Advertisements Promising Patients a ‘Dream Body’ With Min...

What’s Happening

Alright so While federal officials say they are cracking down on misleading drug ads, cosmetic surgery remains a “buyer beware” market.

The Body Shops s Promising Patients a ‘Dream Body’ With Minimal Risk Get Little Scrutiny By Fred Schulte Republish This Story Ste’Aira Ballard’s mother, Tamala Smith, died less than two weeks after having liposuction and a fat transfer procedure performed at a California cosmetic surgery clinic. (Nic Antaya for KFF Health News) Lenia Watson-Burton, a 37-year-old U. (plot twist fr)

Navy administrator, expected that cosmetic surgery would get rid of stubborn fat quickly and easily — just as the web advertising promised.

The Details

This story also ran on NBC News . It can be republished for free .

Instead, she died three days after a liposuction-like procedure called AirSculpt at the San Diego office of Elite Body Sculpture, a cosmetic surgery chain with more than 30 offices across the U. And Canada, court records show.

Why This Matters

Cosmetic surgery chains setting up shop in multiple states depend heavily on advertising to attract users: television, print, socials influencers, even texts hawking discounted holiday rates. The pitches typically promise patients life-changing body shaping with minimal pain and a quick recovery. Yet there’s no federal requirement that surgery companies post evidence supporting the truth and accuracy of these marketing claims.

Medical professionals are taking note of this development.

The Bottom Line

No agency tracks how frequently patients persuaded sustain painful complications such as infections, how effectively surgeons and nursing staff follow up and treat injuries, or whether companies selling new aesthetic devices and methods have adequately trained surgeons to use them safely. In 2023, Watson-Burton’s husband and six children and stepchildren sued Elite Body Sculpture and plastic surgeon Heidi Regenass for medical malpractice, alleging that the thin cannula the surgeon used to remove fat perforated Watson-Burton’s bowel, causing her death.

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