Woman, 39, Dies After Undergoing Liposculpture At Private Clinic
A young mother of two children has died after undergoing a liposculpture operation and being admitted to the ICU a month ago.
Her family’s lawyer has said the injuries she sustained in the allegedly botched operation were more typical of “a knife fight”.
Sara Gomez, 39, reportedly visited the private Clinica Galena in the city of Cartagena in the south-eastern Spanish region of Murcia for a liposculpture operation costing EUR 5,700 (GBP 4,800) on 2nd December.
Liposculpture is a cosmetic procedure that removes fat, as well as fat cells to prevent more from being created.
Before the operation, the woman reportedly told the doctor that she had already undergone liposuction on her stomach area, but she was allegedly told that this would not cause any problems.
After the cosmetic procedure, which lasted around five hours, the surgeon told relatives that “everything went well”, but that Sara had lost a lot of fluid and blood during the op so they were working to stabilise her.
Around three hours later, the clinic decided to transfer the patient to the Hospital General Universitario Santa Lucia, where she was admitted in hypovolaemic shock and in a serious condition, according to the news site Antena 3.
Sara’s brother Ruben Gomez was quoted in Antena 3 as saying: “Not even in the extreme can they imagine the reality that we are going through right now… They kept her waiting there for four hours, bleeding to death, and she came here in a near fatal state.”
After spending nearly a month in the ICU, the young woman passed away on 1st January.
A spokesperson for the victim’s family said that they are waiting for the autopsy results and then plan to file a complaint against the plastic surgeon in charge of the operation.
Sara sustained multiple serious injuries and perforations in several organs, including her kidney, liver, duodenum, colon and intestine.
The family’s lawyer Ignacio Martinez said the victim’s injuries were “more typical of the result of a knife fight”.
Meanwhile, the Prosecutor’s Office has called on the doctor and anaesthetist responsible to provide all necessary documentation regarding their professional training along with providing a sample to be analysed for possible drug or alcohol use.
Sara leaves behind a daughter and a younger son.
The investigation is ongoing.