Frankfurt Higher Regional Court restricts advertising for cosmetic surgery on the internet

Frankfurt/Main. The Higher Regional Court (OLG) of Frankfurt am Main has restricted advertising for cosmetic surgery on internet platforms. According to a recently announced ruling, the ban on advertising with before-and-after pictures also applies if the comparison only becomes apparent through a sequence of several posts or articles, as in the case of an "Instagram story".

The Higher Regional Court (OLG) thus dismissed the case of a specialist in plastic, reconstructive and aesthetic surgery from Frankfurt am Main. She had reported on her Instagram account about a rhinoplasty in which a patient had a pronounced nasal hump removed.

She posted several updates, allowing her followers and other users to follow the development chronologically backwards and ultimately compare the woman's appearance before and after the procedure.

A trade association filed a lawsuit demanding an injunction. They argued that the use of before-and-after photos in advertising for cosmetic surgery was prohibited .

Medical indication plays no role.

Unlike the Frankfurt Regional Court, the Higher Regional Court has now upheld the appeal. It was deemed irrelevant whether the procedure was partially medically indicated, as the doctor had advertised solely based on the patient's physical appearance. Instagram users could have viewed the entire course of treatment and thus followed how the patient's appearance changed.

It is harmless that the before-and-after comparison was not shown in side-by-side images, but only in chronological order. The corresponding prohibition in the German Act on Advertising of Therapeutic Products is intended to prevent people from hastily subjecting themselves to unnecessary operations and the associated risks. The regulation should therefore be interpreted broadly and must also encompass new forms of advertising such as an Instagram story in this case.

The Higher Regional Court did not allow the appeal, but a further appeal to the Federal Court of Justice is still possible. (mwo)