The number of foreign patients receiving treatment at Korean medical institutions surpassed 1 million for the first time last year, with the number of foreign patients who received dermatological treatment reaching 700,000.
According to the '2024 foreign patient attraction performance statistical analysis report' published by the Korea Health Industry Development Institute (KHIDI) on the 28th, the total number of foreign patients who received treatment in Korea last year (excluding duplicates) was counted at 1,170,467. This represents a 93.2% increase compared to 2023 (605,768), marking the first time the figure has crossed 1 million.
Last year, the number of foreign patients receiving dermatological treatment in South Korea reached 705,044, three times the 239,060 patients in 2023. The figure, which was only 36,060 in 2022, jumped nearly 20 times.
Compared to 6,015 patients in 2009, when the attraction of foreign patients began in earnest, this number has skyrocketed by 117 times over the past 15 years. This significantly exceeds the overall increase of 19 times for all foreign patients during the same period.
Dermatology accounted for only 9.3% of all foreign patient treatments in 2009, but last year it surpassed half at 56.6%. Following dermatology were plastic surgery at 11.4%, internal medicine integration at 10%, and screening centers at 4.5%.
Especially when considering only outpatient medical institutions, the proportion of dermatology was overwhelming at 72.6%. Just five years ago, it ranked third behind internal medicine integration, which was first, and plastic surgery, which was second.
By nationality, Japanese patients made up the largest share at 43.7%. This was followed by China (24.4%), Taiwan (9.6%), the United States (5.7%), and Thailand (3.5%).
In Japan, 'same-day dermatological procedures in Korea' are spreading like a trend. Posts on social media (SNS) have been appearing that share experiences of receiving procedures in Seoul in the morning and returning home by afternoon flight, and the perception that treatment costs in Korea are cheaper than in Japan is making 'dermatological trips' a form of tourism.
Procedures like CLASSYS's ultrasound energy device for improving skin elasticity, known as 'Shrink', and PharmaResearch's skin booster, Rejuran, have also gained popularity among foreign tourists, colloquially referred to as 'salmon injections'.
Recently, famous American influencer Kim Kardashian visited Korea and posted photos of her dermatological treatments on Instagram. Kardashian reportedly visited multiple skin clinics in the Yongsan and Gangnam districts of Seoul with her sister Khloé Kardashian.