Juvederm: Stories

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The bags he put in my eyes in 2008 are still there, and it is now 2012. I would say after a while you may need to find a competent practitioner who can gently remove it properly.

I would like to know if you still have problems with juvederm under your eyes.

I did it 2 months ago and I'm a bit scared cause every morning I wake up with bags under my eyes. Thanks for your time!!

I had Juvederm Ultra injected under my eyes exactly three weeks ago. Yesterday they still looked so bad I thought I was going to have a meltdown. I was sure I had Tyndall effect, overfill, every possible bad outcome. I have read every horror story on every chat board about this procedure (wish I had done that first!!) But on this board I found someone who said to put warm/hot compresses and arnica gel under the eyes, and today I'm not kidding they look a thousand times better. Now I can see that what I had was serious bruising and swelling. You keep hearing that bruising will be gone in two weeks max, NOT TRUE, neither will swelling in many people! It could be six weeks or more! To those dealing with this problem right now, wait it out... because what I desperately wanted to keep was the fullness under my eyes as opposed to the deep hollows I had which caused me to get Juvederm in the first place. Also, once the Juvederm is in there, your own collagen begins to form and help that wrinkly skin around your eyes stay young looking! So you don't want to rush and get it out with hyaluronidase unless you absolutely have to. Try to have patience and use the hot compresses and the arnica gel! My eyes are still not perfect but now after three weeks I finally see progress in a good direction, and I'm not embarrassed to be seen without sunglasses! Trust me I looked as bad or worse than any of the photos I've seen of Tyndall effect, etc. IT WILL GET BETTER, HANG IN THERE!

How much did he put in, do you know?

I would like to know the provider name. Thanks!

Thankyou! You have been very kind and helpful. What would you say to the other Dr. if I were to go in and ask for a refund? I mean as one human being to another-he certainly knew he was wrong -starting a new practice in a very financially depressed area and needed the money I believe. I wonder if he would refund me without going through the legal stuff-I hope he learned from this. It's amazing how your appearance can effect your life. Your advice is helping people. Thanks again.

I would also like to mention that in almost every study of post precedure complications regarding Juvederm, Sculptra (PLLA) and other injectables, it is RARELY a reaction to the product, but the injection techniques of the practitioner(and with Sculptra, the volume of reconstitution of the product) that has caused post-procedure complications. Especially with Sculptra. Reactions to Juvederm are statistically VERY VERY rare. Dissatifaction comes from inexperienced practitioners, not the product. There are documented cases of a suspected reaction to hyaluronic acid products in some patients, and that of course isn't the practitioner's fault. These reactions are so rare in fact, that pre-injection allergy testing (as they did with collagen) is not seen as medically necessary with these newer fillers. "Te" mentioned that it is not the practitioner's fault that your body may react a certain way to an injectable. She is correct, but I wanted to mention that these reactions to PRODUCT are extremely rare, and it is unlikely that this is what happened. The reactions to injection site trauma, such as lymphedema from an occluded lymph system, hematomas, vascular occlusions (injecting into a vein and not having the appropriate hyaluronidase or nitro paste to dilate the vessel or remove it from the vein), and actual skin necrosis (skin death from over-injecting the vein and not fixing it imediately) ARE the fault of the practitioner ALONE. When a practitioner has to use hylauronidase to correct overfilling, it tells me that they didn't know what in the hell they were doing. Period. Then, when these practitioners use the enzyme to degrade the product, they end up leaving their clients looking like hags because the product WILL remove your natural hyaluronic acid from your face---that is its medical purpose. Your body should replenish this, but it doesn't always do it back to baseline, and people feel as though they look sick and worse than before. And they probably do. In reality, they need to get their tear troughs filled again--but probably won't after their experiences with unscrupulous practitioners. I have never had to use an enzyme to degrade a clients product, because it IS your face, and I do NOT want to mess up the first thing that people see. Your face defines your self-esteem. Other don't feel this way--they want the quick profits. Injection technique is one of the most IMPORTANT things to know with these fillers. Lack of proper experience or training, and failure of the practitioner to disclose this limited ability is a definite malpractice red flag for me. When I started, I started on friends, explained my training AND lack of experience to them, let them know all the risks, and followed injection techniques absolutely by the book. I filled very conservatively, and still do, with excellent results, according to my clients. I have hours of CME's on various filler injection techniques, and as a nurse, have given more injections of medications than most doctors have in their lifetimes-----but I have been a nurse for 5 years. If one of my patients developed a hematoma under her eye for example, I would have immediately had her come into my office to assess her condition. I would have requested steroids from my Consulting Medical Director, provided an ice gel pack, given her written instructions for care, and scheduled a follow-up in a week to assess the swelling and to see if there was a need for further treatment. Because I took swift action and introduced appropriate interventions, and basically showed that I cared about my patient, my liability would have been significantly DECREASED. I also wouldn't have charged her for any of this. No one could say that I didn't attempt to assist my patient with a post-procedure complication. This is the part that is missing from all of these stories. The other part that is missing is the practitioner owning up to his mistake and knowing how to correct it---all of which I have no problem with. For the liquid facelift--that was a ridiculous misuse of a product--juvederm is NOT for volume filling of the planes of the face. Only for lines. He REALLY screwed up, in my opinion, and then to charge for ANYTHING is just stupid and poor practice.

I agree with Te about "Why Me 99" going to NYC to find a plastic surgeon to assess her face. I doubt there will be a class action lawsuit, because as Te implied, this appears to be a practitioner problem and not a product problem. Class actions are brought about because of dangerous medications that pose a large public health risk, which Juvederm does not. Most malpractice lawsuits are settled out of court, as it is less costly to the insurance carrier and the physician. That's why I suggest using an attorney and attorney's letterhead for letters requesting both assistance from the Board of Medical Examiners and a direct request from the physician to refund the money. My husband is an Internal Medicine Physician, so believe me--I know whereof I speak. Thankfully he has never been sued. And it doesn't matter what or how many disclosures you have signed if you find that the doctor did not have the adequate training to perform the injections, or mislead you about his experience. So try to find out what kind of training this doc had, and how many patients he has performed this type of procedure on. Call his office and pretend to be someone interested in scheduling an appointment, and ask those questions. His office should be happy to tell you. I don't know what the gray area under your eye could be. I have seen bluish discolorations around the lips of patients who have been injected and have had a blod vessel burst, but never gray areas under the eyes post-injection. I disagree with Te however, when she states that "poor injection technique isn't malpractice." It can be construed as such by a jury of your peers if they find that the doctor misrepresented his ability to perform the procedure, and as such caused harm to the patient, that resulted in injury. Did the practitioner provide a reasonable standard of care? If he is CHARGING you to fix a problem, that he caused by not knowing how to inject product properly, or by misusing the product (off label), or by failing to refer you to someone who COULD have assisted you, I do not feel that he has provided a resonable standard of care. I am a reasonable person, and I would NEVER leave a patient wondering where to go for assistance. Ever. Please get a second opinion in New york City and see what can be done. Unless you do this, you will not win any suit, because you need to show a court that you did everything reasonably possible to resolve this as well without resorting to legal intervention. Good luck, and remember that YOU are your best advocate when it comes to medical care. Don't ever let a Dr. or nurse push you around.

I wish I could help you, and I'm sorry you're dealing with this. :( I said "multiple disclosures" arbitrarily. Maybe the one disclosure you signed contained all of the necessary liability information - I don't know - I can't speak to that. The bottom line is though, NO cosmetic procedures are without their own inherent risks. It is up to the consumer to know and understand all of the risks before having these procedures done. Now, if there was blatant negligence on the part of the doctor, that's a different story. Poor injection technique isn't negligence. Also, when a patient reacts poorly to a procedure, that's not really the doctor's fault. The thing about it is, you just never know how your body is going to react to something until you do it. I have tear troughs and volume loss around my eyes that is very distressing to me, and I've been researching hyaluronic injectibles for months now, and am not sure I am ever going to do it simply because of stories like yours - I'm not sure it's worth the risk. If I were in your situation, I guess I'd call around to some prominent surgeons in the New York City area to see if anyone has any recommendations for your situation. Best of luck to you - I hope it resolves.

Ann1971 - I don't work in the medical field at all. I'm a law student. You asked a question in your post, which I felt I could answer: "Is a law suit applicable here?" You shouldn't have asked the question if you didn't want a response. Obviously you CAN file a lawsuit, but your odds of winning after signing multiple disclosures about the procedure are incredibly small. You would not only have to prove gross negligence or misconduct on the part of the doctor, but you'd need an astronomical sum of money to a) afford an attorney who could have any chance of winning, and b) have enough money to cover that attorney's fees for a case that could drag on for months to years. Good luck. Again, I'm really sorry this happened to you - it sucks, and first/foremost, I browse this forum because I too have been considering under-eye hyaluronic acid injections.