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Florida health officials warn consumers against botulism injections
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Health officials in southern Florida are warning consumers not to undergo injections of unauthorized anti-wrinkle substances after four people were paralyzed by raw botulism last November, according to an Associated Press article.
An Arizona supplier sent 51 vials of botulinum toxin to 13 South Florida customers last year. Investigations by the Food and Drug Administration confirmed that Botox Cosmetic (botulinum toxin type A, Allergan) “played no role in this unfortunate incident,” said Douglas A. Ingram, executive vice president and general counsel for Allergan, in a press release issued after the incident.
The Arizona supplier, Toxin Research International, was ordered on Monday to stop distributing its product and to recall about 3,000 vials that may still be in circulation, according to press reports.
People “are really taking life in their own hands” Jean Malecki, MD, director of the Palm Beach County Health Department, told the AP.
Osteopathic physician Bach McComb reportedly injected himself and three others with the raw botulism; Dr. McComb’s Florida medical license was suspended in 2004.
For more on this story, see the Jan. 15 issue of Ocular Surgery News U.S. Edition.