A woman died during cosmetic surgery after she spent what her family’s life savings on the procedure.
Sara Milena Echeverría Alcendra had spent around five months preparing for liposuction and breast augmentation after losing around 4st 8lbs in a bid to qualify for the operation.
But just hours after entering the operating theatre at a cosmetic clinic in the 31-year-old suffered a fatal medical emergency.
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Her devastated husband, Carlos Hernández, is now demanding answers, insisting his wife was healthy and had passed every pre-operative medical test.
Authorities in Barranquilla, Colombia, have launched an investigation into the death to determine whether it was the result of an unforeseeable medical complication or medical negligence.
According to Mr Hernández, the couple had saved for years to pay for the operation, which ultimately cost more than £15,000 (65.3 million Colombian pesos).
“That was my savings.
“It’s almost half a lifetime,” he said.
Sara, a shopkeeper who worked alongside her husband, had originally weighed around 15st 7lbs before being told by her surgeon she needed to lose weight before undergoing cosmetic surgery.
Mr Hernández said she then embarked on a strict five-month programme involving a nutritionist, diet and exercise, eventually losing 4st 8lbs.
“She had the surgery in mind because she weighed 100 kilos, but the doctor told her she first had to lose weight,” he said.
“She lost more than 30 kilos.
“Then she underwent a series of examinations to check she was suitable and everything came back very well.”
The family said Sara underwent extensive pre-surgical testing and was also prescribed treatment to increase her haemoglobin levels before being cleared for surgery.
The procedure was scheduled to take place at the Diamanti Aesthetic Clinic in Barranquilla, according to Need To Know.
According to Mr Hernández, they arrived at the clinic at around 7.30am and the surgeon told him shortly before 11am that Sara was being taken into theatre.
The operation was expected to last around seven hours.
Instead, just over two hours after surgery began, Mr Hernández received devastating news.
The grieving husband said he has still not been given a clear explanation for what happened.
“I want everything that happened to my wife to be clarified because she was a healthy, young woman,” he said.
“They haven’t told me anything.
“I asked the doctor when I went in to see her and he just opened his hands as if he didn’t know what had happened.”
Mr Hernández said the only person who attempted to explain the situation was the anaesthetist, but he struggled to understand the medical explanation while overwhelmed with grief.
“He explained something to me that I didn’t understand,” he said.
“Why would I say I understood when I didn’t, especially in my pain?”
Sara’s father, Roicer Echeverría, also questioned the circumstances surrounding his daughter’s death.
He claimed the family had initially been told the procedure had not yet begun when she suffered cardiac arrest.
However, after seeing her body, he believed surgery had already taken place.
“If all the tests were fine, what right do they have to say my daughter suddenly became ill?” he said.
“We had been told they hadn’t even started the procedure when she went into cardiac arrest.
“We were left with doubts.
“We went to see her and removed the sheet. We saw she had indeed undergone a procedure.”
The total bill reportedly exceeded the original agreed price after additional charges were added for treatment including hernia repair, a post-operative pain pump and medical insurance.
Despite choosing what they believed was a reputable, licensed clinic rather than an unregulated provider, the family now wants investigators to determine whether mistakes were made during the operation.
Following Sara’s death, the clinic reportedly published documents on social media showing the permits issued by Colombia’s health authorities allowing it to perform cosmetic surgery.
No public statement explaining the circumstances of her death has been released.
Sara leaves behind her husband and the couple’s two children, aged 12 and eight.
Her body has been transferred to forensic specialists for a post-mortem examination, with prosecutors now investigating the exact cause of her death and whether any criminal or professional liability exists.
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