New York: US health watchdog, the Food & Drug Administration, is to investigate whether anti-wrinkle injections should have new warnings about potential side effects.
A panel of outside advisers to the FDA will meet this week to review reports of dermal filler side effects, and to consider whether the regulatory agency should place new warnings or instructions on the injections used to reduce wrinkles and scarring.
According to an FDA document posted Friday on the agencys website, there have been 930 reports of dermal filler side effects received between 2003 and September 20, 2008. Some of the problems were associated with administration of the injections by untrained professionals or in a setting other than a doctors office.
Although no specific products were identified by the FDA, the more popular dermal fillers available include Restylane and Perlane from Medicis, Juvederm from Allergan Inc. and Radiesse from Bioform Medical.
Dermal fillers, which are also known as wrinkle fillers, are injections given to smooth wrinkles for a younger look or to reduce the appearance of scarring. According to the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, about 84,000 men and 1.36 million women received a wrinkle filler injection in 2007.
The FDA advisory panel is scheduled to meet tomorrow in Washington, D.C. to review the safety of these products and whether any regulatory actions, such as strengthened warnings or additional instructions, may be necessary to protect the public.
The FDA review indicates that some people given dermal fillers suffered serious and unexpected side effects, such as facial palsy, disfigurement and rare life-threatening allergic reactions or anaphylactic shock. In some cases, surgical procedures have been required to treat these problems, such as draining abscesses.
Other wrinkle filler side effects have included inflammation, pain at the injection site, numbness, bleeding, blistering, bruising, migration, formation of lumps or nodules and infection. Minor problems, such as a small amount of swelling or redness, are known and expected side effects and are currently described in the product literature.
The FDA is attempting to determine whether additional studies are necessary and whether any updates should be made to the product labeling. Although the FDA is no required to follow the recommendations of their advisory committees, they often do.