In the wake of a young woman's death after liposuction, medical associations are recommending that consumers check the qualifications of practitioners to check if they are licensed surgeons.
A coroner is investigating the death of a Toronto woman after a liposuction procedure, and it is likely to look into the issue of qualifications of doctors who perform such cosmetic surgeries.
Family doctors are performing cosmetic procedures -- from Botox to breast implants, liposuction, and even tummy tucks -- with sometimes disastrous consequences.
Dr. Frank Lista, who has served as the president of the Canadian Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, said the Society would like to see doctors who perform such surgeries be certified specialists.
"Every single doctor has to be a specialist in something, even in family practice," he told Canada AM Monday. "It makes sense that those doctors are restricted to practicing within their specialties."
"Cosmetic surgery is one type of surgery that plastic surgeons do," he added. "There is no specialty called cosmetic surgery."
Krista Stryland, a 32-year-old real estate agent, died after she underwent a liposuction operation at the Toronto Cosmetic Clinic in North York. She died after being rushed to North York General Hospital. It's likely to be weeks before the cause of death is determined.
"It's a shock," Lista said. "It's a shock for patients, for doctors, for plastic surgeons. It's a shock for everyone."
Lista said that the death was particularly surprising because liposuction has one of the lowest complication rates of any procedure carried out by plastic surgeons.
In 1991, another real estate agent, Toni Sullivan, died of a blood clot two days after undergoing a liposuction procedure.
An inquest into her death recommended that the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario create clearer guidelines between plastic and cosmetic surgery. The college set up a cosmetic surgery task force in April with a mandate to forge new regulations and policing procedures.
On Monday, the College announced it will have a comprehensive set of rules governing all cosmetic surgery procedures in place within a year.
The Toronto Cosmetic Clinic issued a statement saying the death was an isolated event and that its physicians maintain a strong record of clinical safety, and "...are fully trained in accordance with the requirements of the College of Physicians and Surgeons and perform only those procedures for which they have been approved by the College."
Some provinces such as Alberta and B.C have tried to tame the explosion of cosmetic clinics by regulating who is allowed to perform surgical procedures in free standing clinics.
But in other provinces, like Ontario, it's still very much buyer beware when shopping for cosmetic procedures. Lista recommended that anyone considering liposuction should conduct their own research by questioning the doctor and checking credentials with the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario.
Dr. Brian Callaghan of the Canadian Society for Aesthetic (Cosmetic) Plastic Surgery says patients should look for the initials on a doctor's certification that say FRCSC, which stands for "Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada."
