Blog Post

Safety warnings over dermal fillers

  • By Éilís Fitzgerald
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  • 27 Feb, 2019
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I was delighted to be interviewed for Susan Mitchell’s excellent article in the Sunday Business Post last weekend.
As hard as it is to believe, there is little to no regulation around the supply and use of dermal fillers in Ireland. Product can be purchased online, and people with no medical training whatsoever can inject filler. This situation is contributing to an upsurge in patients presenting to Emergency Departments with complications associated with such treatments.
As Professor Ryan and Dr. Coleman say, “This practice is alarming, as inadvertent injection of a dermal filler into an artery of the face can result in blindness or necrosis of tissue of the face. If this is not immediately reversed by hyaluronidase, a regulated prescription injection (which can cause anaphylaxis) that can only be injected by physicians, the results are catastrophic for patients”.
When interviewed, I stated that it is an invasive medical procedure that has risks, and expressed by concern that filler procedures have been trivialised. The skills to safely perform filler treatments are gained by plastic surgeons and dermatologists over years of training, and only doctors on the specialist register in one of those specialties have completed formal, recognised training in facial aesthetics, dermal fillers (and other treatments such as Botox), and the recognition and management of complications associated with these treatments. These skills and knowledge are not possible to learn over the course of a few days, on a training course, many of which are industry-sponsored.
If you are considering a dermal filler procedure, the advice is to seek out a specialist, to ensure you are happy with the premises, product, and aftercare. Please don’t take chances with your face.
For the full article, please click below.

Breast implant Safety

By Éilís Fitzgerald • February 27, 2019

There has been significant media attention in recent days, relating to regulation and safety of medical devices, including breast implants.

Below is the text of the statement on breast implant safety issued by ICOBRA, the International Collaboration of Breast Registry Activities, and the Irish Association of Plastic Surgeons (IAPS).

I wish to reassure all patients on whom I have performed breast augmentation surgery, or breast uplift surgery using implants, that the devices that I used were FDA approved. Hopefully, the in-depth preoperative consultations that you would have undergone with me, will pre-empt many queries that may have arisen as a result of the recent media attention.However I realise that it is some time since some of you have had your surgery done, and therefore the information it may not be as fresh in your minds as it was previously. You will be aware that your procedure fee covers follow-up appointments for the duration that the implants are present in your body, and therefore I would welcome you to attend for a follow-up appointment, should you have any queries that you wish to discuss with me. Depending on the duration since your original surgery, more data in relation to BIA-ALCL (the rare form of blood cancer associated with implants), and other factors as raised in the recent media pieces, may have come to light since your operation. I would encourage you to attend for your scheduled post-operative visits, in order that I may discuss these matters with you, as well as how to best care for yourself and your breasts going forward. You are very welcome to move forward any scheduled appointment, should you wish to discuss these matters sooner. Please contact my office on 015553777 or office@fitzgeraldplasticsurgery.ie should you wish to make an appointment.

You will see in the statement published below, that patients are advised to register their implants. Unfortunately, it remains the case that there is no national register in Ireland. As you are aware, I maintain an anonymised database of all implants that I have placed in my patients, and should you require the details of your implants, this can be easily accessed and conveyed to you.

As always, should you have any immediate concerns regarding your breast health, you should contact my office, or your general practitioner, for medical advice, rather than awaiting a scheduled appointment.


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