Linda Evangelista has revealed that she has settled her lawsuit by a cosmetic surgery procedure in 2016.
The star, who became one of the most iconic supermodels of the 1990s, recently returned to modelling after being in ‘hiding’ after developing paradoxical adipose hyperplasia (PAH), following a ‘fat-reducing procedure’.
She reportedly filed a lawsuit against CoolSculpting’s parent company Zeltiq Aesthetics over the issues in September.
Linda, 57, has now said on Instagram: ‘I’m pleased to have settled the CoolSculpting case.
‘I look forward to the next chapter of my life with friends and family, and am happy to put this matter behind me. I am truly grateful for the support I have received from those who have reached out.’
According , Zeltiq’s lawyers previously said in court documents that the company fulfilled its obligation to warn Linda about the risk when she allegedly signed paperwork warning of the risks of PAH.
A spokesperson for CoolSculpting previously told the outlet: ‘CoolSculpting has been well studied with more than 100 scientific publications and more than 11 million treatments performed worldwide.
‘Rare reported side effects can include paradoxical hyperplasia, severe pain or late-onset pain, and continue to be well-documented in the CoolSculpting information for patients and health care providers and sample consent form given to health care providers to use with patients.’
The spokesperson added that a warning about rare side effects, including paradoxical hyperplasia, is included in the complete safety information, a link to which can be found on the website for the procedure. The warning says the condition occurs in about one in 3,000 treatments, and describes it as ‘the gradual development of a visibly enlarged tissue volume, of varying size and shape, in the treatment area.’ The condition won’t go away on its own, it reads, adding: ‘Surgical intervention may be required.’
Linda told in February this year: ‘I loved being up on the catwalk. Now I dread running into someone I know.
‘I can’t live like this any more, in hiding and shame. I just couldn’t live in this pain any longer. I’m willing to finally speak.’
Speaking about the side effects, she said that she started noticing bulges around her chin, thigh and bra three months after her treatment.
She explained that she started dieting and exercising more in a bid to reduce the bulges, and soon got to the point where she ‘wasn’t eating at all’, thinking that she was ‘losing her mind’.
Linda said she broke down in tears when she went to the doctor in June 2016, and was diagnosed with PAH.
The doctors told her that ‘no amount of dieting or exercise’ would ever fix her issues.
Discussing the impact that her injuries have had, she claimed that she chafes ‘almost to the point of bleeding’ if she doesn’t wear a girdle under a dress – and can no longer put her arms flat along her side.
She defiantly added: ‘I’m not going to hide any more.’
CoolSculpting, or cryolipolysis, is a popular fat freezing treatment, cooling the fat so that frozen, dead cells can be excreted out of the body through the liver.
PAH is described as a rare side effect of the procedure and impacts less than 1% of patients, where fatty tissue grows instead of shrinking.
The official CoolSculpting website states that typical side effects include swelling, bruising, cramping, aching and numbness – which can persist ‘for up to several weeks’.
It adds that, though rare, some additional side effects such as paradoxical hyperplasia, late onset pain, freeze burn, vasovagal symptoms, subcutaneous induration, hyperpigmentation and hernia may also occur.
Linda most recently returned to modelling with a shoot for Fendi.
Reps for Allergan, Zeltiq’s parent company, declined to comment when contacted by Metro.co.uk.
