Woman’s dental treatment left her with painful ‘elephant skin’ all over her face and body
A woman who spent £1,000 on a new smile ended up with ‘crunchy’, painful ‘elephant skin’ all over her face and body instead.
Lily Lindsay, from Aberdeenshire, was inspired to buy a set of veneers after seeing influencers on TikTok.
Composite veneers are tooth coverings made with resin to give the teeth a more attractive appearance.
But instead of resolving her lifelong insecurity, the 29-year-old was left with “crusted” sore skin after what she claims was an allergic reaction to dental treatment.
Lily said, “My veneers gave me extremely dry and flaky skin, like elephant skin.
Lily Lindsay, from Aberdeenshire, paid £1,000 for dental composite veneers after watching influencers on TikTok leave a ‘crusted’ painful ‘elephant skin’ all over her face and body
But instead of resolving her lifelong insecurity, the 29-year-old was left with “crusted” sore skin after what she claims was an allergic reaction to dental treatment.
‘No doctors could help me, so I got antidepressants. It absolutely cost me.”
After watching TikTok influencers undergo the dental procedure in August 2022, she went to the “best dentist out there” and was “thrilled” with the result.
But two weeks later, Lily developed red, itchy eyes and dry skin.
She made an appointment with her doctor, who thought it might be dermatitis, a condition that causes inflammation of the skin.
Lily says she got a cream and had to avoid anything containing sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS), which is used in toothpaste and shampoo.
After no improvement, Lily said she was put on a steroid cream because it was thought she might have eczema.
Despite the redness disappearing after a month, the spots came back with a vengeance.
Lily said, “It was so painful under my arms, I couldn’t even put my arms down or take a shower.”
She became so unhappy with her appearance that she became increasingly depressed.
Lily’s skin had no redness, irritation or inflammation before the veneers were applied
Two weeks after her dental procedure, Lily’s face began to swell and her face began to appear with red spots
Despite many visits to the doctor and trying many different creams, Lily’s body was covered in “crusted” painful red areas, which led her to take antidepressants.
After having the veneers removed by her dentist, Lily’s skin cleared up within two months
She said, ‘My mother came to visit me for the weekend, she couldn’t bear to see me like this. In fact, she had to leave.
“She couldn’t handle the way I looked because I looked so sick and she couldn’t do anything to help me.”
“I was just so disappointed with the way I looked, it got to the point where I just didn’t want to be here anymore. I felt like a failure,” she added.
A private dermatologist tested Lily for 100 different allergens, but none were identified as the cause.
In January 2023, Lily’s allergic reaction began to affect her immune system and she started experiencing dizziness, ringing in the ears, and black spots in her vision.
Allergy symptoms range from mild, such as a runny nose, to life-threatening, such as a swollen throat.
But a blood test eventually showed that the inflammation was actually in her body and not on her skin.
Because of this, Lily remembered that two weeks after she got her veneers, her skin started to glow, so she took a chance and removed it in April 2023.
A private dermatologist tested Lily for 100 different allergens, but none were identified as the cause
“My dentist said she would cover the cost because it was obviously bothering me,” Lily added.
“She was so scared that taking it off might give me anaphylactic shock, but thankfully it went well.
“By mid-May this year, my face had completely cleared up.”
Healthcare expert Dr Helen Evans-Howells said it’s possible to have an allergic reaction to composite veneers.
“Allergic reactions to composite veneers are usually caused by the resin used in these products,” she said.
“Normally, this would cause contact dermatitis, which is caused by a delayed allergic reaction.
“This could tend to cause irritation at the veneer site or mouth sores. Occasionally reactions such as eczema or swelling of the eyes may occur.’
An allergic reaction is a body reacting to a substance that is usually considered harmless, but sometimes the immune system thinks it is a threat and may overreact.
Allergies can affect anyone, but you are more likely to get or develop an allergy if your parents had it.