South Korea’s growing obsession with plastic surgery became apparent when pictures of a group of aspiring beauty queens posted online prompted claims that cosmetic procedures have left all the contestants looking the same.

Pictures of the 20 Miss Korea 2013 finalists were posted on Reddit fuelling speculation that many of them had undergone surgery and prompting users to criticize the Asian nation’s growing trend to go under the knife. And their apparent similarity prompted Reddit user ShenTheWise to post their pictures online, suggesting that many of those vying for the Miss Korea title this year have had similar surgery

The popularity of surgery, particularly among the young, has been blamed by some on a desire to look more ‘western’ fuelled by an obsession with celebrity culture.

“This is called the Korean plastic face look. In certain areas of Seoul, you would think all the women are sisters because they look so similar due to same surgeries.”

The pageant sparked controversy last year when pictures emerged of winner Kim Yu-Mi before she had undergone plastic surgery, with many claiming that cosmetic procedures give contestants an unfair advantage.

While the popularity of cosmetic surgery in South Korea may come as a surprise to many, the industry there is in fact booming. Last year, 20 per cent of women aged 19 to 49 in the capital city of Seoul admitted to going under the knife.