Life Stories of Liposuction Complications

Liposuction or lyposculpting is a procedure in which stored fat is literally sucked out of the body. The procedure is done by a machine that looks much like a vacuum cleaner. Despite the rash of horror stories surrounding this process, it continues to be a very popular cosmetic procedure.

• Some Surgeries Can Do More Harm Than Good.

Rohie Kah-Orukotan

• An article was posted in the Miami Herald's website on September 30, 2009, regarding a 37-year-old housewife and mother of three who ended up brain-dead and in a coma. Complications occurred at the end of what was supposed to be a routine liposuction that was performed at an unlicensed medical facility in Florida. The doctor, Dr. Omar J. Brito, age 64, received his medical degree from the Universidad de Los Andes located in Venezuela and had spent most of his career treating patients with workplace injuries. Her husband, Joseph, is trying to make the decision as to whether or not to keep her on life support.

Susan's Story

• Susan is a 50-year-old woman who had liposuction performed by Dr. Alan Bittner. After the surgery, Susan says she took Vicodin on a daily basis for more than four months and remained swollen for more than five months. She said she noticed some changes in her body after about three months and lost 19 pounds because of a strict diet she had placed herself on. Susan reports that after the tissue trauma had cleared up, she noticed bumps and bulges in her stomach area, and that her pubic area protruded out underneath her abdomen and appeared as nothing had been done in that area.

Football Star's Wife Dies

• On July 10, 2009, the headline read "Colin Hendry's Wife Denise Dies After Life Support Switched Off Following Botched Cosmetic Surgery." Colin Hendry is formally a Scottish football player whose 43-year-old wife of more than 20 years had to be taken off life support following an operation to correct a botched liposuction procedure done seven years prior. According to Colin, "she had nine punctures in her bowel and colon that caused blood poisoning and multiple organ failure."

Fabiola DePaula

• Fabiola DePaula, a 24-year-old Massachusetts woman died in 2006 after a liposuction procedure that was performed in the basement of a condominium. She paid $3,000 for the procedure, which was performed by a husband and wife team who were in the United States on a 30-day work visa. The illegal cosmetic surgery was performed on a message table. The pair used prescription drugs to sedate their patients who were mostly Brazilian immigrants who paid cash for the procedures.

Mona Alley's Story

• Mona was a diabetic who had liposuction performed on her tummy. She said that the day after the surgery she was in so much pain, she couldn't move. The television ad she saw on liposuction indicated it would be good for diabetics. After complaining of the unbearable pain for two weeks, the doctor finally examined her and sent her to see her primary-care doctor who performed a series of tests on her. He found that the surgery had punctured her intestine and she had water in her lungs, blood clots in her legs and air in her abdomen. Mona ended up losing both of her legs as a result of the surgery.