Botched Overseas Cosmetic Surgery On The Rise

By Neville D'Cruz MELBOURNE, Dec 19 (Bernama) -- An increasing number of patients getting plastic surgery overseas are needing cosmetic revisions when they return to Australia, a survey has found. The Australian Society of Plastic Surgeons says cases of corrective surgery had risen by 38 per cent during the past year. A majority of its members surveyed say they are seeing more incidents of bad tourism surgery, with breast resizing representing 68 per cent of all revision procedures, followed by facial surgery (15 per cent) and tummy tucks (eight per cent). About 62 per cent of surgeons said they had seen cases of permanent disfiguring which they could not correct. A similar number said patients had been psychologically affected while 72 per cent of surgeons said they had seen tourism surgery cases they were unable to completely correct. Almost half said patients' lives would have been at risk if they had not intervened. Society president Associate Professor Rodney Cooter said the "alarming" figures were linked to more Australians trying to save money by having procedures done overseas. "Cosmetic surgery packages sold as holidays downplay the importance of the post-operative period," Cooter told "The West Australian" newspaper. He said though cheaper, many overseas operations were not performed by fully qualified professionals. He said it was believed about 500 Australians had sought the help of an Australian plastic surgeon in the past year after a botched overseas surgery. -- BERNAMA Malaysia