A dental nurse claims that she nearly lost her sight and almost lost her lips after a botched filler treatment caused blood to stop flowing to her face.
Amy Wiseman, 21, from Durham, paid £70 to go under the needle last month by a beautician she ‘trusted’, but knew something wasn’t right when she was left in with a heavily bruised and swollen lip.
She claims that the filler was injected into an arterial, causing a vascular obstruction, which is when blood can’t flow through a blood vessel. This can cause vision loss, either partial or complete.
Amy claims that her lip was starved of oxygen. She had 24 hours to save it before it completely died. This would have meant Amy would need a skin transplant.
A medical practitioner disintegrated the filler and advised her that she was at risk of losing her vision. A GP however said that she was lucky to have a healthy lip.
Amy Wiseman, 21 years old, from Durham, had been receiving lip-filler from a reputable beautician since she turned 17. Amy is pictured after receiving previous lip filler treatment.
Last month she was left in with a heavily bruised and swollen lip (pictured), claiming filler was injected into an artery causing a vascular occlusion, where blood can’t pass through a blood vessel
Amy said that she was in shock when Amy said that she could lose her sight.
“I didn’t know what was happening. I didn’t know if my lips would be saved or permanently damaged.
“I had decreased blood flow because the filler was blocking an artery, so the bruising was blood that had no place to go. The dentist told me that if it didn’t dissolve within 24 hours, I would go blind.
‘If I hadn’t worked in a dentist, my eyesight and the left-side of my face would have been lost and I would have needed to have a tissue graft in mine.
Amy claims that her swollen lip (pictured above) was starved and that she had 24 hours before the tissue died. This would have meant that she would have needed a skin graft in order to save herself.
“What if I had to lose my eyesight? I wouldn’t like to be here.
Amy, who has had the treatment since she is 17 years old, received 0.5ml injections from a beautician. She immediately noticed something wasn’t right.
After desperately messaging the beautician (who wasn’t medically qualified but who had performed the treatment), she was assured that the bruising would be normal.
Amy stated, “After the first injection I felt severe pain but I didn’t think much of it because I knew getting my lips done hurts. But it was worse than anything I’ve ever experienced before.
“I told her that it would look swollen as she had hit a vein. But it’s nothing you should worry about unless it’s an occlusion.
“I asked her how she knew it wasn’t that, and she replied that it was fine.
Amy sent a photograph of her swollen lip (pictured from L-R) to her colleague. She was later informed by medics that she could have lost both her eyesight as well as movement in her left eye if her lip gel wasn’t dissolved within 24hrs.
Amy, pictured following previous lip-filler treatments, says that the traumatic experience has lowered her confidence so much, she’s now avoiding lip-filler treatment for the rest of her life
“I was really upset when I looked at my lips in the car. They were bruised immediately, which is not a common occurrence. The left side of my lips didn’t look right and the pain was terrible. It was horrible.
“I sent a photograph to the lady, she said it wasn’t bruising and I trusted them because she’s done them before.
After seeing photos of her severely swollen lips, a dental colleague quickly consulted plastic surgeons and a GP to check them. She was warned that the filler could cause a blockage in the blood supply to her face.
“Later on, the pain got really terrible and I was really worried. I sent a photograph to my dentist at work and they told me to go to the hospital.
‘I went, but there were six hours wait so I decided to leave it until tomorrow.
“My colleague sent photos to GPs, plastic surgeons she knows, and they said that I should dissolve it as soon possible.
“The dentist disintegrated the filler, and the GP they’d been in contact with said that the fact that my lips were still intact was amazing.
“If it wasn’t for me working at a dentist I would have taken her advice. Six cartridges were used to dissolve 0.5ml. It took them two days.
Amy claims that the trauma has shattered her confidence enough to make her rethink lip filler treatment.
Amy stated that Amy noticed a difference in the size of her lips after having the filler dissolved. It was an emergency so it was a relief to have to wear masks.
“It’s my face at night and I was so worried about permanent damage. It became a daily routine that I used since I was 17 years old.
It’s one of those things. Some people like to go out drinking. I like their looks, but this has made it clear that there is more to life than just getting lip filler. I’m still traumatized.
Amy is sharing her experience in an effort to raise awareness and to urge people to only receive lip filler treatment by trained professionals.
Amy stated that she was put off by the procedure and would not have them done again. However, Amy said that she would go to a medically trained person if she needed them to be done again.
“People can complete a lip filler course within a day and be certified. A doctor could have diagnosed the problem and taken immediate action to resolve it.
“People need to be made aware how dangerous it could be. Another person might have a different way.