Beauty biz’s ugly underbelly: Tummy tuck, hair transplant often quack job

HYDERABAD: A boom in the

medical aesthetic industry

in the state has led to a mushrooming of cosmetology clinics, but these are opening doors to quacks and triggering botched plastic surgeries. Consumers are tricked by unscrupulous practitioners and unqualified beauty centres peddling copycat treatments.

Pressing panic buttons, Telangana Association of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgeons (APRAS-Telangana and Andhra Pradesh) shot off a letter to

Medical Council of India

to expedite action against unqualified surgeons performing critical plastic surgeries, including liposuction, hair transplant and breast implants.

In a letter submitted last week, the association said some surgeries mandate only trained practitioners for the job, but quacks are making quick money.

“These clinics are hiring OT technicians of senior plastic surgeons and making them perform the procedures. This is unethical. Also, they are illegally flaunting the

APRAS

tag,” said the letter.

MCI guidelines clearly state doctors or diploma holders should not advertise fake degrees. “We have served notices on around 20 people, who are performing surgeries without being qualified plastic surgeons. But action-taken is not swift,” said Dr E Ravindra Reddy, MCI (Telangana). Some have been summoned, while some are sitting pretty. Customers should also understand the difference between qualified plastic surgeons and those simply claiming to have fake diplomas,” he said.

Ringing alarm bells, Dr Puvvada Srinivas, member of APRAS, said a young student died in Chennai a few months ago when an anaesthetist performed a hair transplant on him. Their Chennai counterparts immediately brought it to the notice of MCI. “When non-medical professionals peddle fake degrees and set up cosmetology clinics, surgeries fail and patients come to us for justice,” said another member of the association, Dr Sri Ganesh.

MCI can slap notices on fake plastic surgeons, but can do little to curb cosmetology clinics.

“For any surgical procedure, medical and health officials have to issue licences, but when we complain, they say they can only tackle doctors and not the clinic and criminal cases have to lodged against them. We want MCI to take strict action” said Dr V Sudhakar Prasad, president of APRAS.