Plain-English explanations of the technical terms and legislation used in this document.
- Adrenaline (epinephrine)
- An emergency medicine given by injection to treat a severe allergic reaction, and also added to local anaesthetic to reduce bleeding.
- Anaphylaxis
- A severe, life-threatening allergic reaction needing immediate emergency treatment.
- Aseptic non-touch technique (ANTT)
- A standard method of carrying out a procedure so that the parts that must stay sterile are never touched, to prevent infection.
- Aspiration
- Drawing back on a syringe before injecting to check the needle is not in a blood vessel.
- Best interests
- A decision made for someone who cannot decide for themselves, choosing the option that is best for them.
- Blood-borne virus (BBV)
- An infection such as hepatitis B, hepatitis C or HIV that can be passed on through blood.
- Body dysmorphic disorder (BDD)
- A mental health condition in which a person is excessively preoccupied with a perceived flaw in their appearance.
- Cannula
- A thin tube, sometimes with a blunt tip, inserted under the skin to place threads or other material with less risk of injuring blood vessels.
- Care Quality Commission (CQC)
- The independent regulator of health and social care services in England.
- CE marking
- A mark showing a product meets European safety standards and may lawfully be placed on the market.
- Chlorhexidine
- An antiseptic used to clean the skin before a procedure to reduce infection risk.
- Clinical governance
- The system through which a service monitors and improves the quality and safety of the care it provides.
- Cold chain
- Keeping vaccines and certain medicines within a safe temperature range from delivery to use.
- Continuing professional development (CPD)
- Ongoing learning and training that keeps a practitioner's knowledge and skills up to date.
- Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002 (COSHH)
- The law for safely managing chemicals and other hazardous substances at work.
- Cosmetic Practice Standards Authority (CPSA)
- A body that sets clinical standards for non-surgical cosmetic treatments in the UK.
- Decontamination
- The combined process of cleaning, disinfecting and, where needed, sterilising equipment so it is safe to reuse.
- Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check
- A criminal-records check showing whether a person is suitable to work with patients or vulnerable people.
- Duty of candour
- The legal duty to be open and honest with a person and their family when something goes wrong with their care.
- Embolic event
- A blockage of a blood vessel by material that has travelled through the bloodstream, which can cause serious harm.
- Extrusion
- Where an inserted thread works its way back out through the skin.
- Freedom to speak up
- Arrangements that allow staff to raise concerns about wrongdoing, risk or poor care without fear of being penalised.
- Fundamental standards
- The minimum standards of safety and quality below which care must never fall.
- General Dental Council (GDC)
- The body that registers and regulates dental professionals in the UK.
- General Medical Council (GMC)
- The body that registers and regulates doctors in the UK.
- General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC)
- The body that registers and regulates pharmacists and pharmacy technicians in the UK.
- Granuloma
- A small lump of inflamed tissue that can form as the body reacts to a foreign material such as a thread.
- Health and Care Act 2022
- An Act of Parliament that, among other things, provides for a licensing scheme for non-surgical cosmetic procedures in England.
- Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974
- The main law placing duties on employers to protect the health and safety of staff and others.
- Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014
- The regulations setting out the fundamental standards that providers of regulated care must meet.
- Hepatitis B immunisation
- A vaccination that protects against the hepatitis B virus, recommended for staff at risk of blood exposure.
- Human Medicines Regulations 2012
- The main law governing the licensing, supply, prescribing and administration of medicines in the UK.
- Hyaluronidase
- An enzyme injected to dissolve hyaluronic-acid dermal filler, used to treat certain filler complications.
- Immediate life support (ILS)
- Training in the initial steps of treating a person whose heart or breathing has stopped, until further help arrives.
- Indemnity (medical indemnity)
- Insurance or cover that protects a practitioner against the cost of claims arising from their clinical work.
- Infection prevention and control (IPC)
- The measures used to stop infection spreading between patients, staff and visitors.
- Inoculation injury
- An injury, such as a needlestick or splash, that could expose a person to infection from blood or body fluids.
- Instructions for use (IFU)
- The manufacturer's written guidance on how to store and use a device or product safely.
- Intralipid (lipid emulsion)
- A fatty emulsion given into a vein as an emergency treatment for severe local anaesthetic poisoning.
- Joint Council for Cosmetic Practitioners (JCCP)
- A register and standards body for practitioners who provide non-surgical cosmetic treatments in the UK.
- Local anaesthetic
- A medicine that numbs a specific area of the body so a procedure can be carried out without pain.
- Local anaesthetic systemic toxicity (LAST)
- A dangerous reaction caused by too much local anaesthetic reaching the bloodstream, affecting the heart and nervous system.
- Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999
- The law requiring employers to assess and manage risks to health and safety at work.
- Medical Devices Regulations 2002
- The law governing the safety, marking and supply of medical devices in the UK.
- Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA)
- The UK body that regulates medicines, medical devices and blood components for safety and quality.
- Mental capacity
- Whether a person can understand and make a particular decision for themselves at the time it needs to be made.
- Near miss
- An event that could have caused harm but did not, by chance or because it was caught in time.
- Necrosis
- The death of body tissue, for example skin, often caused by a loss of blood supply.
- Nominated Individual
- The senior person responsible to the regulator for supervising how a service is provided.
- Notifiable safety incident
- An incident during care that results in, or could result in, significant harm and which the provider must be open about under the duty of candour.
- Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC)
- The body that registers and regulates nurses and midwives in the UK.
- Percutaneous
- Carried out through the skin, for example by passing a needle or thread through it.
- Personal protective equipment (PPE)
- Items such as gloves, aprons and masks worn to protect against harm or infection.
- Poly-L-lactic acid (PLLA)
- An absorbable synthetic material used in some lifting threads that also stimulates the body to produce collagen.
- Polycaprolactone (PCL)
- A slowly absorbable synthetic material used to make some lifting threads.
- Polydioxanone (PDO)
- A common absorbable synthetic material used to make lifting threads, which the body breaks down over several months.
- Prescription-only medicine (POM)
- A medicine that may lawfully be supplied only on the instruction of an appropriate prescriber.
- Prophylactic antibiotic
- An antibiotic given to prevent infection rather than to treat an existing one.
- Registered Manager
- The person registered with the regulator as responsible for the day-to-day running of a service.
- Regulated activity
- A type of care or treatment the law requires a provider to register with the regulator to deliver.
- Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013 (RIDDOR)
- The law requiring certain workplace injuries, diseases and dangerous events to be reported to the Health and Safety Executive.
- Resuscitation Council UK
- A UK body that produces the recommended guidelines for treating cardiac arrest and other medical emergencies.
- Revalidation
- The periodic process by which registered professionals demonstrate they remain fit to practise.
- Rhytidectomy
- The medical term for a surgical face-lift.
- Risk assessment
- A structured check identifying what could cause harm and what is being done to prevent it.
- Safeguarding
- Protecting people's health, wellbeing and rights and keeping them safe from abuse, harm or neglect.
- Sharps
- Needles, blades and other items that can cut or puncture the skin.
- Single assessment framework
- The structure the regulator uses to judge a service, built around quality statements and five key questions (safe, effective, caring, responsive, well-led).
- Standard operating procedure (SOP)
- A written, step-by-step instruction for carrying out a routine task consistently and safely.
- Subcutaneous
- Relating to the layer of tissue just beneath the skin.
- Subdermal plane
- The level just below the skin where lifting threads are usually placed.
- Suspension suture
- A thread inserted under the skin to lift and hold soft tissue in a new position.
- UKCA marking
- The UK mark showing a product meets the relevant Great Britain safety standards and may lawfully be placed on the market.
- Vascular occlusion
- A blockage of a blood vessel, which can cut off the blood supply to tissue and cause serious harm.
- Vector
- The direction along which a thread is placed to lift tissue.