An investigation is underway into the death of a woman following liposuction surgery at a private hospital in Málaga.
The operation was carried out several weeks ago and when the patient showed no signs of recovering and her condition worsened, she was transferred to the Carlos Haya hospital. However, by this time her condition was serious and she passed away on Tuesday.
Liposuction, or liposculpture as it is sometimes known, is a surgical procedure to remove excess fat from various parts of the body. It is generally considered a safe procedure when carried out by a qualified plastic surgeon in a well equipped operating room, although complications can arise if too much excess fat is removed at one time. Serious complications are rare, but there can be problems caused by excessive loss of fluids or if an infection occurs.
The court case is the result of a malpractice claim brought by the family of the victim who believe that there could have been some sort of negligence involved during the operation. As the matter has now gone to court, the body of the deceased has been transferred to the Servicio de Patología del Instituto de Medicina Legal de Málaga for an autopsy to be carried out. The autopsy will be able to determine whether any tissue damage occurred during the surgery which would explain why the woman died several weeks after the operation.