At least seven Arizona women claim they were left with painful infections after undergoing botched lip filler injections.
The women say they had separate appointments on August 3 at the house of a woman in Maricopa who was charging one-tenth of the standard price.
She had come highly recommended, claimed she was licensed and they’d seen photos of the results of her past clients, Fox 10 Phoenix reported.
But within hours of receiving their injections, the women’s lips were swelling, oozing pus and developing cold sores.
At least seven women visited Gabby Acosta at her home in Maricopa, Arizona, on August 3. Pictured: Ashleigh Villaverde who says she developed a lip infection
Acosta had come highly recommended and was charging $80 per millimeter of filler. Most cosmetic surgeons charge about $600 per millimeter of filler. Pictured, left and right: Swollen lips after Acosta’s lip filler injections
The majority of fillers used in the lips is made of hyaluronic acid (HA), a clear substance that the body naturally produces.
The acid is mixed with sugar molecules, which attracts water molecules to the lips, and plumps them up.
Our bodies, however, contain an enzyme called hyaluronidase, which dissolves anything comprised of HA and is why periodic touch-ups to these cosmetic injections are needed.
The woman who was performing the botched injections, Gabby Acosta, was charging around $80 per milliliter of filler, the patients allege.
According to the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, a licensed surgeon is likely charging about $620 per milliliter.
‘It was cheaper – that’s not the smartest thing – but since I had seen so many people and my friend had been going for a year,’ patient Alexandra Garaventa told Fox 10 Phoenix.
‘She was telling people that she was certified to do lip injections and since I [had] seen other people’s [lips], I had decided why not go.’
At least seven women went to a home in Maricopa on August 3 get lip injections.
‘Right after I left getting my lips done, an hour later, my lips got huge, like, giant,’ said Garaventa, who claims lip injections caused infection.
Garaventa’s friend, Ashleigh Villaverde, said this wasn’t her first time receiving fillers from Acosta, but she knew right away that this time was wrong.
Within hours, the women say their lips were swollen, oozing pus and developing cold sores. Pictured: Alexandra Garaventa, who says she developed a lip infection
Several of the women had to be admitted to the ER to treat their infections. The Maricopa Police Department has been notified and has opened an investigation. Pictured, left and right: Swollen lips after Acosta’s lip filler injections
‘The pain after was so bad, I couldn’t even feel my lips,’ Villaverde told Fox 10 Phoenix. ‘We couldn’t even sit there and go to bed, our lips were throbbing.’
Many of the women admitted themselves to the ER because of the pain. They were diagnosed with infections but the exact ones are unclear.
‘When I came in, they already knew what was going on,’ Nayhely McLaughlin told Fox 10 Phoenix. ‘They asked if I went to Maricopa [and said]: “We just had, like, eight girls here yesterday”.’
The women say doctors don’t know if they’ll be permanently scarred or if their lips were every fully heal.
The Maricopa Police Department has been notified and has opened an investigation.