FDA warns about Baby Face treatments

March 15, 2008

Two techniques called "stem cell roller" and "derma roller" are not approved as the main devices used in such treatments are rollers equipped with needles that clinicians roll around a customer's face, the clinics require a high level of hygiene in both use of the rollers and subsequent cleaning.

Want to have a baby face again? Planning a visit to a beauty clinic to have those wrinkles lifted? Make sure the treatments offered are not called "stem cell roller" or "derma roller", two techniques that Thai Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has not yet approved due to safety reasons.
Two techniques called "stem cell roller" and "derma roller" are not approved as the main devices used in such treatments are rollers equipped with needles that clinicians roll around a customer's face, the clinics require a high level of hygiene in both use of the rollers and subsequent cleaning. The FDA called a hurried press conference after it found that two popular beauty clinics - Nitiphon Clinic and Vuthi-Sak Clinic - have offered their customers such treatments. Deputy Secretary of the FDA, said the treatments required specific medical devices that the FDA had not yet allowed to be imported as their qualifications are still doubtful.
While the two beauty clinics advertised the techniques as wrinkle removals that boost collagen to create clear, "Baby Faces", FDA said the stem cell roller and derma roller techniques could cause dermatitis and infection on facial skin. FDA was afraid that if clinicians were not aware and hygienic enough, the treatments could spread infectious diseases.
The FDA together with the Department of Health Service Support, which oversees private hospitals and clinics, raided Nitiphon clinics as well as Vuthi-Sak Clinic's after learning that the clinics had posted advertisements about the two treatments on the Internet.
President of the Dermatological Society of Thailand, said there had been no research on the effectiveness and adverse impacts of the two treatments, even the United States FDA has not yet certified the safety of the treatments. He said he was informed that the Medical Council of Thailand had received several complaints from customers who received adverse effects from the two treatments. The president said he had alerted dermatologists who are members of the association across country not to use these medical devices on patients. He said the association would ask the medical council to consider whether or not the use of these devices was in violation of professional medical standards. If these found in violation, users would be punished according to the 2007 medical device control laws.
FDA said the clinic owners and the importers of these devices had violated the Public Health Ministry's ministerial regulations of 2006. Under the law, importers could be fined a maximum of 250,000 baht or five-years' imprisonment or both, and clinic owners could be fined a maximum of 20,000 baht and jailed for six months for falsely advertising the benefits of the medical devices.
However, the owners of the two beauty clinics said they were not informed by the FDA about the case. "Our operation always abides by the law and FDA regulations," both said.

More Consumer Confidence - But later

March 1, 2008

Thai consumers were likely to appreciate the government's tax-exemption package, but it did not mean they would immediately go out and shop. Because in the past consumers has learned to be very careful about spending. The key point is the government must be able to convince consumers to change their shopping behavior, back to their normal spending.

The 42-billion baht tax-exemption package which recently launched will boost consumer and business confidence after a long period of gloom, yet any positive results will be seen for three to six months, says a leading advertiser.
CEO of Creative Juice/G1, Thailand’s leading advertising agency, believes the government's plan will boost advertising 5 percent this year after experiencing the lowest growth in eight years. Growth registered a negative 7 percent year on year in January and February.
Thai consumers were likely to appreciate the government's tax-exemption package, but it did not mean they would immediately go out and shop. Because in the past consumers has learned to be very careful about spending. The key point is the government must be able to convince consumers to change their shopping behavior, back to their normal spending.
Advertising Association of Thailand (AAT) chairman agreed that the tax exemptions combined with the government's mega-projects would indirectly boost consumer spending. This is because enormous jobs will be started, and they do not have to pay tax at the same high level as before. That will leave more money in their pockets.
"We hope the measures will help boost consumer spending in the retail sector. Thus, competition within the industry among retail operators will be very intense, due to more advertisement and marketing activities, which in the end will have a positive effect on the advertising industry," the chairman said.
G1 CEO was even more optimistic that consumers would start to spend more. Thus, advertisers will beef up their advertising and marketing budgets as early as this month or next. "The high-season shopping period and hot season are coming in which beverages, sun-protection cream and the air-conditioning market will become fiercely competitive" he said but he also felt consumers will still want to keep money in their pockets and wait to see the government's stability and performance for a while before deciding to start spending normally again.
However, even without the economic-stimulus package, the advertising leaders have witnessed many advertisers being more active in planning their advertising and marketing strategies with advertising agencies. Both G1 CEO and ATT chairman said companies in the consumer-products sector continued to be major spenders, because they had the main products for daily life. Telecommunications is another expected top spender this year. Media channels that will certainly promise high returns will continue to be popular among advertisers. Most are still traditional media, because advertisers hesitate to use new media channels. As a result, new media channels like digital media would experience slow growth. ATT chairman saw more possibilities for advertisers to spread their spending to marketing activities instead of normal advertising, in order to ensure more impressive returns. Thus, spending will not go into the advertising industry in a normal manner.