The April issue of the Journal Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery had a very scary study. About 1876 cosmetic practitioners from the San Diego to the Los Angeles area were examined and it was found that less than 500 of them were actually trained in plastic surgery.
It appears that primary care physicians were the ones who provided the most liposuction treatments but even dermatologists and otolaryngologists provided those treatments. That’s mind-boggling.
The American Society of Plastic Surgeons warns that by going to non-cosmetic surgeons for services such as liposuction and filler injections, patients expose themselves to a greater risk. That’s because on-cosmetic surgeons are not trained to perform these procedures. Botox may not seem as scary but getting liposuction from a primary care is definitely scary.
To improve patient safety perhaps there’s need for legislation to prevent non-trained practitioners from performing these surgeries. But what’s most important is that there appears to be an ongoing need for education which will make sure that patients have all the facts before they make any decisions that put themselves at risk.
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