Cosmetic surgeries: the potential danger of the path to beauty in Chile

These last months, Chili There has been growing public concern about the safety of testing procedures. plastic surgery due to emblematic cases of complications and irregular interventions leading to the death of patients. In September this year, a 27-year-old woman died in the municipality of Puente Alto after undergoing an operation in the living room of her home. Nicole Padilla She was treated by a team of fake doctors who did not have certification to perform the breast implant procedure the patient was seeking.

A few months after this incident, the oral trial took place in the case of the death of Leslie Vergara in February 2022, died at the age of 32 after undergoing cosmetic surgery in a clinic in the municipality of Las Condes. In this case, it was an establishment that had been in operation since 2015 and which, on several occasions, had been sanctioned by the health authority, or even closed, because it did not have the required permits or certifications. to operate lodges.

Cases like these confirm the urgent need for clear regulation and strict control in a medical sector where demand increases every year – especially in the months before summer – and which, according to the figures provided speak Chilean Society of Plastic Surgery in 2019 it reached 15,000 procedures per year . Of this total, less than half would be performed by qualified specialists with training in aesthetic and reconstructive plastic surgery. The only specialty that, as explained by the director of the organization in different publications, has the power to perform surgical interventions such as breast implants, tummy tucks or the most popular BBL or buttock augmentations, some of the most most in demand in this area.

In a column published this year, the director of the Chilean Society of Plastic Surgery explained that: “a certified plastic surgeon has completed the appropriate academic training in the medical specialty of plastic surgery in all reconstructive and aesthetic areas. That is to say, after seven years of medicine, you must complete three years of specialization in general surgery, then go through two or three years of specialization in aesthetic and reconstructive plastic surgery. However, in our country there are currently no clear regulations regarding the type of professionals who can perform cosmetic procedures and in many cases surgeons without specialties and dentists offer interventions, treatments and operations in the field aesthetic for which they are not prepared. .

And the difference between lower operating costs and safety is not a subject to be taken lightly. Although there are many cases of aesthetic centers in which professionals have been trained to perform procedures, use new technologies or apply treatment techniques, the difference between life and death usually lies in the occurrence of complications . This is confirmed in the column on this subject written by the president of the SCCP, Alexandre Conejero . Training as a plastic surgeon “allows you to correctly perform various surgical and non-surgical interventions, as well as to proceed with expertise in the treatment of possible complications.”

Filomena Mesina Hernández (51) She is a mother of 3 children and a healthcare worker. In February last year he suffered a abdominoplasty after undergoing several other surgeries performed for medical issues. Although it was the first time that Filomena had undergone cosmetic surgery, she knew that any procedure carries risks and had already been evaluating the possibility of having the operation for several years. “I had wanted to have an operation for a long time. In fact, in 2020 I started to find out how much the operation would cost because in Instagram posts I had seen promotions of 3 million pesos,” he comments. However, due to her previous experiences and knowledge of health issues, Filomena knew that it was essential to choose a suitable professional and prioritize safety rather than the temptation of those offers which could result in a radical change in physical appearance in a short time. a relatively affordable price.

“I started looking for doctors, a board-certified plastic surgeon, and asked to spend an hour with some,” he recalls. However, he explains that on some occasions it was not even possible to find the addresses of the so-called clinics and that after a little more investigation he realized that one of his potential doctors did not It wasn’t even accredited in the National Health Service archives. . Finally, Filomena chose a doctor and decided to have surgery. “I had a hernia in my navel and, on top of that, I had already had several operations, so there were already incisions and scars in that area,” he says. Filomena explains that from the first meeting with the doctor who operated on her, the explanations were clear and the expectations realistic: due to the condition of her abdomen, reconstruction might be necessary. “At the same time, I investigated his social networks, whether or not he was registered as a plastic surgeon and the courses he had taken,” he explains. “I looked for all the information I could about her, because there was no risk of anything happening to me either. “I was scared too.”

And although the operation went as Filomena and the medical team had planned, shortly afterward she had an allergic reaction to one of the items used in the suture. However, contrary to what has been known in controversial cases of clandestine surgical operations or those carried out by untrained people, given the complication that Filomena experienced, the team that treated her was able to detect early the signs that something was wrong and start appropriate treatment. Today, almost a year after her operation, Filomena still maintains contact with her doctor who is continually attentive to her progress and who even suggested the possibility of carrying out a second operation so that the aesthetic result of the operation is the best possible.

Today, thousands of Chilean women, driven by society’s beauty standards or even their own motivations, resort to cosmetic procedures to change something in their appearance. And while the desire to pursue a certain aesthetic ideal should not be a taboo or judged subject, it is essential to do so safely. In our country, control is currently in the hands of the Seremi de Salud and a law is being developed that strictly regulates the type of medical professionals allowed to perform cosmetic surgery procedures. But until this regulation entered into Congress in 2019 is signed into law – this year it was first discussed only by the Senate Health Committee – it is up to patients themselves to ensure that those who propose to perform an operation for aesthetic purposes are a health professional accredited as a plastic surgeon in the National Registry of Individual Health Providers of the Superintendence of Health or through the register maintained by the Chilean Society of Plastic Surgery, both available free of charge and online.