Last September, model Linda Evangelista came out and revealed that she had been left 'permanently deformed' after undergoing a fat-freezing cosmetic procedure which went brutally wrong.
At the time, the 57-year-old supermodel took to Instagram to explain her sudden absence on all social media platforms.
The devastated star revealed that she no longer looked like herself after after undergoing Zeltiq’s CoolSculpting procedure - which did the 'opposite' of what she had hoped.
Linda insisted that the risky procedure had increased rather than decreased her fat cells - leaving her 'permanently deformed'.
The controversial body contouring procedure is used to eliminate fat cells by using extremely cold temperatures.
It has been stated that side effects from the procedure are not that severe, but in certain cases, some patients can have pain that starts several days after the treatment, but it usually resolves when numbness goes away.
In rare cases there can be scarring or changes to skin colour or reduced movement or response of the tongue involving the neck or chin.
In Linda's case, the supermodel insisted that the procedure ruined her looks forever as it had the opposite effect on her body.
Breaking her silence on Instagram last September after it went 'horribly wrong', Linda described two corrective surgeries that had attempted to undo the damage as 'painful' and 'unsuccessful'.
"Today I took a big step towards righting a wrong that I have suffered and have kept myself for over five years," Linda penned.
"To my followers who have wondered why I have not been working while my peers’ careers have been thriving, the reason is that I was brutally disfigured by Zeltiq’s CoolSculpting procedure which did the opposite of what it promised.
"It increased, not decreased, my fat cells and left me permanently deformed even after undergoing two painful, unsuccessful, corrective surgeries. I have been left, as the media has described, 'unrecognisable.'"
Linda also revealed that shortly after the procedure went wrong, she developed Paradoxical Adipose Hyperplasia (PAH) - the overgrowth of fatty adipose tissue which is a rare side effect of the procedure she underwent.
She added: "I have developed Paradoxical Adipose Hyperplasia or PAH, a risk of which I was not made aware of before I had the procedures.
"PAH has not only destroyed my livelihood, it has sent me into a cycle of deep depression, profound sadness and the lowest depths of self-loathing. In the process, I have become a recluse," she continued.
Although Linda has insisted that the procedure left her permanently deformed, Coolsculpting and other cryolipolysis procedures have been certified as safe non-surgical procedures.
Multiple cosmetic surgeons have concluded that cryolipolysis is a reliable, safe alternative to procedures like liposuction, with limited side effects.
But due to the treatments being new to the market, there’s a lack of research on their long-term effects.
The technology behind CoolSculpting, cryolipolysis, is designed to chill tissue to the point where fat cells crystalise, disintegrate, and leave the body as waste, helping a treated area marginally slim down.
Usually, this is exactly what happens, but in a number of cases, the fat in the treated area expands and hardens into an unnaturally shaped lump in response to the extreme cold.
Instead of gradually shrinking, the bulge after CoolSculpting actually gets bigger and usually becomes firmer than surrounding tissues.
Unfortunately for Linda, this is exactly what happened to her after the procedure.
It comes after the supermodel was pictured for the first time after she announced she was 'done hiding' after the life-changing mishap.
Linda - who has rarely been since 2016 - was pictured on Wednesday in New York City.
She underwent the procedure from August 2015 to February the next year.
The star donned a black zip-up jumper, black sweatpants, cosy black boots and a casual black shirt
The 90s supermodel had her hair tied up and rocked transparent-framed glasses.
The supermodel rose to fame alongside the likes of Naomi Campbell, Cindy Crawford and Christy Turlington but she has remained largely out of the spotlight for the past few years.
