And here is another story of trying to find that inexpensive botox fix, only it is not FDA approved Botox, it is a very dangerous bogus botulinium toxin: A Texas-based anesthesiologist convicted last year of injecting unsuspecting patients with a Botox substitute on Friday started serving a 2-year federal sentence. Gayle Rothenberg reported to a minimum security women's facility about 100 miles northwest of Houston.
Her lawyer, Joel Androphy, had hoped to keep her free pending the outcome of an appeal, but the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals rejected that request.
A jury found Rothenberg, 56, guilty of conspiracy, nine counts of mail fraud, misbranding a drug for sale, and lying to federal agents. At sentencing in June, she called using the fake injections "a mistake." Androphy said his client maintains her innocence. "We're going to fight this thing all the way through," he said last Monday.
Rothenberg and her husband, Saul Gower, were accused of using botulinium toxin Type A as a cheaper alternative to Botox. Gower, a 57-year-old lawyer who served as office manager of the Houston-based Center for Image Enhancement, pleaded guilty to misbranding a drug for sale and lying to a federal agent about it. He received probation.
There have been 68 arrests and 29 convictions of practioners injecting imposter non-FDA approved Botox and fillers. Over 1000 patients have been treated with these illegal injections. Please choose your physician most carefully.
Two recent occurrences remind me once again to inform the public of the importance of choosing your treating physician very carefully when it comes to facial cosmetic surgery, particularly with Botox and facial fillers. I was interviewed last week for a television show called, "1000 Ways to Die". I was asked to comment about a 40 year old woman who wanted to look younger, yet wanted the cheapest Botox possible. She found a "guy" who came to her house and injected her with what he claimed to be "Botox", but which was non FDA approved botulism toxin. Within hours she could not breathe, and died. The question that I was asked was, "So Dr. Persky, what do you think about this "Botox" death from a "cosmetic treatment". I responded that this was not a Botox death from a cosmetic treatment because the woman had been treated with a Botox imitation, and likely received a gigantic dose of the toxin. This was a case of murder by an unqualified injector using non FDA approved botulism toxin. There have not been any reported deaths from cosmetic FDA approved Botox injections in the many years that it has been used. So in trying to get the cheapest price, this woman paid the ultimate price, her life. Botox injections and the injections of facial fillers are medical procedures that should be performed by qualified and trained cosmetic physicians in their offices, not in someone's kitchen.
A wise professor of mine once told me that "a smile is the best form of plastic surgery". Everyone looks better and more youthful when they smile, okay so maybe "laugh lines" have given smiling a bad rap. Here is a little more wisdom about smiling that I'm sure my old professor would have loved:
A SMILE
A smile costs nothing ... but gives much. It enriches those who receive it without making poorer those who give it. It takes but a moment. However, the memory of it sometimes lasts forever. None is so rich or mighty that he can get along without it. And none is so poor that he can't be made rich by it.
A smile creates happiness in the home, fosters goodwill in business... and is the countersign of friendship. It brings rest to the weary, cheer to the discouraged, sunshine to the sad. It is Nature's best antidote for trouble.
A smile cannot be bought, begged, borrowed or stolen. It is something of no value to anyone until it is given away. Some people are too tired to give you a smile. Give them one of yours. None needs a smile so much as he who has no more to give.
Be well and keep smiling. Dr. P
The Physicians Coalition for Injectable Safety reported that cheaper, unbranded, unapproved and counterfeit cosmetic injectables are a threat to your looks and your health warns . There have been 210 investigations with 68 arrests and 29 convictions of health care professionals (I use that term very loosely in this case), and over 1000 unknowing patients have been scammed. In an article published in the San Antonio Business Journal, The Coalition charged with educating consumers on safe choices in cosmetic injections and eradicating the use of counterfeit and illegally imported cosmetic injectables suggests all consumers follow very cautious steps for both safe, and positive outcomes:
-- Doctor: Ask specifically about your doctor or injector's
qualifications. Choose a doctor who specializes in treating all cosmetic
concerns of the face, such as a board certified plastic surgeon, facial
plastic surgeon, oculoplastic surgeon or dermatologist and who examines
you, prescribes and performs cosmetic injections in a licensed and
properly equipped medical facility. Establish a positive and on-going
relationship with your doctor and follow-up as directed. A nurse or
physician's assistant may perform your injection if you elect, but
a licensed physician must prescribe the treatment.
-- Brand: Ask specifically the brand name of the injectable recommended for
you, the approval status of regulatory agencies in the country where you
will be treated (the U.S. FDA in the United States) and about any
potential outcomes and the likelihood of adverse events. If your doctor
does not offer, ask specifically to see the packaging and identifying
marks that can verify authenticity, including the serial and lot number
(which as a matter of proper procedure must be recorded in your medical
chart). For reference, images of all U.S. FDA approved brand logos and
packaging are available at. www.injectablesafety.org/html/ataglance.php.
-- Safety: If you suspect your injector is not properly trained, is not
following proper procedure or is injecting you with a non-branded,
non-approved or unsafe substance, do not accept treatment. Follow-up by
anonymously reporting suspected illegal activity to your local FDA field
office that can be found at
http://www.fda.gov/consumer/updates/oci072307.html.
To learn more about the benefits of cosmetic injections, the uses for approved cosmetic injectables, to plan for your treatment, see video of live, appropriately administered injectables and more visit www.injectablesafety.org and http://www.realself.com/injectable-safety-campaign. Choose your physician carefully.
Dr. Persky braved the I-5 traffic this morning to appear on KDOC-TV's live Orange County morning show DayBreak OC. Fraxel re:pair was the topic of discussion with co-anchors Pete Weitzner and the most lovely Shally Zomorodi (neither of whom will require any of the good doctor's services in the near future thanks to their natural good looks). Dr. Persky let out a carefully guarded, top-secret, confidential finding after years of cosmetic surgery research when, against all of his professional society’s bylaws he shared with the viewing audience and the less- than- shocked anchors that he was, "thrilled to be in the KDOC studios because of it's proximal location to the universe's epicenter of plastic surgery, thought to be somewhere between the Fashion Island and the South Coast Plaza Malls". He then went on excitedly telling viewers that what he had to share about Fraxel re:pair would “be more valuable to their appearance than anything they could find in the malls, including the medi-spa where Joe Biden likely received his Botox on a recent campaign fund raiser in the OC". By the way, Mischa Barton was nowhere to be found. All kidding aside, I highly recommend viewing the DayBreak OC on KDOC-TV, Channel 56. After visiting the studios, I am sure that you will enjoy the morning show (if that sort of thing is your cup of tea, or even coffee for that matter).
Nobody's perfect. That why for the rest of us there's cosmetic surgery, makeup judiciously applied, proper lighting, and enough distance to keep things a little fuzzy and out of perspective. A very intelligent, entertaining, and most beautiful patient was in my office today. She can afford to see the most popular as well as expensive Beverly Hills cosmetic physicians, yet she chose my practice for her facial procedures. After her rhinoplasty months ago I asked, "What was it that made you choose me to operate on your nose?" She answered with one word, her friend’s name (who had rhinoplasty here a few months before), and then simply added, "Seeing is believing".
She has subsequently trusted her face to me with fillers and Botox. She shared an experience from her workout at the gym this morning. In the class, the lights are dimmed for the hour of the workout, and most people look better in the wall to wall mirrors in the dimly lit room. The inevitable moment of truth comes at the end of class when the bright lights are turned back on. In one of those "ah-ha" moments she came up with another cosmetic insight, "You can look good with the lights on!" with emphasis on the “can”. With a non-invasive, safe and effective treatment that combines the precise and individually tailored use of Restylane, Juviderm, or Radiesse and Botox, the Liquid Facelift rejuvenates the face without the cost and downtime of surgery. It is an excellent choice for my patients who work under the scrutinizing eye of high definition television and film. Patients look rested, healthy, and great with or without the lights on. Seeing is believing.
In a national NBC syndicated television story that originated on WCAU-TV in Philadelphia, the Fraxel laser is described as a “Fall Face Fix” that can reverse the harmful effects of the summer’s sun. Fraxel treatment will do a lot to improve sun damage, acne scars and the overall appearance of skin. The segment makes reference to the Today Show segment featuring Kathie Lee Gifford and notes that the Fraxel re:store laser is FDA cleared for discoloration, roughness, sun damage, acne scars and wrinkles. To view this video go to http://www.fraxel.com/downloads/NBC%20Phila%20Bernstein.wmv.
