Enid Perrins-Whittaker wanted to be prettier.
So she underwent a cosmetic procedure that she says wound up mutilating her face.
Sometime in 2009, the Broward County resident came across an ad for Lifestyle Lift. The procedure claims to do exactly the same thing as a traditional face-lift but with less swelling, pain, and recovery time.
Perrins-Whittaker decided to check out Lifestyle Lift's Fort Lauderdale location, according to a lawsuit recently filed in the Broward County Civil Court. The franchised procedure takes place at affiliated practices throughout the country, including another office in West Palm Beach.
Perrins-Whittaker was all set to sign up, but she was worried about the procedure. She has a tendency to develop keloid scars -- raised, puffy, purplish lumps that remain painful, itchy, and swollen indefinitely.
But her surgeon, Dr. Juan Felipe Garcia, told Perrins-Whittaker not to worry, the court filing claims. He promised she would be just fine.
Perrins-Whittaker, however, claims that she was not just fine. Rather, her face erupted into a bed of keloid scars less than a week after her August 6 surgery. Perrins-Whittaker says that keloids now cover her face and neck, so she's suing Garcia and Lifestyle Lift for damages.
Perrins-Whittaker says that Garcia -- who does not appear to be listed as a board-certified plastic surgeon -- lied about the keloid risks, even when she went so far as to show him a keloid scar on her neck. (Garcia appears to be maintaining certification in otolaryngology: ear, neck, and throat medicine.)
Garcia "assured the plaintiff that this was not a contra-indicatioin and that it would not occur on her face and remained silent about this specific issue," she claims.
Instead, Garcia "advised her of the routine risks for the type of surgery he planned."
Had Perrins-Whittaker known about the keloid concerns, she says, she would not have had the surgery, which has left her significantly disfigured and embarrassed to be in public.
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Lifestyle Lift has not returned calls for comment.
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