Register of approved practitioners offering botox and fillers to be established

Dr Paul Kielty of Cork Medical Aesthetics in Midleton, and a member of the Irish Dental Association told of 'scary' botched treatments.

Dentists and doctors working with botox and fillers are so worried about illegal use of these products they have set up a college to regulate the industry. 

The Irish College of Aesthetic Medicine (ICAM) will offer the public a register of approved practitioners.

This is much needed, according to Dr Paul Kielty, a specialist oral surgeon and medical doctor.

He described “scary” botched treatment he has seen in patients asking him for help to repair damaged skin.

“There was one girl who had a voucher for her wedding, for €1,000 for some cheap clinic. They did botox and about 10mls of filler. They destroyed her, God love her,” he said.

“She came in bawling crying the week before her wedding. I basically dissolved it all out and got her back to baseline. 

"It is all you could do in that timeframe.” 

He added: "I’ve had one or two people who had work done abroad and I’ve tried to dissolve it and it hasn’t dissolved." 

He added that it "can be a nightmare". 

Dentists are, for example, are aware of the potential to damage smile muscles while injecting botulinum toxin near the mouth.

“If you don’t understand the anatomy, you don’t understand the risks,” he told the Irish Dental Association conference in Kilkenny. 

Dentists are frustrated at the lack of regulation which allows anyone to offer these products with little training. 

Dr Kielty, of Cork Medical Aesthetics in Midleton, said: “We’re trying to push for regulation.

“At the moment, it’s doctors, dentists, and people who are well-established in the profession. 

"We’re hoping to register with the College of Physicians or College of Surgeons as an actual medical or dental speciality.” 

He explained: “In time there would be exams so you can’t just start practicing. You will have to be able to prove you’re at a certain standard. We’re a little way off that at the moment but that’s the end goal.” 

He was shocked recently to see websites offering syringes of filler for as little as €11 each.

“God knows what it’s made of or what sanitary conditions it was made in. There’s no CE mark,” he said.

“A proper syringe of filler I would buy from a pharmacy would cost somewhere between €80 and €100 for the same thing.” 

Last year, 1,709 units of fake or illegal products claiming to contain botulinum toxin were seized by the Health Products Regulatory Authority
in Ireland compared to 26 in 2020.