Botox patients should undergo mental health screening, experts say

People seeking cosmetic injections such as botox or filler treatments should undergo compulsory mental health screening in order to stop vulnerable patients worsening pre-existing psychological conditions and increasing their risk of self harm, experts say.

Calls for clinicians to be trained to conduct psychological assessments come amid demands for greater regulation of the cosmetic injectables industry after Guardian Australia reported serious side-effects following an a common procedure to dissolve facial filler.

According to Pikoos, when people with BDD seek out treatments most often they do not experience any psychological benefit and, in many cases, it makes them feel worse.

There is no required psychological training for many of the people allowed under current regulations to administer injectables, including nurse practitioners, nor is there any mandate to screen patients before they are treated, unlike cosmetic surgery.

Surgeons, who have basic psychological training as part of their medical degrees, are required to discuss and assess the reasons a patient gives for wanting cosmetic surgery and should refer them to a psychologist if they have concerns. There is also a cooling off period of a number of days between the patient giving informed consent and the surgical procedure.

Last year a UK parliamentary inquiry recommended the government develop mandatory psychological pre-screening tests to cover a range of conditions before any non-surgical cosmetic treatment.

Dr Gemma Sharp, a body image research lead at Monash University and clinical psychologist, said mental health screening would improve satisfaction levels and improve patient outcomes.

She said the issue was particularly bad for people with BDD who could feel worse after treatments, harm themselves or take legal action against the practitioner who treated them.

A spokesperson for Ahpra and the National Boards said it was up to practitioners to consider the appropriateness of any treatment they are recommending to a patient.

Cosmetic injections require a valid prescription from an authorised prescriber such as a doctor, dentist or nurse practitioner.