Planning to have plastic surgery? Go to the right doctor.

Or you could end up like 40-year-old Dinora Rodriguez.

The Los Angeles housewife was left with a "uniboob" and eyelids that would not close, thanks to a doctor she later found out was not certified to carry out the procedures.

She is now the poster girl of a new advertising campaign by the American Board of Plastic Surgery (ABPS) to warn people against what it calls "white coat deception", UK's Daily Mail reported.

Mrs Rodriguez went to a surgeon recommended by a friend to have her leaking breast implants replaced a few years ago.

During the operation, the surgeon cut across the two separate "pockets" that normally hold breast tissue, so the new implants ended up touching each other in the middle of the chest, creating what looked like a single breast.

The surgeon cut through nerves and muscle, leaving Mrs Rodriquez with shooting pains in her ribs. The doctor also tried to correct a scar near her eyes without her consent that left her unable to fully close her eyes.

No corrective surgery can repair the damage and she must take medication for the rest of her life to keep her eyes moist.

She said: "It was a terrible experience waking up from surgery and seeing that this had happened. "I didn't know to check my doctor's qualifications and I regret it."

Another surgeon has since carried out corrective surgery on her breasts.

Currently, it is legal in 48 states in the US for doctors who are not certified by the ABPS to practice cosmetic and plastic surgery.

This article was first published in The New Paper.