'˜Fat freezing treatment has left me permanently scarred'

Marcela Petrasova is pursuing the former owners of Xpressions Beauty, on Bute Street, after a dermatologist last week told her that unsightly marks left by the procedure will never fade.

Marcela says that after undergoing the £250 ‘fat freezing’ last April she was left with painful wounds on both her legs, which became infected and formed blisters.

She claims that the previous owners of Xpressions, who carried out the treatment failed to use a protective sheet during the 50-minute procedure and that the equipment used was not sterile.

Marks appeared almost immediately after the procedure

Marcela, 38, of Dunstable Road, told the Luton News: “Straight away when I left the clinic it was really painful and by the time I got home I could see that I was going to get blisters.

“The wound (pictures above) got worse each day and then it became infected, at that point it was so painful I could hardly walk.

“It kept me awake at night and I got so worried about everything that I started losing hair.”

The company is now under new management and when the Luton News contacted Xpressions Beauty we were told that the clinic was taken over by a new owner in October.

Wounds on one of Marcela's legs, pictured a week after the 'fat freezing'

Marcela, an accountant at the Luton & Dunstable Hospital, has instructed a solicitor and is still attempting to get compensation from the former owner.

During ‘fat freezing’ procedures ultrasound waves are used to break down fat cells in problematic areas.

Gel pads are then placed on the targeted area and a coolant is delivered to fat cells.

These cells, when nearly frozen, crystallise, shatter and die.

The treatment has left permanent scarring

‘Fat freezing’ is advertised as a non-surgical method treat cellulite, with little or no side effects.

However, for Marcela it has left a lasting reminder.

She said: “It has really affected my life.

“i am very concious about the way I look and now because of this I won’t wear short dresses.

“When I go swimming you can also clearly see the scars.”

She added: “It is ridiculous that something like this can happen.

“The risk of the procedure was never explained to me and I was not asked to fill out a health questionnaire.

“For someone with a skin problem this could have been much worse.

“I don’t want this to happen to anyone else.”