An influencer was left horrified when a free round of lip filler resulted in her lips swelling up, leading her to brand the procedure 'botched'.
Jessica Burko had already had her lips enhanced six times, but decided she was in need of a top up after a year break.
The 27-year-old influencer, who lives in Los Angeles, had won a free session in a giveaway and decided to cash it in.
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But shortly after getting injected by a doctor she'd never been to before, she noticed that her lips had begun to swell drastically:
Burko said: "I honestly don’t know what went wrong, I had my lips done multiple times.
"This doctor was doing a giveaway. He did everything he was supposed to do.
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"Immediately after he injected me, I looked in the mirror and realised how swollen I was. I thought maybe it was because I hadn’t got my lips done in over a year."
She added: "But by the time I got to my car, I realised it was not normal. I went back to show him. He prescribed me a steroid, and it just got worse."
The next day, her lips still hadn't gone down so she decided to get the fillers dissolved.
After her ordeal, the influencer has issued a warning to her followers and urged them to use discernment when accepting free giveaways.
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Burko said: "It was a free giveaway that I won, it was for Halloween. He certainly had me looking very scary. I would never go back.
"Never do free cosmetics. But also don’t be scared to get your lips done. I love getting them done, and I will be back to my regular girl."
Burko now has started all over again with her lip plumping journey since having all of the filler dissolved.
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And as for the cause for the swelling?
It later transpired that the doctor had accidentally hit an artery whilst injecting her.
Burko explained on TikTok: "Turns out my doctor hit an artery. The product and everything didn’t know where to go, so that is what caused the swelling."
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However, not everybody in the comments section was in agreement on this explanation.
One commenter wrote: "If the doctor hit an artery, you would have a vascular occlusion. Your lips would be pale white and you’d be in intense pain."
Another commented: "He did not hit an artery, this was a reaction. He lied to you girl."
Given the rise in popularity of lip fillers, Burko isn't the first and certainly won't be the last person to experience some unwanted side effects from cosmetic enhancements.
The NHS has outlined the risks of having dermal fillers - such as lip filler - done incorrectly, which include the likes of infection, a lumpy appearance under the skin, scarring, and blocked blood vessels.
Ben Thompson