Filler fiasco: Fake doc’s botched injections leave dentist’s family disfigured

A Thai dentist and her family members are seeking compensation from an illegal beauty clinic in Bangkok, owned by a fake doctor, after suffering disfigurement from filler injections.

The unnamed dentist visited the Consumer Protection Police Division (CPPD) office yesterday, October 1, together with her sister and mother, to file a complaint against the fake doctor who illegally operated a beauty clinic near the National Stadium BTS station.

The dentist explained that she and her family were interested in facial filler injections and conducted extensive research on various clinics in Bangkok until they selected a particular one. The clinic owner claimed to be a specialist approved by the Medical Council of Thailand, which instilled confidence in the three women to trust the service.

The three victims paid 1.02 million baht for the filler injections, only to experience severe facial distortion. The dentist reported that the clinic owner administered an excessive amount of filler to each of them. Specifically, her mother received 37 tubes instead of the prescribed 30, her sister received 28 tubes instead of 21, and she was given 22 tubes instead of 15.

The excessive fillers resulted in noticeable facial distortion a month later, to the extent that the dentist felt too self-conscious to go to work.

The dentist further investigated the identity of the clinic owner and discovered that the owner was not a doctor or specialist as claimed. She attempted to seek compensation but failed. The three victims had to pay 10,000 baht more for treatment costs themselves.

The dentist added that she and her family were not the first victims of this fake doctor. Many people suffered from beauty surgery mishaps performed by this illegal practitioner before. Several complaints were reported but did not lead to the alleged fake doctor’s arrest.

The CPPD acknowledged the complaint and will conduct further investigation into the fake doctor’s clinic.

In a related report, the Central Investigation Bureau raided four illegal beauty clinics in the eastern province of Rayong and the southern province of Phuket in August and seized more than 200 items, including registered and unregistered medicines, medical equipment, improperly labelled cosmetics, and other medical supplies worth over 280,000 baht.