Why you should never buy injectables online
It seems you can buy pretty much anything on eBay - including dermal fillers. However, Brisbane dermatologist Dr. Davin Lim warns buying injectables online is extremely dangerous.
Ordinarily, dermal fillers and anti-wrinkle injections are prescription-only and must be administered by a qualified doctor or nurse with training in cosmetic injectables. But, the unsupervised sales of injectables online allows “unsuspecting customers [to] inject themselves with them, or [be] injected by unlicensed providers,” Dr. Lim explains in an Instagram post.
Plus, having injections performed by an unqualified person isn’t the only risk presented by these online injectable sales - the formulas themselves are also very unsafe.
Speaking about seeing the results of the imitation filler firsthand, Dr. Lim says:
“I just saw a patient who reacted really, really badly after having her lips done with this filler by a beautician. I am slowly breaking down the filler with injections and oral anti-inflammatories. In some cases, these lumps require surgical removal.”
“I can’t believe that eBay allows the sale of dermal fillers. Not only eBay but over half a dozen online websites. These fillers are ‘imitation hyaluronic acid fillers’ made in Korea and China. eBay restricts the sale of medications, they should extend this blanket cover to ban the sale of dermal fillers,” Dr. Lim continues.
If you’re considering getting dermal fillers, Dr. Lim has some advice:
“Keep it safe. Well-known dermal fillers have a long safety record, however side effects can occur. These include arterial occlusion, lump and bumps, delayed swelling, and infection. Dermatologists and plastic surgeons not only perform dermal filling, but we see most of the cases of ‘filler gone wrong’. It is super important to see an expert trained in dermal filling, and remember filling is both an art form as well as a science.”
If you're interested in reading more about injectables, here are the top non-surgical cosmetic treatment trends for 2020.
What do you think of Dr. Lim’s advice? Let us know in the comments.
Main image credit: @kyliejenner
Isobel is a Digital Content Editor at BEAUTYcrew, marie claire and InStyle. When she's not busy hunting for the latest beauty news, you’ll find her arranging her skincare collection in search of the perfect “shelfie.” Isobel was previously BEAUTYcrew's Junior Beauty Writer.
