Many people do not realize that cosmetic surgery procedures can have lifelong implications, NHS medical director Sir Bruce Keogh said.

Sir Bruce is heading an inquiry into cosmetic surgery procedures is in response to concerns raised over faulty PIP breast implants. The inquiry, which was requested by Health Secretary Andrew Lansley, could lead to stricter regulation of the industry.

He said a great number of people do not realize how serious cosmetic surgery is, and that is way he put together the review committee to get advice on making recommendations to Government on how people who choose to have cosmetic surgery can be better protected.

Speaking on the topic, Sir Bruce said, “I think that there are some very good parts of the cosmetic intervention and surgery industry but there are also some pretty grubby areas.”

The review committee has specifically been asked to consider implementing a national implant register, for products like breast implants, to categorize all the recipients of the product and details of their surgeries.

Nearly 47,000 women in the UK received PIP breast implants. By June this year, around 750 underwent removal surgery on the NHS that cost around £3 million. Many others are undergoing the removal procedure privately.