Woman’s lip developed necrosis after cosmetic procedure

The legal battle initiated by Songül Uzunoğlu, a chef and mother of three in Antalya, who claims she suffered tissue loss in her lip following an aesthetic procedure she had at a private center in 2019, has not been concluded despite more than 7 years having passed. While an acquittal was issued for the doctors in the criminal trial, a total of 994 thousand 331 TL in compensation, excluding interest, was awarded in favor of Uzunoğlu in the pecuniary and non-pecuniary damages case heard at the Antalya 1st Consumer Court. Upon the parties taking the decision to the appellate court, the file was sent to the 7th Civil Chamber of the Antalya Regional Court of Justice. The chamber sent the file back to the court that issued the initial decision to complete deficiencies in fees and notifications without conducting a review on the merits.

Songül Uzunoğlu, who applied to a beauty and aesthetic center in the Lara region of the Muratpaşa district in February 2019 upon the recommendation of her friends, was told, according to her claims, that the fat tissue to be taken from her abdominal region would be used as a filler in her facial area for the procedure to be performed for her under-eye bags, and that the operation would be permanent, economical, and guaranteed for 2 years. Stating that the filler, which was said to be permanent, disappeared in a short time after the first procedure performed in March, Uzunoğlu applied to the same center again after the procedure failed.

Procedure repeated 4 times

Uzunoğlu underwent multiple procedures on different dates throughout 2019. Stating that the filler on her face melted in a short time after the first procedure, Uzunoğlu was taken into surgery for the second time in April. Explaining that she was advised to have filler injected into her lower lip during this process, Uzunoğlu was called to the center for the third time in May. While the fat tissue taken from her abdominal region was applied to her face again, filler was also injected into her lower lip. Uzunoğlu, who paid a total of 7 thousand 500 TL for the procedures performed, had the procedure done for the fourth time on November 18, 2019, after the fillers disappeared again; during this procedure, her lip was also intervened upon.

Claiming that she experienced severe pain after the last procedure and that bruising and tissue loss occurred on her lip, Uzunoğlu stated that she underwent numerous operations during this process. Uzunoğlu said, "In 2019, I applied to a beauty center in Antalya that I went to upon a friend's recommendation for under-eye light filler. A fat graft procedure was performed with the center's guidance. I had requested an intervention for my under-eyes, but a procedure was also performed on my face. It was repeated three times, but the fillers did not hold. They said they would perform the fourth procedure for compensation purposes because there was a strangeness and disproportion on my face. I accepted because it already looked very bad."

"The main artery feeding my lip was blocked"

Stating that filler was also injected into her lip during the fourth procedure, Uzunoğlu expressed that her life changed after the procedure, saying, "In the fourth procedure, filler was also injected into my lip. During this procedure, I learned that the main artery feeding my lip was blocked and that I had completely lost my lip tissue. I have been living with health problems, treatments, and a legal struggle since 2019. The lip you see was attempted to be created with tissues taken from the inside of my cheeks. I have undergone numerous operations during this process. The inside of my mouth still feels like it is stitched. It still hasn't healed, and I need serious operations and a significant amount of money for it to heal," she said.

Acquittal in the criminal case

In the case heard at the Antalya 24th Criminal Court of First Instance regarding the incident, the doctors were tried for the crime of "causing injury to a person by negligence." The court noted that the Forensic Medicine Institute report obtained in the file stated that starting hyperbaric oxygen therapy late was not medically appropriate in terms of complication management, but that a picture of necrosis could have developed in the lip even if treatment had been applied on time. The court issued an acquittal on the grounds that a definitive causal link could not be established between the defendants' actions and the crime of negligent injury.

Consumer Court ruled for compensation

A different assessment was made in the pecuniary and non-pecuniary damages case heard at the Antalya 1st Consumer Court. The court concluded that the applications were not in accordance with the generally accepted principles and rules of medical science in line with the scope of the file and the reports. The court ruled for 244 thousand 331 TL in pecuniary damages, consisting of 8 thousand 250 TL in treatment expenses and 236 thousand 81 TL in loss of labor, as well as 750 thousand TL in non-pecuniary damages, and a total of 994 thousand 331 TL in compensation, excluding interest, was awarded in favor of Uzunoğlu. The opposing party rejected these demands.

File in the regional appellate process

Following the Consumer Court's decision dated March 21, 2025, the parties applied for an appeal. In its decision dated March 18, 2026, the Regional Court of Justice determined that there were deficiencies in fees and notifications before reviewing the file on its merits. The chamber sent the file back to the court that issued the initial decision for these deficiencies to be completed. For this reason, the appellate review of the compensation file has not yet been completed.

"The court is not progressing"

Claiming that the compensation case was concluded in 2025 but no payment was made, Uzunoğlu stated that the process was dragging on, saying, "The doctor was not convicted in the criminal case. Because the case was opened for the crime of negligent injury. My compensation case at the Consumer Court concluded in 2025, but I think the file is being tried to be delayed as no payment has been made since that date. The other party applied to the higher court, and we waited patiently. I have been in this process since November 2019, and it is July 2026. Finally, the file was sent back to the initial court due to deficiencies in notifications and documents. The court is not progressing. No one is seeking justice for me," she expressed.

"I am a human, I am a woman"

Stating that she still needs treatment and new operations, Uzunoğlu expressed that the process she went through wore her down both physically and psychologically. Uzunoğlu said, "I am in this state. I still need treatments, I still need operations. The state of my lip is obvious. I have no smile, eating is a problem. I want justice to be served now. I am a human, I am a woman. People have these procedures done very often nowadays. I had something like this done in my life and I trusted them. They brought me to this state. Despite this, they did not stand behind the mistake they made, they did not provide support. They disregarded a person's life and existence. Who will seek justice for me?" she said.