Patients seeking Botox injections to reduce wrinkles should beware of unscrupulous practitioners who use silicone instead of Botox, leaving patients with a ”witch’s chin”, a Thai dermatologist was quoted as saying on Monday.
Dr Prawit Sisalbutr was quoted by The Nation newspaper as saying some local clinics dupe their patients by promising cut-rate treatments to give a youthful appearance.
”Some illegal practitioners use silicone instead of Botox because it is cheaper,” Prawit said. ”The silicone will later cause the skin to look uneven and bumpy and in some cases will gather at the chin (creating a point) like a witch’s chin.”
He said Botox injections should be given only by qualified doctors and even then are only active for four to six months. Their side effects include swelling and bruising around the area of injection, headaches and an unnatural appearance.
Prawit said deceit was rife in the beauty industry, with some clinics telling patients that facial freckles and spots can be erased with creams.
”We can only make them fade for a while,” he said. ”Some beauty clinics boast that they can cure them permanently in 20 visits. They are lying. The cosmetics advertised as magic creams that make facial skin look fresh and younger are also misleading,” he added.
”All that the products can do is cover the marks for a while.”
Thailand’s booming cosmetic surgery industry has been under fire since December 5, when a 17-year-old girl died during a liposuction treatment at a cosmetic surgery clinic in northern Thailand.
Police raided the Charlie Clinic in the northern city of Chiang Mai after complaints from the parents of 11th grade student Siriporn Muima, who died during an operation to remove fat from her belly and thighs. – Sapa-DPA