On 7 March 2024, the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA), Australia’s government authority responsible for assessing, monitoring, and regulating medicines and medical devices, reinforced its regulations on the advertising of Cosmetic Injectables.
TGA reminded doctors that Anti Wrinkle Injections, Dermal Fillers, and Fat Dissolving Injections are Schedule 4 prescription medicines and therefore, are not permitted in the advertising of cosmetic health services. Also prohibited are before/after photographs and prices of such treatments. The TGA has the power to prosecute and fine clinics contravening these regulations.
In effect, this means that previously popular terms such as ‘Wrinkle Reducing Injections’, ‘Anti Wrinkle Injections’, ‘Dermal Fillers’, ‘Lip Fillers’ etc. are not permitted on the reasoning that those terms would result in a reasonable consumer understanding that the terms promote the use or supply of a prescription medicine.
On its website, TGA currently states:
“Either directly or indirectly, you cannot make any reference in your advertisement for cosmetic injection services to prescription-only substances or to product trade names of such products. This includes acronyms, nicknames, abbreviations and hashtags, which may be taken by a consumer as a reference to a specific prescription-only medicine or substance.
This includes:
- anti-wrinkle injections
- dermal fillers
- injectable products used for improvement of the appearance of submental fat.”
Accordingly, in compliance with TGA’s regulations, Sydney Cosmetic & Plastic Surgery Clinic regrets to advise that it can no longer provide information on its website regarding these products, nor showcase its ‘before & after’ photographs of their treatments.
Henceforth, all detailed information on Anti Wrinkle Injections, Dermal Fillers, Lip Fillers etc. will only be available at a consultation.
Reassuringly, our clinic will continue to provide its full range of non-surgical procedures under the highest of professional standards by ‘doctors only’ as it has always done over the last 30 years!
