Questions
The questions that come up most often about regulation in Scotland, about who may lawfully do what, and about how treatment is assessed, quoted and followed up.
Write to hello@aestheticlaunchlab.com with the area that concerns you and what you have had done before. This website is operated by Aesthetic Launch Lab and enquiries are handled by them. You will get a considered reply setting out which treatments apply and what an assessment would need to establish.
A full facial assessment at rest and in movement, a complete medical history, a discussion of what is realistically achievable, and a written plan setting out areas, product, quantity, cost and risks. Where a prescription-only medicine is involved, the prescriber must assess you in person.
Advertising a prescription-only medicine to the public is prohibited under the Human Medicines Regulations 2012, which covers botulinum toxin. Beyond that, a price quoted before anyone has looked at your face is a shopping prompt rather than information. A written quotation follows the assessment and states what is and is not included.
Because cosmetic photography can be made far more flattering without editing anything, by changing lighting, angle, distance, expression and make-up alone. A gallery is a poor basis for a decision. The guide to reading results explains what to look for instead.
Independent clinics in Scotland where the service is provided by a doctor, dentist, nurse, midwife or dental care professional must register with Healthcare Improvement Scotland and are inspected. Practitioners outside those groups fall outside that requirement. Individual healthcare professionals remain accountable to their own regulator.
Yes. Botulinum toxin is a prescription-only medicine and must be prescribed for you individually by a qualified prescriber following a face-to-face assessment.
At present, in law, largely yes. Fillers are regulated as medical devices rather than medicines and there is no general licensing requirement to inject them. This is why checking the individual practitioner matters so much.
It is the enzyme used to dissolve hyaluronic acid filler, including urgently if a blood vessel is compromised. It is a prescription-only medicine, so a practitioner who cannot prescribe cannot lawfully hold it.
Since October 2021 it has been a criminal offence in England to administer botulinum toxin or cosmetic filler to anyone under eighteen for cosmetic purposes. Responsible practitioners across the UK decline to treat under-eighteens cosmetically.
Contact the practitioner who treated you immediately. If you cannot reach them and the problem is urgent, contact NHS 111 in Scotland or attend an emergency department. Any change in vision after facial filler is an emergency.
Yes. Concerns about a registered healthcare professional go to their regulator. Concerns about a registered independent clinic in Scotland go to Healthcare Improvement Scotland. Suspected side effects of a medicine or device can be reported to the MHRA Yellow Card scheme. Misleading advertising can be reported to the Advertising Standards Authority.
Not where a prescription-only medicine such as botulinum toxin is involved. The prescriber must see you in person first, and there is good reason to leave time between the plan and the consent rather than taking both in one sitting.
Treatment specific questions
Every treatment page carries its own set of questions covering that procedure: duration, pain, swelling, suitability and complications. Start with the treatments, or read what happens at a consultation.
Enquiries
Write with the area that concerns you and what you have tried already. You will get a considered reply setting out which treatments apply, which do not, and what an assessment would need to establish before anything is recommended.
hello@aestheticlaunchlab.comPlease do not send clinical photographs or medical records by email. If something has gone wrong after a procedure, contact the practitioner who treated you, or NHS 111 in Scotland, rather than waiting for a reply.