A radical facial favoured by celebrities such as reality TV star Kim Kardashian and model Bar Refaeli has yet to be legalised in Dubai despite many salons offering the treatment.
The Dubai Health Authority (DHA) confirmed that the so-called vampire facial, a platelet rich plasma procedure, “is presently stopped”.
“This procedure that is used for cosmetic or therapeutic purposes is presently stopped because we are putting new regulations in place, “ said Dr Layla Mohamed Al Marzouqi, assistant director of the DHA’s Health Regulation Department and Head of Clinical Governance Office.
“It’s a relatively new procedure that should be regulated like any other cosmetic/therapeutic procedure to ensure safety of patients, which is our utmost priority.
Al Marzouqi said the DHA would issue regulations for the procedure “very shortly”.
“After that licensed centres will be free to conduct this procedure,” she said.
Dermalase Clinic operations manager Natasha Bennett told local newspaper Gulf News that it stopped offering vampire facials following the DHA advisory.
However, other clinics in Dubai Health Care City continue to offer the treatment, saying they are not governed by DHA guidelines, the newspaper said.
According to Vampire Facelift Procedure’s website, vampire facials entail drawing blood from the patient’s arm and placing it in a centrifuge to separate platelets from red blood cells. After the centrifuge, plasma is combined with hyaluronic acid (HA) fillers such as Restylane or Juvederm with the cocktail then injected into a patient’s face to stimulate the growth of collagen.
The treatment attracted heightened publicity after Kardashian underwent the procedure on an episode of her reality TV show last March.
“There is controversy with this treatment,” Kardashian’s surgeon at The Miami Institute for Age Management, Dr. Julio Gallo, told CBS Miami.
“Is it the panacea for aging? No, or a replacement for a facelift? No. But, is it a good treatment for maintaining and looking fresh and new? It is.”