Cosmetic tourism for breast augmentation: a systematic review

Abstract

Determining the extent of cosmetic tourism for breast augmentation, including outcomes and complications, will help to inform Australian patients who this seek procedure abroad. Furthermore, it will aid in better understanding the health system implications and may help to guide future research and public health interventions both locally and internationally.

Establishing Priorities for the International Confederation of Plastic Surgery Societies

“…In response to the latest international consensus statement on Breast Implant Associated Anaplastic Large Cell Lymphoma, the Patient Safety Committee has disseminated practical guidelines for members, which is consistent with initiative 5. ICOPLAST will also look to build on the recent work by Brightman et al 7 entitled “Cosmetic tourism for breast augmentation: a systematic review,” which highlighted themes consistent with initiative 7.…”

Plastic Surgery Complications: A Review for Emergency Clinicians

“…Postoperative complications may be immediate, such as LAST, or delayed up to months, as may occur with surgical site hematomas. 2,6 Figure 2 depicts common postoperative complications and clinical findings that may assist in distinguishing etiologies leading to ED presentation.…”

“…[2][3][4] Cosmetic procedures are lucrative, and in the absence of legal restrictions, are increasingly being performed in outpatient settings by non-plastic surgeons and even non-physicians. 5,6 Growing medical tourism has spurred demand for cosmetic surgery in Europe, South America, and Southeast Asia. [6][7][8] A survey distributed to 2000 active members of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) showed that 51.6% of respondents noted an increasing trend in the number of patients presenting with complications from surgical tourism.…”

“…5,6 Growing medical tourism has spurred demand for cosmetic surgery in Europe, South America, and Southeast Asia. [6][7][8] A survey distributed to 2000 active members of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) showed that 51.6% of respondents noted an increasing trend in the number of patients presenting with complications from surgical tourism. 9 Public perception of these surgeries as minor procedures contributes to risks for major complications with potentially fatal consequences, with reported mortality of 1 per 5000 procedures.…”

Retention of medical records of patients with high‐risk medical devices

“…In our efforts to improve the safety of patients with breast implants, 30% of whom are breast reconstruction cases for cancer or congenital deformities, we encourage all practitioners to ensure that their patients are registered with the ABDR so their implant details are securely stored 4 . In an effort to preserve the details of all Australian patients with breast implants, the ABDR can also store patient implant details retrospectively and will accept information from Australian patients having cosmetic tourism surgery overseas, after which significant complications can arise 5 . It may be time, however, for legislation to be enacted to lengthen the mandatory retention period for patients with high‐risk devices or to make it legally compulsory for practitioners inserting high‐risk devices to enrol all patients into a clinical quality registry such as the ABDR.…”