KUALA LUMPUR: The public is advised to be more cautious when seeking aesthetic medical treatments at beauty salons, spas, hotels or any premises not registered with the Ministry of Health (MOH) as it can lead to health complications and even death if handled by unqualified individuals.

Ministry of Health (MOH) Medical Practice Division director Dr Mohd Azman Yacob said aesthetic medical procedures should only be performed by qualified registered medical practitioners at premises registered or licensed under the Private Healthcare Facilities and Services Act 1998 (Act 586).

The names of these medical practitioners appear on the National Registry of Registered Medical Practitioners Practising Aesthetic Medical Practice on the MOE official portal at https://www.moh.gov.my/index.php/pages/view/2118.

"Only qualified registered medical practitioners are allowed to carry out aesthetic medical procedures such as plastic surgeries (including rhinoplasty, alarplasty, liposuction, blepharoplasty and others), Botox and Filler injections, Laser and High Intensity Focused Ultrasound (HIFU), to name a few.

"These procedures can potentially cause health complications, disabilities and even deaths to customers if handled by unqualified individuals," he said in a statement here today.

Yesterday, a Malay daily reported that there were more than 20 beauty centres or medispas in the Klang Valley and other states that were allegedly masterminded by foreign surgeons offering cosmetic surgery at cheap prices.

Commenting further, Dr Mohd Azman said aesthetic medical procedures also had a list of contraindications that could only be identified by medical practitioners and the MOH would continue to monitor and enforce action on individuals who committed offences in the health service.

He said any complaints regarding aesthetic medical services could be channelled to [email protected] or [email protected].

-- BERNAMA