Hong Kong's Consumer Council wants tighter government regulation on non-surgical cosmetic procedures such as whitening drips, placenta extracts, carbon dioxide injections and gold thread facelifts. The council is raising the alarm after several incidents of botched cosmetic surgeries recently led to deaths.

The procedures are not under the supervision of the SAR's Pharmacy and Poisons and Medical Registration Ordinance. Hong Kong laws state that substances used for cosmetic injections are not deemed pharmaceutical products, thus there are no legal requirements over its use. The council also pointed out collagens are not considered medical devices in Hong Kong, so its makers may submit to administrative control on a voluntary basis only.

Also creating controversy in Hong Kong's wellness community is the use of gold threads as a facelift device. The threads form a web under the skin, said to help improve collagen secretion and increase skin elasticity. However, a 40-year-old patient suffered from intense facial pain after three gold threads were inserted, the Aesthetic Plastic Surgery journal reported.

The call for more stringent regulation of the cosmetic procedures is a result of a series of consultations made by the council with professional groups, including the Department of Health and the Hong Kong Society of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgeons. The council said effectiveness of all the non-surgical cosmetic treatments could not be proven scientifically.