A recent report brings to the table a serious risk that many "beauty" treatments tend to downplay: facial fillers are no longer seen as harmless touch-ups. According to the BBC, some of these procedures could cause "vascular occlusion," a blockage of blood vessels that can lead to skin loss, deformities, and even blindness.
What do the experts say?
The danger occurs when the filler is injected into or very close to facial arteries or capillaries. If that happens, blood flow is interrupted. In some analyzed cases, this blockage has been so severe that it has caused irreversible damage to tissue and vision. As the BBC reports, although these complications are not common, when they do occur, "they can be devastating".
Ultrasound Before the Needle: The Key to More Safety?
To avoid these risks, specialists recommend the use of ultrasound before each treatment. This scanner allows for precise mapping of the arteries and veins of the face, identifying "high-risk zones" that should be avoided. If something does not appear to be in the necessary condition to proceed, doctors and clinicians could rearrange the injection, or discard it, instead of proceeding "blindly."
What does all this imply for the aesthetics boom?
This type of alert highlights that, behind what is commonly known as express beauty, there is a technical and delicate terrain: that of the human body. The fact that fillers are in vogue cannot overshadow the need for strict protocols, medical training, and transparency regarding risks.