By Michael H. Gold, MD
China has nearly 1.4 billion people and an aesthetic industry that has grown significantly over the past several years. I have been going to China to teach aesthetic dermatology for almost 15 years now and have seen an incredible rise in their skill levels and knowledge.
I just returned from a 10-day trip to China to teach students about aesthetic dermatology. It’s important for me to help educate the next generation of practitioners in both dermatology and plastic surgery.
While there, I ran into several of my former preceptor students. Most of the students who come to Gold Skin Care Center to do a preceptorship are referred to us by past students or directly from laser companies who want us to train their clients in how we utilize aesthetic devices and treatments. We have had numerous students over the years, and it is a real joy to actually visit their hospitals and clinics when I travel and to see how well they are all doing now.
It’s safe to say every part of the world has different standards of beauty. In the US, it’s common for women to want more facial volume, especially utilizing fillers in the lips. In China, the main concern is pigment. We spend a great deal of time talking about how we can use lasers and light sources to treat pigment. Another very significant trend is to make the face more oval. For this, we use a botulinum toxin (Botox, Dysport or Xeomin are the FDA-approved toxins in the US) in the masseter regions of the face, or the lower jawline areas.
On this trip, I learned that the aesthetic dermatology market in China is still growing and expanding, which is wonderful for all of us around the world in this industry. My goal is for the skill levels of future practitioners to continue to grow after every trip I take.
