Health experts issue warning over travel to Dominican Republic for cheap plastic surgery after deaths of nearly 100 Americans who’d got cut-price, liposuction, BBLs and Tummy Tucks
Americans are being warned not to travel to the Dominican Republic for cheap plastic surgery – amid a wave of fatalities in the country linked to botched operations.
Researchers in New York found that nearly 100 Americans have died in the country over the past decade as a result of the procedures – often within three days of surgery.
Most had undergone liposuction, the notoriously dangerous Brazilian Butt Lifts (BBLs) or tummy tucks. Liposuction simply removes excess fat, while a ‘tuck’ eliminates sagging skin and fat to create a tighter, slimmer appearance.
The Dominican Republic is considered one of the most dangerous places in the world to undergo plastic surgery due to less regulation and a higher risk of infections resulting from surgery.
U.S. health officials also previously warned Americans to avoid Mexico after infections led to four deaths last year. There was also talk of a kidnapping.
Sucretta Tolliver, a Chicago resident and mother of four, (left) died on December 14 in the Dominican Republic – two days after undergoing cosmetic surgery. New York City mother of two and nurse Jesmy Tapia, 30, who died days after undergoing liposuction and breast surgery on the island
Altagracia Díaz, 51, died after a breast reduction in the Dominican Republic
Nearly a million Americans travel outside the US every year for mainly cosmetic procedures, statistics show.
Mexico is the most popular destination, with around 400,000 arrivals, although a significant number also go to Canada and countries such as Thailand, Argentina and the Dominican Republic.
There are no official estimates on how many people visit the Dominican Republic each year for cosmetic surgery, but it is the most popular tourist destination in the Caribbean, receiving approximately 2.5 million visitors from the US alone each year.
For the report, published in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Reports, researchers analyzed data on fatalities among U.S. citizens reported to the U.S. embassy in the country between 2009 and 2022.
The reports were only checked for cases where a person had also undergone cosmetic surgery up to three weeks before submission.
Data showed that a total of 93 deaths were recorded in the post-surgery period, or an average of six deaths per year.
Overall, there were about 4.1 deaths per year between 2009 and 2018, the data shows.
But after this period, the number rose to 13 deaths per year from 2019 to 2022 – or more than tripled.
In 2020, it reached a record high of 17 deaths in one year.
The fatalities included Chicago-based mother of four Sucretta Tolliver, who died on the island in December 2022, just two days after undergoing an unspecified cosmetic procedure.
And New York City-based mother of two and nurse Jesmy Tapia, 30, who died days after undergoing liposuction and breast surgery on the island.
Ms Tapia had reportedly traveled to the island with a friend, who recovered from her surgery without complications.
In May 2019, a 51-year-old mother died during pre-operative surgery on the island at the same clinic where Cardi B would have previously undergone surgery.
Altagracia Diaz, from the US, was due to undergo a breast reduction and have the accumulated fluid removed from under her skin in Santo Domingo, the country’s capital.
But during pre-surgery she went into cardiac arrest and died.
Her daughter Yatnna Rivera said at the time after seeing a photo of her mother surrounded by tubes in a hospital: ‘She was dead.
The above shows the number of deaths from plastic surgery in the Dominican Republic per year
Officials at a hospital in West Germany have expressed regret after it emerged one of their surgeons had been assigned a cleaner to assist with a toe amputation
‘They lied, looking for an excuse to look good. They mocked me to my face and said everything was fine.”
The CDC report found that the women were on average 40 years old and most were obese.
Of the deaths, researchers had medical records for 24 of 29 patients operated on in the country between 2019 and 2020.
Liposuction was the most common operation in deceased patients and was undergone by all patients.
This was followed by BBLs, which were performed in 22 patients, and tummy tucks (14).
Eleven of the patients who died had also undergone boob surgery or breast enlargement surgery. On average, they died about three days after treatment.
Most deaths were related to embolic events, in which fat particles enter the bloodstream and block blood vessels, causing cardiac arrest.
This is a serious risk for BBLs, where surgeons can accidentally inject fat cells into the bloodstream instead of another, more plump area.
However, the researchers warned that their report could be an underestimate because many fatalities would not have been reported to the US embassy.
They also noted that they had not looked at deformities and complications after surgery, which could also represent a large number.
Since the survey was conducted, the Dominican Republic’s Ministry of Health has visited 77 clinics on the island offering cosmetic surgery to confirm that they were all operating to a high standard.