'Ozone therapy' has no benefit, could cause death: Health Ministry

PUTRAJAYA: The Health Ministry has warned the public against subscribing to all forms of "ozone therapy" involving "ozone machines" which has been proven to have no benefit for any illnesses and could cause medical complications including death.
Its minister Datuk Seri Dr S. Subramaniam said an assessment done by the Malaysian Health Technology Assessment Section (MaHTAS) revealed that there is no scientific evidence to support any therapeutic benefit from the usage of ozone therapy for any illness.
"Moreover, the therapy exposes the users to risk of bleeding from the usage of heparin (a blood thinning medication), which includes embolism (occlusion of blood vessels from air bubble), infection from unsterile instruments and permanent disability resulting from impairment of organs such as the kidneys," he told reporters at the Health Ministry, here, today.
Subramaniam said the "ozone therapy" which uses ozone machines claims to benefit patients by increasing the amount of oxygen in the body through the introduction of ozone (Oxygen 3) for rejuvenation and anti-ageing purposes.
"However the ozone machine which is similar to a dialysis machine, operates by injection into a person's vein and running the blood through the machine falls under the ambit of medical treatment," he said.
As such, Dr Subramaniam warned practitioners and involved parties to stop such treatments, recall the distribution and usage of these machines from the market by July 1 or face the brunt of the law.
"Under Section 2 and 5 of the Medical Device Act 2012 (Act 737) defines the ozone therapy machine as a medical device which must be registered with the Medical Device Authority (MDA).
"Anybody who fails to comply can face legal action and be liable to a fine not exceeding RM2,000 or imprisonment for a term not exceeding three years or both," he added.