Dublin — The Irish Association of Plastic Surgeons is actively lobbying for more regulation of the country’s cosmetic surgery industry following the recent scandal involving breast implants containing substandard silicone filler.
Association officials say the scandal surrounding some breast implants made by now-defunct French company Poly ImplantProthese (PIP) exemplified the problems caused by lack of regulation.
There is no regulation of facilities that offer cosmetic surgical procedures in Ireland, RTÉ News reports. Nor is there specific regulation of those who perform the procedures. IAPS President Patricia Eadie, M.D., said there is no law preventing clinicians from performing any cosmetic procedure, even if they have had no training in it. She said she would like to see strong regulations governing who can do plastic surgery, where it should be done and who can perform what procedures.
Meanwhile, Ireland’s Department of Health has announced it will only be necessary to remove PIP implants in 10 to 15 percent of cases in Britain and Ireland. Surgical consultations have been provided for women who received the PIP breast implants, some of which were made with unapproved industrial grade silicone.
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