I honestly thought was going to die, I felt so sick. And I looked like the Elephant Man
Mum on how she ended up in A&E after beautician’s injection
Mum Sara Gibson thought she’d get a confidence boost when she booked a cosmetic treatment at a hair salon.
But instead of enjoying a new lease of life, the 46-year-old says she was left looking like “the Elephant Man” and feared she would die.
Sara ended up in A&E after suffering a horrific allergic reaction following a £ 400 procedure performed by beautician Neisha Inglis.
She claims Inglis injected her face with a product which manufacturers conf irmed should only be used by qualified dermatologists – before attempting to reverse its side effects with a potent ial ly dangerous follow-up jab.
It has been alleged that Inglis used Bliss Soft and Bliss Derm to smooth some of Sara’s unwanted wrinkles.
However, she was left with a badly swollen jaw and lumps under her skin.
Now Sara, of Eyemouth, Berwickshire, is launching a legal action against Inglis, who treated her at Venue salon in Berwick, two miles south of the Border, before setting up her own firm.
She said: “At one point, I honestly thought I was going to die because I felt so ill. I looked like the Elephant Man.
“I’d never had anything done before so at the time I wasn’t aware of any implications.
“The beautician was doing a deal for £ 400 for lip fillers and three areas of Botox but when I was there I joked about some other lines around my mouth and she said, ‘ Let me try something,’ and just jabbed the needle into me.
“I had no pain relief – it was agony. When I looked in the mirror, immediately something didn’t seem right.”
A few days after the treatment, Sara’s face started to swell and hard lumps appeared, so she returned to the salon for help.
Sara says Inglis told her she was having an allergic reaction and that she would have to inject hyaluronidase – an enzyme substance – to dissolve the filler.
She was not assessed by a doctor or another professional before Inglis allegedly proceeded to inject the area that had been treated.
Sara claims the therapist told her she had some left over “from another customer”.
However, a doctor revealed to the mum-of-four that hyaluronidase can trigger anaphylaxis – a life-threatening allergic reaction.
Sa ra added: “It turned out hyaluronidase can be so dangerous, it can kill someone e who shouldn’t receive it. “A doctor referred me to a plastic surgeon, who said I’d most likely have to get it cut because it was like concrete in my face.
“If I had reacted to the hyaluronidase that Neisha used to try to dissolve what she’d put in my face, I would have died.”
Sara twice visited the emergency y unit at Berwick Infirmary.
She was prescribed a course of steroids and eventually came under the care of an aesthetic medical professional who continued treatment for 10 weeks before the problem was resolved.
Sara obtained client notes from Venue which showed she had been injected with Bliss, which is made by Israeli firm Dr Korman Laboratories.
A spokesman for the company said it dispatched its last shipment to the
When I looked in the mirror, something just didn’t seem right
UK in October 2018. He added: “Bliss Soft and Bliss Derm is to be used by specialised physicians in dermatology only. For a successful treatment, the product must be used by medical practitioners who have undertaken specific training in injection techniques for dermal filling. In using the device, clinical judgement must be made regarding its application. Beauticians do not fall under this category.”
LSF Farma Ltd, which sells Bliss products, claimed Inglis is not on its list of customers.
Since her ordeal in April 2019, Sara has launched legal proceedings against Inglis, who she claims blocked her on Facebook after she asked for a refund.
Beauticians often advertise on Facebook that they have been trained by doctors on how to manage complications involving the use of prescription-only medications.
Dr Dar ren McKeown, who is campaigning for stricter regulations in Scotland, said a beautician should never handle a dissolvent formula of hyaluronidase. The General Medical Counci l says it should only be administered by a medical doctor.
Last month we told how cosmetic surgeons, including Dr McKeown, had signed a letter to First Minister Nicola Sturgeon urging her to introduce tighter regulations on the industry.
A rising number of people, mainly women, in Scotland have suffered health problems after being treated by under-qualified operators using unregulated products.
Dr McKeown said: “Hyaluronidase is a licensed medication that should only be prescribed and dispensed by a doctor. It means prescriptions are being issued over the phone by prescribers. Using hyaluronidase for f iller correction can cause patient anaphylaxis. If this can’t be treated,ted, it can lead to death.
“If you get anaphylaxis, you’re on shaky territory, especial ly iff a beautician doesn’t know about howow it works or any of your medicalal history. It’s only a matter of timeme before someone dies.”
Lawyer Jim Clark , f romm Emsleys Sol icitors, the f irmm representing Sara’s case, said:d: “We’re investigating Sara’s claimm in regards to a procedure carriedd out in Berwick-upon-Tweed inn 2019. The claim involves a product named Bliss Filler and we have instructed medical experts so that we can investigate these allegations.”
Inglis, who now runs Neisha Inglis Aesthetics, failed to respond to numerous requests for a comment.