Q: I got lip fillers a week ago and above my top lip is sticking out like a duck the place is refuses to fix it for me

A: Plastic surgeons will often provide a consultation to evaluate what went wrong and what, if anything can be done to fix the problem. See a doctor to learn if the the lip filing procedure did something wrong; a bad result is not enough for a malpractice case.

A: Sorry to hear what happened to you. Unfortunately, as my colleague correctly advised, a bad outcome, without more, will not support a medical malpractice case, especially one arising out of a cosmetic procedure. Rather, you need to demonstrate a departure from the standard of care and an injury caused by the departure. In any cosmetic surgery case, a less-than-ideal outcome is almost always a recognized and accepted risk of the procedure. Instead of pursuing legal action, you might be better off consulting with a different plastic surgeon to find out whether the complications from the first procedure can be corrected.

A: From the phrasing of your question, I wonder if you had the filler injected by an aesthetician, cosmetologist, or perhaps even an unlicensed individual, rather than by a plastic surgeon. And I wonder if it was actually Juvederm filler.

There are unfortunately many individuals, who are not actual plastic surgeons, who advertise the ability to give filler, which is not genuine Juvederm filler, to members of the public for a discounted fee.

If you have any question about whether the provider was an actual plastic surgeon or whether the filler you received was a genuine Juvederm product, I recommend you investigate first the actual credentials of the provider, and if not an actual plastic surgeon, see if you can find an actual plastic surgeon who can test to see if the filler you received was a genuine Juvederm product.

My colleagues are correct that a bad outcome does not a legal malpractice case make. But, with respect to this particular procedure, there are quite a few non-medical providers, several of whom do not provide genuine Juvederm products as advertised--especially if they were advertising a low, low price.

You may have a deceptive trade practice lawsuit instead of a medical malpractice lawsuit.

A: Thank you for your question. It appears that you may have a potential claim against the manufacturer of the lip filler and if so, this would be a "product liability" lawsuit. Unfortunately, our firm does not handle such matters. Also, I believe that this condition may improve over time. Best of luck to you.