ParfumGigi@aol.com

Cosima Marriner

October 31, 2007

QUEENSLAND could become the first state in Australia to regulate breast implants, nose jobs, tummy tucks and botox for under-18s.

Concerned that teenage girls increasingly "resort to a surgeon's blade" to remedy poor body image, Premier Anna Bligh yesterday released a discussion paper canvassing ways to regulate non-medical cosmetic surgery procedures for minors. This excludes operations to correct abnormalities or deformities.

Leaving the door open for a complete ban on purely cosmetic procedures, the paper also suggests enforcing a "cooling off" period between consultation and surgery, requiring parental consent for a procedure, and compulsory medical and psychological evaluation of prospective patients.

Ms Bligh said there was "worrying" anecdotal evidence that the number of young girls having cosmetic surgery was rising. She cited a Gold Coast surgeon who reportedly treats more than 100 minors a year, and is seeing a 5 per cent annual increase in these patients.

"I appreciate this can be a difficult time, especially in a young woman's development, but to resort to a surgeon's blade is an adult response that is best left until one is an adult," Ms Bligh said.

"The use of cosmetic surgery by children and young people under 18 years for purely cosmetic reasons is an area where significant legal, social and ethical issues interplay."

Members of the Australian Society of Plastic Surgeons and the Australasian College of Cosmetic Surgery are already required to abide by a code of conduct that encompasses many of the regulations flagged.

However, the president of the Australian Society of Plastic Surgeons, Howard Webster, said there did need to be government regulation of cosmetic surgery for under-18s to guard against "shonky operators".

He suggested purely cosmetic procedures such as breast implants and liposuction should be banned for minors, pointing out their bodies were still growing.

He also said any regulation of cosmetic surgery should be done in tandem with a crackdown on the advertising industry that promotes unrealistic body images. "We need to become serious about the damage being caused to these kids by completely duplicitous advertising," he said.

The Victorian Medical Board has flagged tougher advertising guidelines for cosmetic surgery.