of the bridesmaid from _The Godfather_ (the book, not the movie.)? ---
**Author:** ![BMax](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bmax/32/4267_2.png) [@BMax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BMax)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2005, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-cosmetic-gynecology/301573/17 "2005-04-29T03:13:26Z")
I don’t know about this…20 years ago, when penis enlargement surgery was just getting started, it was about making Mr. Average think his truck was too small. Now it’s about making Ms. Average think her garage is too large. I always thought there was a natural distribution of sizes, and I have decided not to pursue relationships with women who’s vaginas are too large for me, figuring that we’ll both have better sex with partners to whom we’re more closely matched. We’re disrupting the natural balance once again, like humans usually do. Now all these idiots who’ve had themselves surgically altered are going to be mismatched. Where is Mr Big going to park his truck? There’ll be a dearth of large garages. So in a few years in LA, do you think there will be a boom in vaginal enlargements? ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2005, 5:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-cosmetic-gynecology/301573/18 "2005-04-29T05:15:05Z")
Hmmm. But after all is said and done, can they pucker and whistle a happy tune? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2005, 8:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-cosmetic-gynecology/301573/19 "2005-04-29T08:54:15Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > Is anyone else reminded of the bridesmaid from _The Godfather_ (the book, not the movie.)? Remind me never to re-read that book. How such a great couple of films could come from such a silly novel I’ll never figure out. Stranger ---
**Author:** ![Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e19adc/32.png) [@Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2005, 11:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-cosmetic-gynecology/301573/20 "2005-04-29T11:57:26Z")
Ever heard of cheeseburger crotch? Apparently it’s an unsightly, and possibly permanent, side effect of pregnancy occasionally mentioned on pregnancy websites. I shudder to think what it actually looks like, but from the name alone I can imagine it’d be worth getting surgery for. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-cosmetic-gynecology/301573.md?page=2)