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Glasgow midwife’s lip fillers felt like golf ball being injected as gums went BLACK at Cool Contours Clinic

WHEN Karen McCrimmon booked in for lip fillers at a private Glasgow clinic, she expected the same standards that she offers her patients.

But the trained midwife was horrified when the procedure left her swollen and in pain - before her gums started turning black.

 Karen McCrimmon was horrified when her mouth started to turn black after having lip fillers
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Karen McCrimmon was horrified when her mouth started to turn black after having lip fillersCredit: BBC

Karen made an appointment at Cool Contours Clinic in the city centre and was told the procedure would be pain-free.

Instead, when the beautician began injecting her lips with filler, she told the BBC it felt like a "golf ball had been shot into my lip".

And when her lip started to swell, she says the woman looked "horrified" and said she had never experienced anything like it before.


Livingston mum’s lip ‘turned BLACK after botched lip fillers were injected into artery’ with doctors warning she could have went BLIND


She then offered her antihistamines instead of anti-inflammatories.

Karen said: "That was when I realised she had no medical training. My lips were swelling up and I knew I needed medical attention."

The following day, the skin around Karen's mouth had started to turn blue and when she looks inside she noticed her gum was turning black.

 When she looked inside her mouth, the trained midwife noticed her gums were turning black too
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When she looked inside her mouth, the trained midwife noticed her gums were turning black tooCredit: BBC

She said: "Basically the blood flow had been stopped to the rest of my face and it was getting worse by the minute. It was a medical emergency."

Karen desperately began looking for a medically trained aesthetic nurse who could urgently help and stop it getting any worse.

She went to see Frances Turner Traill, who worked as a nurse before training in aesthetics, at FTT Skin Clinic in Glasgow.

The blood flow had been stopped to the rest of my face and it was getting worse by the minute

Karen McCrimmon

Ms Turner Traill described Karen's complications as "the worst she had ever seen", and immediately agreed to help fix it.

She said: "It was very serious. It caused a huge haematoma or bruise which affected the veins and arteries around her face so it required quite a bit of input to get that back working to ensure her tissue was no longer dying."

If left untreated, she warned that Karen would have ended up being admitted to hospital - and could have potentially lost part of her face.

Cool Contours was unavailable for comment.

Fillers, which involve having a substance such as hyaluronic acid injected into the skin, are becoming more popular, especially with young people.

Despite the intimacy of the procedure, legislation on fillers in the UK is practically non-existent.

That means that virtually anyone can administer fillers without adequate medical training or insurance.

Experts have called for the government to crackdown on 'lay practitioners' amid fears more people could end up like Karen.

How to have Botox and fillers safely

You should always do your research and take time to find a reputable practitioner.

Save Face, which is a government-approved register, provides a list of people who are qualified here.

Make sure the treatment is carried out in a clean, safe and appropriate environment.

Before you have Botox or fillers you should always ask your consultant what qualifications they have, what brands they're using and if they've been extensively tested.

People with damaged nerves or muscle complaints should make sure whoever is carrying out Botox treatment is aware of this.

And Botox, along with fillers, is not advised for anyone who is pregnant or breastfeeding.

If you have problems take up the issues with your practioner as soon as possible.

And if you need medical attention, go straight to your GP or local A&E.

 

The Scottish government is reportedly looking to introduce local authority licensing similar to those imposed on tattoo parlours.

However, experts have told the BBC that it wouldn't solve the problem.

The Royal Society for Public Health has also called on the government to introduce an age limit to prevent under-18s undergoing the procedures.

Dr Christopher Rennie, a leading aesthetics practitioner, told The Sun Online that botched fillers have already cost the NHS more than £29 million to correct in the last three years.

He urged the public to be aware that an "accredited" certificate does not mean they are sufficiently trained to perform potentially life changing, cosmetic procedures.

Dr Rennie said: "The UK cosmetic industry is worth billions but it appears young people are most at risk of falling foul of the significant increase and lack of regulation in the exponentially expanding industry."

Top online ‘influencer’ Tamara Kalinic has revealed she's removed her lip fillers as lip boosts aren't ‘in’ anymore

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