About GAA

Video Montage from the Inaugural Summit of the Global Aesthetics Alliance—April 2016 at the Tower of London.

The Global Aesthetics Alliance (GAA) Mission and Objectives

The SEASON Aesthetic Conferences are organised by the Global Aesthetics Alliance (GAA), a not-for-profit scientific exchange that has the mission of advancing procedural safety and outcomes in aesthetic medicine, identifying unmet needs in research and development, and fostering responsible media reporting in aesthetics.

The GAA was established in response to requests from educators, researchers and professional societies in dermatology and plastic surgery for non-commercialized, peer-to-peer informational exchange predicated on quality and integrity; and also due to mounting concern at some media depictions of aesthetic medicine and the aesthetics industry.

The first GAA Summit, which took place in London in 2016, catalysed a dialogue between dermatologists, plastic surgeons and scientists engaged in academic research and educational activities. We were honoured to have the Aesthetic Surgery Journal, official publication of the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ASAPS), and the American Society for Dermatologic Surgery (ASDS) Educational Exchange Work Group as our Academic Partners for this Summit. The second Summit of the GAA took place in Singapore in 2018 in collaboration with a non-commercialized conference (AnEW) that focused on safety and best practice in Asian aesthetics. All content presented at the GAA Summits is peer-reviewed in advance, to ensure fair balance and an evidence-based approach.

Publication Output

To date, the GAA Summits and related GAA advisory activities have achieved three consensus publications on injectables in Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery (PRS) – the official journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons – featuring a notable faculty of plastic surgeons and dermatologists from Asia, Australia, Canada, Europe, Latin America and the United States. GAA publications are now in process on injectables safety, hyaluronidase, evidence-based practices for suspension threads, transparency in cosmeceuticals claims and quality, standards of safety for patient care, and appropriate practitioner qualifications. Scientific abstracts have been presented on these topics and also on new and emerging devices at the American Academy of Dermatology (AAD), American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, World Congress of Dermatology, American Society for Dermatologic Surgery and other core aesthetic academies. The unifying theme of GAA publications is cutting-edge content and quality.

Responsible Media Reporting in Aesthetics

Currently, media reporters are often unsure whom to turn to for reliable information on stories they are covering. They are bombarded with requests for interviews and inclusion in their stories, and it can be challenging for them to discern who is truly an expert and who is promoting the public good. If reporters receive inaccurate or uninformed comments from those whom they interview, this can result in misleading media coverage. A key objective of the GAA is to raise media awareness of doctors and laboratories adopting an evidence-based approach and performing valuable scientific and clinical research. The GAA Summit at the SEASON Aesthetic Conference will expand the previously established GAA database of appropriately qualified physician and industry experts that reporters can use as a trusted resource.

Scientific Cooperation and Collaboration

The discussions and debates at the GAA Summits are independent of commercial interests. A primary objective is to raise awareness among the invited faculty, delegates and media reporters of doctors, scientists, laboratories and companies in our field that are engaged in high quality scientific work—including the research and development of new technologies—and to encourage mutually beneficial alignments that can improve procedural safety and patient outcomes. GAA Summit physicians and scientists are invited to participate in Phase II activities, including publications based on their qualifications and areas of expertise.

Interactive debate and dialogue are key features of the GAA Summits. While the moderators and panellists are charged with initiating each discussion topic and presenting the relevant data, the idea is for all in attendance to use this as a springboard to explore what’s important, and to provide an open forum for comments and questions. We actively encourage participation by all in the room.