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Media & trends · Injectables · 03/11/2026

SCANDALELOOK CLOSER. ASK QUESTIONS.
Authority-documented outbreak in 2023Türkiye · Case source date 03/04/2023Documented historical case

Türkiye: Botulism after gastric Botox for weight loss

Documented 2023 case: European authorities investigated illness following injections into the stomach. People from Germany were also affected.

THE WARNING SIGN

„A procedure marketed for weight loss can have serious systemic consequences.“

Editorial case file. Evidence status, open questions and recommendations are presented separately.

Editorial symbolic image: a packaged syringe, glass vials and gloves; not a photograph of the case.
Symbolic image · editorial illustration
THE CASE SOURCEecdc.europa.euECDC update of 3 April 2023

WHAT IS DOCUMENTED

What this case shows.

By 30 March 2023, ECDC had recorded 87 botulism cases linked to intragastric botulinum toxin injections in Türkiye, including 30 reported in Germany. The weight-loss procedures took place from 3 February to 1 March 2023 at two private hospitals. The 3 April 2023 update documents a historical outbreak, not a new alert issued on this article’s publication date.

See evidence and sources

A CLOSER LOOK

The context behind the claim.

WHO’s earlier account, with a reporting cutoff of 17 March 2023, described 71 cases and at least five intensive-care admissions. The differing totals reflect different reporting dates. WHO said licensed products had been used outside their approved purpose; the investigation was examining product quality, medical error and overdose as possible causes. This concerned gastric injections for weight loss and does not justify a blanket judgment about Turkish clinics or routine wrinkle treatments.

Responses and open questions

WHO reported that the affected departments were suspended on 1 March 2023 and investigations opened. The reviewed sources do not establish a final judicial finding of guilt or the hospitals’ present operating status.

YOUR NEXT STEP

Making a more informed decision.

For a planned procedure, clarify the exact intervention, approved indication, evidence of benefit and aftercare after returning home. Ask for treatment records and an accessible medical contact. Breathing or swallowing problems or marked muscle weakness after botulinum toxin require immediate medical help.

The starting point of the investigation.

Original source dated 03/04/2023

Historical authority case. ECDC and WHO describe different reporting cutoffs of the same outbreak; no current case count or unverified social-media image is claimed.

Reach is not an evidence or selection criterion for this authority case.

ECDC update of 3 April 2023The warning identifies the documented risk context. It is not a court finding; the evidence status is stated above.

Sources behind the answer.

1
Update on iatrogenic botulism cases in EuropeECDC · Checked: 03/11/2026

Outbreak update of 3 April 2023; figures as of 30 March.

2
Iatrogenic Botulism – European RegionWHO · Checked: 03/11/2026

Earlier authority account of 24 March 2023; causal investigation then ongoing.

Source-based editorial assessment. This is not a personal customer submission or a documented individual specialist approval. It does not replace a personal medical consultation.

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