Second Briton dead after Brazilian operation

The BBC has learned that a second British woman has died as a result of an operation in Brazil: it raises new warnings about the risks.

The British Association of Plastic Surgeons (Baaps) said it was the most dangerous cosmetic procedure to undergo.

The surgery has been made popular by celebrities.

But many people expose themselves by seeking cheaper procedures abroad, Baaps warned.

"One in 3,000 dead"

The Brazilian Leg Lifting (BBL) is an aesthetic procedure consisting of taking a fat from one part of the body and then injecting it into the buttocks.

Baaps told the BBC's Victoria Derbyshire program that an estimated one in three worldwide is dying as a result of complications.

In August, 29-year-old Leah Cambridge died while she was undergoing a BBL procedure in Turkey.

A second British woman in her twenties, also deceased this year, learned the BBC. An investigation into his death is expected in the next year.

Gerard Lambe, consulting plastic surgeon and member of the Baaps, explained: "It has the highest mortality rate of all procedures because of the risk of fat injection into the big veins of the buttocks, which can go to the heart. or to the brain. "

"My butt was running away"

A 23-year-old woman from Wales – who did not want to be named – said she was healed for life after being operated on by the BBL in February in Turkey.

Three months after the procedure, infected holes appeared on her buttocks.

"I could not walk properly for years," she said.

"To be honest, when the holes came in, it was better because the fat was leaking, which made it possible to walk again."

She said her buttocks had run for three months, "soaking all my clothes".

She added, "It smelled bad, I had to groom it every day.

"Honestly, I would love to be able to go back in. I was happy with my body before, and now I've paid a stupid sum to look like this."

& # 39; Psychological issues & # 39;

Women who have had BBL surgery abroad have had to be treated by the NHS, which, according to Baaps, costs the health service thousands of pounds.

He calculated that serious complications – including pulmonary embolism, fat necrosis and abscesses – that require time at the hospital can cost more than £ 13,000 per patient.

Affected people need an average hospital stay of 20 days, he suggested, based on data from only one hospital.

Cheryl Palmer-Hughes, a lawyer at Irwin Mitchell, specializing in cosmetic surgery claims overseas, said the number of girls learning about the complications of BBL was increasing.

"Some patients have had skin grafts, [others] have had many periods of leave and some have had psychological problems, "she said.

"The complaints also include the transfer of fat into the wrong part of the body – for example, at the thighs rather than at the buttocks."

"Still bad"

A second woman who spoke anonymously to the BBC said she went to Turkey for a BBL operation two years ago because "the price was much cheaper [than in the UK]".

She only met the surgeon for the first time 10 minutes before being placed under general anesthesia.

A few days later, her fever was very high, but when she tried talking to the surgeon and nurses, she said that they had stopped responding to her emails and her text messages.

She was admitted to hospital in the UK and had to take a month off.

Two years later, the woman stated that she was still suffering from the surgery.

Ms. Palmer-Hughes said that more than half of her clients had been operated on in Turkey – Hungary, Belgium and Spain being also regular destinations.

She added that women often signed documents that they did not read, the terms and conditions containing a clause stating that any negative comments made online or on social networks would result in a defamation lawsuit.

Watch the BBC's Victoria Derbyshire program on weekdays between 9:00 and 11:00 on BBC Two and BBC News Channel in the UK and on iPlayer then.