Doctors Warn of Unlicensed Botox ‘Swallows’ Using Costa del Sol Villas and Hotels

Aesthetic doctors in Málaga province are warning about unqualified Botox operators who set up for a day or two in rented villas and hotel rooms along the Costa del Sol before vanishing, according to Euro Weekly News.

The Asociación de Medicina Estética de Málaga (Medesma) calls them “golondrinas”, or swallows, and describes the trend as a public health problem. It reports a sharp rise in injectable treatments given by people with no medical qualification or professional registration, outside authorised health centres.

Marbella cases

Javier Romero, an aesthetic doctor and the association’s board member for professional intrusion (the term for unlicensed practice), says Medesma recently came close to catching two operators in Marbella. One took bookings at a well-known five-star hotel, while the other rented a luxury villa. The venues themselves usually have no idea what is happening.

Clients are often given the address only 60 to 90 minutes before the appointment. If a complication arises, there is no clinic to return to. Risks range from minor irritation to blindness and even death.

Real-life consequences

Romero described a patient who developed a facial abscess after treatment in a garage. The Guardia Civil later found the fillers stored in a domestic fridge. Large syringes of body-grade hyaluronic acid had been split into smaller ones for facial use, which he says is strictly forbidden.

In another case, a woman treated for teeth grinding was left with facial paralysis after Botox was injected into her jaw. She later learned the practitioner was a nurse rather than a doctor. Medesma is also following a Benalmádena case in which non-medical staff used a CO2 laser, causing serious injuries and hospital admissions.

Last year the Guardia Civil investigated 24 clinics and premises, including several in Málaga, in an operation against a network distributing illegal products, mainly from South Korea. A property in San Pedro de Alcántara was searched and 700 vials of botulinum toxin were seized.

Medesma is following around six court cases and works with lawyers and private detectives. Each trial costs it an average of €7,000 to €8,000, and proceedings can last up to ten years.

How to protect yourself

Romero says the product alone costs about €150, so a €180 Botox offer cannot be a legal treatment. Medesma advises patients to:

• ask for the doctor’s professional registration number;
• confirm the centre has health authorisation and a U.48 aesthetic medicine unit;
• be wary of oversized promotions such as two-for-one deals, which are not permitted for these treatments;
• treat any undisclosed treatment location as a serious red flag.

Source: euroweeklynews.com