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ASAPS warns against offshore injectables

Ambulatory Surgery Reimbursement Update, July 19, 2005

The American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ASAPS) is suggesting that patients should be careful of receiving injectables or other treatments not approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) because of a potential high-risk factor.

Only drugs labeled and approved by the FDA can be legally marketed or sold in the United States.

"Some practitioners buy products that have not been approved for use in the United States, often from foreign discount vendors, which is a dangerous and illegal practice," said Mark Jewell, MD, president of ASAPS, the nation's leading society of board-certified plastic surgeons who specialize in cosmetic surgery, in a news release from the ASAPS.

"Patients can, however, take some easy steps to make sure their plastic surgeon is qualified and has purchased FDA-approved treatments," Jewell said.

These steps include:

• avoiding discount treatments that seem extreme.
• making sure their doctor or surgeon is credentialed.
• having all procedures performed in an appropriate facility and to avoid non-clinical settings such as shopping malls and private homes.

To read the release, click here.

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