AsiaNews Magazine Jan10-16,2014 ( Jan 1-7,2014) | Page 60

COVER STORY

January 10-16, 2014

and modify clay, unlike cement,
which you have to break when it
gets solidified.”
Some fillers can be dissolved
with another injection and those
made from hyaluronic acid are absorbed into the body over time.
But this also means a greater risk
of overdosing and more money
spent on revisiting the hospital every six months to a year. The prices
for dermal filler treatments vary
from 50,000 won to over 500,000
won, based on where they are injected and the dosage. Both Min
and Kim were told by their surgeons to get another injection in a
few months to maintain the effect.
Thanks to a boom in non-invasive cosmetic procedures, South
Korea’s filler and Botox market,
including both imported and domestically produced products, was
worth an estimated 104 billion won
in 2012, up from 65.9 billion won
in 2010, according to the Ministry

of Food and Drug Safety.
Domestic firms such as
Huons, Daewoong Pharmaceutical Co. and LG Life Sciences
developed their own Botox and
filler, targeting the growing international demand.
Doctors also have had to keep
up with new injection techniques.
In September, a seminar hosted
by the Korean Society of Surgeons, an association with over
2,000 registered medical professionals, expanded programmes
related to “petit” surgery.
“We decided to reflect the
trend of cosmetic procedures
in which surgeons show interest to stay competitive,” said Lee
Dong-yoon, head of the association.
Under the current law, Botox
and fillers can be injected by any
doctor with a medical license.
Not surprisingly, as the market has got bigger, the number

of cases of negative side effects
reported has surged as well.
According to data released by
nongovernmental organization
Consumer Korea, 233 reports of
negative side effects related to
Botox were filed in the first half
of this year. The majority of reports involved inflammation and
skin damage. In one severe case,
one patient even reported partial
loss of vision.
The side effects often hit patients who receive the treatment
at hair salons and skin care clinics with no license to administer
such injectables. They also sometimes use unproven products
that could pose serious risks.
“The most important thing
is that you have to find welltrained specialists. You need to
look into the doctor’s specialty
and how much experience he
has. Price is the next thing to
think about,” Youn said.