Woman, 40, dies after undergoing liposuction in her own HOME
A 40-year-old woman died Saturday after undergoing liposuction at her home in Medellín, Colombia.
The victim, identified by local press as Lina Ospina, reportedly entrusted a friend, who is a nurse, to perform the invasive procedure.
Ospina underwent anesthesia around 7:30 p.m. and began convulsing while the operation was taking place, her neighbor, Paula Vásquez, told Tele Medellín television.
She was taken from the house and rushed to Alma Máter Hospital, where doctors pronounced her dead around 10:50 p.m.
Ospina worked as a make-up artist and eyelash technician, according to Tele Medellín.
Her death is under investigation by the Medellín prosecutor’s office. Ospina’s friend, whose name has not been released, has not been arrested and her whereabouts are unknown.
Ospina is the fourteenth person to die this year from complications related to cosmetic surgeries performed under clandestine conditions in Medellín.
According to data from the Antioquia Department of Regional Health and Social Protection, as of October 31, at least 125 complaints had been registered from people with complications resulting from cosmetic surgeries.
Lina Ospina died Saturday after asking a friend, who is a nurse, to perform liposuction at her home in Medellín, Colombia
Colombian authorities are investigating the death of a woman who fell ill at her home in Medellín on Saturday during a liposuction and subsequently died at a local hospital
Lina Ospina is the 14th person to die after cosmetic surgery in clandestine settings in Medellín, Colombia
The Antioquia Department of Health closed eight non-compliant cosmetic surgery locations in late August.
Ospina’s death comes a month after Ada Ardila, 38, died during a liposuction in an apartment that had been converted into a cosmetic surgery clinic.
Ardila had the operation performed by two people who identified themselves as doctors and left her on the operating table.
Carlos Valdivieso, president of the Colombian Society of Plastic Surgery in Antioquia, warned that cosmetic surgeries should only be performed by doctors who have been authorized to do so.
“The advice we repeat to patients is that liposuction is a risky operation that must be performed by plastic surgery specialists and in a safe environment,” Valdivieso said. “Someone’s home is certainly not a safe environment.”