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Jean Carruthers, MD, receives ASDS service award
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Jean D. Carruthers, MD, a pioneer in the use of Botox, was awarded the Samuel J. Stegman Award for Distinguished Service at the American Society for Dermatologic Surgery Annual Meeting in New Orleans.
The award honors individuals “who have made major contributions in furthering the goals of ASDS in education, organizational service and research,” according to a press release. Carruthers and her husband, Alastair Carruthers, FRCPC, have spearheaded research of the use of Botox (botulinum toxin, Allergan) to treat glabellar furrows.
Carruthers is a clinical professor in the Department of Ophthalmology at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, where she specializes in facial cosmetic surgery.
As an ophthalmologist, Carruthers initially used botulinum toxin to treat misaligned eyes and spasms, or uncontrolled blinking, according to the release. However, in 1987, she found that one of her patients was requesting the treatment at the end of her eyebrows.
“One of my patients got angry at me and said, ‘you didn’t treat me here,” pointing to the ends of her eyebrows, Carruthers said in the release. “She said, ‘Everytime you inject me here, I get this beautiful untroubled expression.’ That was how it started.”
Botulinum toxin treatment has gone on to become the most widely used cosmetic procedure worldwide, with ASDS members reported performing nearly 1.5 million botulinum toxin treatments in 2015, according to the release.
“Jean is the embodiment of innovative leadership and advocacy of dermatologic surgery, as was Sam Stegman,” whose career was marked by innovative leadership and advocacy for the specialties of dermatology and dermatologic surgery,” Derek H. Jones, MD, who nominated Carruthers for the award, stated in the release.
Reference: www.ASDS.net