The lipstick effect during COVID-19 lockdown

Although consumer spending typically declines during times of crisis, some observers have noted the tendency of consumers to spend more on less costly luxury goods instead, calling it the “lipstick effect.” E-commerce sales in beauty and personal care categories, compared to pre–COVID-19, saw an increase. The mass lockdowns across many states in the United States resulted in hospitals and cosmetic clinics suspending many services. We present several patients who developed complications following home-administered cosmetic procedures and presented via telemedicine clinic at the Department of Dermatology at Boston Medical Center in May 2020. The first case follows a patient who had platelet-rich plasma concentrate injected into her face by an unauthorized, presumed aesthetician in training. The second and third cases follow patients purchasing products from unregulated e-commerce retailers to self-administer injectable fillers and perform trichloroacetic acid chemical peels, respectively. We discuss the impact of social media in conjunction with extensive misinformation along with easily accessible products available on the Internet, and how this combination has encouraged self-injurious behavior and its consequences while lacking any means of accountability. This paper aims to encourage the spread of patient education and limit personal harm from self-administration of potentially injurious procedures.