Plain-English explanations of the technical terms and legislation used in this document.
- Adjunct
- An additional treatment given alongside the main treatment to support or improve it.
- Adrenaline (epinephrine)
- An emergency medicine given by injection into a muscle as the first treatment for a severe allergic reaction.
- Adverse event
- Any unexpected or unwanted occurrence linked to a treatment that harms, or could harm, a patient.
- Aesthetic Complications Expert (ACE) Group
- A specialist group that publishes UK guidance on recognising and managing complications of cosmetic injectable treatments.
- Anaphylaxis
- A severe, life-threatening allergic reaction needing immediate emergency treatment.
- Antihistamine
- A medicine that reduces the effects of an allergic reaction.
- Antiplatelet
- A medicine, such as aspirin, that makes the blood less likely to clot.
- Bag-valve-mask
- A hand-held device used to push air or oxygen into the lungs of a patient who is not breathing adequately.
- Blanching
- Whitening of the skin, here caused by the blood supply to that area being cut off.
- Calcium hydroxylapatite
- A type of dermal filler that is not made of hyaluronic acid and cannot be dissolved by hyaluronidase.
- Capillary refill
- A quick check of blood flow: after pressing the skin it should regain its colour in under two seconds.
- Care Quality Commission (CQC)
- The independent regulator of health and social care services in England.
- Contemporaneous
- Recorded at the time an event happens, or as soon as possible afterwards.
- Contraindication
- A reason why a particular treatment or medicine should not be given to a specific person.
- Cutaneous
- Relating to the skin.
- Dermal filler
- A gel injected under the skin to smooth lines or add volume to the face.
- Diluent
- A sterile liquid used to dissolve or dilute a medicine before it is injected.
- Duty of candour
- The legal duty to be open and honest with a person and their family when something goes wrong with their care.
- Field defect
- A missing or blank area within a person's field of vision.
- Glabellar
- Relating to the glabella, the smooth area of skin between the eyebrows.
- Glyceryl trinitrate (GTN)
- A medicine that widens blood vessels, sometimes used to help restore blood flow.
- Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014
- The regulations setting the fundamental standards of safety and quality that registered care providers must meet.
- Human Medicines Regulations 2012
- The law governing how medicines are licensed, prescribed, supplied and administered in the UK.
- Hyaluronic acid (HA) filler
- A dermal filler made from a gel that occurs naturally in the body and that can be dissolved by hyaluronidase.
- Hyaluronidase (HA-ase)
- An injectable medicine that dissolves hyaluronic acid filler and is used to reverse a vascular occlusion.
- Infiltration
- Injecting a medicine throughout an area of tissue rather than at a single point.
- Intramuscular
- Given by injection into a muscle.
- Ischaemia
- A shortage or loss of blood supply to part of the body, which can damage the affected tissue.
- Livedo
- A blotchy, net-like or mottled discolouration of the skin, here a warning sign of disrupted blood flow.
- Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA)
- The UK body that regulates medicines and medical devices and oversees their safety.
- 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, here caused by a loss of blood supply.
- Notifiable event
- An incident a provider is legally required to report, such as a death or serious injury.
- Occlusion
- A blockage; here, of a blood vessel.
- Ocular
- Relating to the eye.
- Off-label use
- Using a licensed medicine for a purpose other than the one it is officially approved for, where this is clinically justified.
- Ophthalmic circulation
- The network of blood vessels that supplies the eye.
- Ophthalmology
- The branch of medicine dealing with the eye and its disorders.
- Ophthalmoplegia
- Weakness or paralysis of the muscles that move the eye, causing difficulty moving the eye.
- Periorbital
- Relating to the area around the eye.
- Poly-L-lactic acid
- A type of dermal filler that is not made of hyaluronic acid and cannot be dissolved by hyaluronidase.
- Prescriber
- A clinician legally authorised to prescribe medicines.
- Prescription-only medicine (POM)
- A medicine that may lawfully be supplied only on the instruction of an appropriate prescriber.
- Ptosis
- Drooping of the upper eyelid.
- Reconstitute
- To mix a powdered or concentrated medicine with a liquid to prepare it for injection.
- Registered Manager
- The person registered with the regulator as responsible for the day-to-day running of a service.
- Reticulated
- Having a net-like or web-like pattern, used to describe a skin discolouration.
- Retinal artery occlusion
- A blockage of the artery supplying the retina, which can rapidly cause permanent loss of vision.
- Retrobulbar injection
- An injection given into the space behind the eyeball, an advanced technique requiring specific training.
- Safety-netting
- Giving a patient clear advice on what warning signs to watch for and exactly what to do if they appear.
- Secondary care
- Specialist hospital-based care to which a patient is referred, such as plastic surgery or dermatology.
- Standard Operating Procedure (SOP)
- A document setting out the agreed step-by-step way a specific task must be carried out.
- Vascular occlusion (VO)
- Blockage of a blood vessel, here caused by filler compressing or entering the vessel and cutting off the blood supply.
- Vasodilation
- Widening of the blood vessels, which can help to improve blood flow to an area.
- Yellow Card scheme
- The UK system for reporting suspected side effects of medicines and problems with medical devices to the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency.