Doctors' beauty offers entail health risks

USA TODAY, March, 2004 by Kimberly Shearer Palmer

As I waited for a routine skin check at my dermatologist's office, a flier caught my eye. My doctor was offering a special: If a patient organized a Botox party with six or more guests, he would give the organizer free Botox injections and bring complimentary hors d'oeuvres to the party.

His offer may have been generous, but it also was a reminder of a disturbing medical trend: Some doctors have morphed into beauty consultants. Instead of just advising us to get a mammogram or have a questionable mole removed, they now also suggest having a wrinkle smoothed or a breast reshaped. The problem with this role is that it can conflict with doctors' traditional responsibility to promote good health.

Cosmetic procedures don't usually benefit a patient's health; they enhance her or his beauty. The "optimal" treatment is not determined by medical standards so much as by cultural ...