Over the past three decades, we have seen a wide variety of trends come and go within the aesthetic market; but even more so, there have been some incredible advancements in technology that provide many treatments with little to no down time.

The 1990s saw a number of popular aesthetic treatments such as lipoplasty, large-volume liposuction, many styles of breast implants, as well as collagen, fat, and Gore-tex filler.

During the early 2000s, there was a huge 225% increase in the number of nonsurgical procedures being performed and by 2010, fillers, botulinum toxin, lasers and chemical peels made up 83% of all aesthetic procedures.

Now in 2022, we have seen even more advancements in the world of medical aesthetics, and with that comes a whole new set of trends that are taking the beauty industry by storm. 

Medical aesthetic trends

The early 2000s saw a 225% increase in the number of nonsurgical procedures being performed.

Current medical aesthetics trends include:

  1. Full lips 
  2. Anti-wrinkles 
  3. Reduce tear trough hollowness
  4. Profile balancing 

1. Full Lips

In the last decade lip filler has exploded in the cosmetic industry, growing by almost 60%.

With that growth, a variety of lip trends and techniques have emerged (for example, Russian, cherry and cupid bow techniques) — their popularity gaining or losing ground depending on which celebrity or influencer’s look happens to be most in vogue at the moment.

The Russian Technique

The Russian lip trend is the new big thing in dermal filler lip treatments and is trending massively on Instagram and with top celebrities.

In short, the Russian lip technique involves a series of tiny injections starting at the base of the lip and drawing the product outward toward the lip border.

The goal is less about adding volume to the lips and more about increasing their vertical height and defining the border. 

Cherry Lips

The cherry lip technique is a newer trend and seems to come from a desire for a more natural looking outcome.

This technique adds more volume to the middle areas of the lips to create a unique cherry-like shape. The added volume makes the lips resemble a pair of cherries hanging horizontally from the corners of the lips, which is where this lip filler trend gets its name.

Cupid Bow Technique

The cupid’s bow technique is part Russian lip, part cherry lip.

It focuses primarily on filling the two tubercles on either side of the top lip and defining the cupid’s bow with tiny injections. 

2. Anti-Wrinkles 

Another incredibly popular trend is botox (anti-wrinkle injections), and is still the ‘go-to’  injectable for many patients, wishing to keep dynamic wrinkles and expression lines at bay.

These facial injections act to stop nerve signals reaching the facial muscles that cause those nuisance lines such as forehead wrinkles, crow’s feet, Glabellar lines (lines between the eyebrows) and bunny lines (the lines either side of the nose).

Botox can even slim a square-looking jaw and address wrinkles around the mouth and even on the neck. 

Botox
It’s no wonder therefore, that Botox will probably always remain the most popular injectable treatment for anti-ageing now and as we head into the future.

3. Reduce Tear Trough Hollowness

Tear trough filler, or “under-eye filler”, is a pretty new procedure but is continuously trending in the world of working professionals, who want to freshen up their appearance and look more rested and youthful.

As we get older, the muscles and tissues that support your eyelids weaken. This means that our skin may begin to sag, including the fat that’s usually around our eyes.

Tear trough filler can indirectly influence the condition of their bags under the eyes and visually reduce them. This is mainly due to the fact that the tear duct is lifted by the injected tear trough filler. 

4. Profile Balancing

Another popular trend that has grown in popularity over the past few years is profile balancing, also known as profiloplasty, which involves reshaping of the nose, chin and cheeks to enhance and balance facial profiles. 

The Growth Of The Cosmetic Injectables Industry 

The aesthetics injectables market has historically grown by more than 10 percent a year since 2016 and has the potential to grow at an annual rate of 12 to 14 percent over the next 5 years if manufacturers and providers capitalise on the underlying trends.

Shifting consumer attitudes about wellness, beauty, and healthy ageing have increased awareness of aesthetics, generating demand from new patient segments, including men and millennials.

This demand has also been driven by social media, with the help of influencers and celebrities who are normalising aesthetic procedures.  

Expanded access to services (primarily via aesthetics clinic chains, med spas, and beauty bars) and growing consumer purchasing power have also accelerated global penetration, especially in emerging markets. 

Medical aesthetic trends 2022
So, what does this mean? Well, with the demand for aesthetic medical treatment rapidly growing across the world, the demand for aesthetic nurses is also rising.

Not only is the demand for these aesthetic practitioners extremely high, but thanks to the growing awareness around the concerning lack of regulations in this country, patients are also increasingly seeking treatments from qualified professionals such as doctors. 

This request for aestheticians with extensive medical qualifications and experience means that on completion of training, your services will be in high demand from the UK public.

With the aesthetics industry worth billions in the UK alone and steadily rising each year, now is the perfect time to enter the industry and join one of our leading aesthetic training courses


You Can Clinic is one of the UK's leading providers of aesthetic training courses and pharmaceutical supplies. Over 1000 individuals have progressed through our affordable programmes, which provide comprehensive coverage of all relevant aesthetic procedures. Available from beginner to advanced courses.

Are you interested to train in the aesthetics industry? Check out our articles on Botulinum ToxinWeight Management and Dermaplaning Training Courses. 

Written by Kate, for You Can Clinic.  

July 26, 2022 — Holly Charman