Actor Koo Sung-hwan released a statement from the plastic surgery clinic he visited for vitiligo treatment regarding the broadcast that contained the procedure.
On the 11th, the A plastic surgery clinic posted on its official website, "We deeply apologize to the many people suffering from vitiligo for causing the potential for misunderstanding by the content portrayed on the broadcast," and said, "We would like to clarify our hospital's position on several points related to 'vitiligo.'"
A plastic surgery clinic said, "Our hospital is a specialized medical institution run by plastic surgery specialists," and added, "We do not carry out specialized treatment for vitiligo," explaining, "Actor Koo Sung-hwan has been visiting our hospital for more than a year, and after consultations he has received various laser treatments continuously, but we did not provide specialized treatment for vitiligo; our involvement was limited to advising on his current condition through a skin diagnostic device."
They added, "During the consultations we explained that improvement for vitiligo can occur only with consistent treatment at a dermatology 'specialist' hospital, and throughout the filming we tried to respect the expertise of dermatology 'specialists,' but we apologize that this was not reflected in the footage," saying some parts were edited out of the broadcast.
The A plastic surgery clinic explained that the MCT Metacell procedure using the Alma hybrid device shown during the procedure in the broadcast is a technique that activates PRP (autologous platelet-rich plasma), not stem cells, and then delivers it into the skin, adding, "We would like to state that this procedure is clearly different from stem cell procedures involving cell culture."
A plastic surgery clinic said, "To date, the recognized treatments for vitiligo in Korea are therapies using phototherapy by a 'dermatology specialist,' excimer, and PUVA, and those treatments were not performed at our hospital. Our hospital only performed procedures that do not intrude on the domain of dermatology specialists, and we informed the performer about the division of specialist fields and explained better methods for appropriate treatment."
On the Oct. 10 broadcast of MBC's I Live Alone, Koo Sung-hwan was shown visiting a hospital to treat the intractable skin disease vitiligo. Vitiligo is a condition in which white spots form as the skin's melanocytes disappear.
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