Risky Business

The American Society for Dermatologic Surgery Association recently rang the alarm about children buying and using “hyaluron pens” to inject hyaluronic acid filler into their skin and lips after seeing others do it on TikTok.

Not a good idea, says Jeanine B. Downie, MD, FAAD, director of image Dermatology PC in Montclair, NJ. “Injecting yourself with hyaluronic acid or any other filler substance is completely unsafe,” she stresses. “It is one thing for a diabetic to be taught to inject insulin, but it is quite another thing to use a pen to forcefully inject filler into your forehead.”

The risks of this practice are real and serious, including blindness and/or embolisms, she says.

These are not all real hyaluronic acids, either. “Many times, it’s hair gel or other unsafe and unsterile products that are being marketed as hyaluronic acid,” she says. What’s more, the actual pens can be unsterile and cause infection, swelling, and tissue necrosis.

“I know personally of two cases of severe damage to the nose that has resulted in tissue necrosis, death of nasal tissue, and multiple nose jobs with no good resolution,” she says.

Some patients bring their own filler and ask Dr. Downie to inject it for them to cut costs.

Her answer? No Way!

“I explain to the patient that I don’t know what the substance is and that it is probably an illegal hyaluronic acid,” she says. “I have lost patients by saying this, but I would be responsible for whatever I injected, so those are patients I am willing to lose.”

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