12
Monday, August 24, 1987 / University Daily Kansan
Nation/World
Fat removal surgery inspires debate about safety questions
The Associated Press
HOUSTON — Housewife Patsy Howell wanted to look slimmer in a bathing suit. Lawyer Lannis Temple wanted to get rid of fat deposits around his waist.
After undergoing liposuction, or fat removal surgery, Temple was pleased with the result. Howell was dead of a massive infection.
Temple now is representing Howell's family in a lawsuit filed against the doctor who performed her surgery.
"It is a safe operation if you follow safe procedures and have been treated properly," said Temple, who supervised the done in a plastic surgeon's room.
Booming in popularity, liposuction has prompted debate over how much training doctors should have before offering to perform the expensive surgery. The American Medical Association has not taken a position on who should perform the procedure.
Liposuction is now being performed on nearly 100,000 people a year in the United States, making it by far the most widely sought form of cosmetic surgery available, according to the American Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons Inc. The technique was offered for the first time in this country just five years ago.
With a tube inserted through an incision in the skin, fat literally is sucked from the body. The procedure is considered appropriate for body contouring and for getting rid of fat deposits which cannot be eliminated through diet or exercise. Temple, for example, said he had tried unsuccessfully to get rid of the fat deposits through running.
The cost of the procedure ranges from about $500 to as high as $4,000, depending on the type of surgery.
After Howell died and another patient developed a massive infection, Hugo Ramirez, the suburban Pasadena obstetrician-gynecologist who performed both operations, was ordered by the Texas Board of Medical Examiners to refrain from performing the procedure.
The board revoked his license to practice on July 24 after hearing evidence of substandard hygiene in Ramirez clinic and wide deviations from commonly accepted liposuction procedures. Among the allegations were that Ramirez sometimes removed too much fat and that patients were not adequately monitored after the procedure.
On Aug. 14, a federal judge allowed Ramirez to resume his primary obstetric and gynecological practice but barred him from performing surgery pending the outcome of a Dec. 1 trial over legal objections Ramirez raised in his license revoca-
Ramirez has described himself as a scapegoat in the case.
Julius Newman, chairman of the department of cosmetic surgery at Graduate Hospital in Philadelphia and founder of the American Society of Liposuction Surgery, said thousands of doctors, including Bricez, been trained through his 240 workshops resulting in society certificates.
Newman said almost any doctor with a surgical specialty, such as dermatology, gynecology, orthopedics or general surgery, can learn to perform liposuction.
He said his organization is being criticized unfairly by plastic surgeons who feel they are losing exclusive control over a lucrative domain.
Simon Fredericks of Houston chaired an American Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons study committee in 1982 that concluded liposuction was safe only when performed by trained plastic surgeons in a hospital or supervised outpatient facility.
Fredericks said doctors trained only in liposuction surgery may not be able to offer patients alternative, possibly more appropriate, cosmetic procedures and may not be equipped to handle unforeseen liposuction complications such as infection, blood loss or complications involving internal organs.
AΦ AΦ AΦ AΦ AΦ AΦ AΦ AΦ AΦ AΦ AΦ AΦ AΦ AΦ AΦ AΦ AΦ
Students! Work Smart. Work Simply... With Hewlett-Packard!
If you're in classes like Calculus, Physics, Chemistry, or Dynamics, you're in for some real challenges.
Breeze through them in a few simple keystrokes with the help of an HP-11C, HP-15C, or HP-41CV! Built-in functions, programming capability, and time-saving features like dedicated keys will help you work smart this term. Next term And later, on the job.
Get an HP calculator today.
HEWLETT PACKARD
STUDENT SAVE 28% WHEN YOU ADVERTISE IN THE KANSAN GROUPS:
BACK-TO-SCHOOL SPECIALS
● Bic Super Saver. 10 Ball Pens. Regular price $1.75. Special price $1.00
Bic Metal Point Roller, 2-Pack. Regular price
$1.65. Special Price $1.29
Bic Pencil. 5 plus 2 FREE. Regular price $1.65. Special Price $1.25.
Bic Clic Pens. Buy 2 get 1 FREE. Regular price $1.65. Special Price $1.30.
Bic Shavers. 5 Pack. Regular price 98c.
5 Park
Sanford Major Accent and Pocket Accent quick reference markers. Regular price 69c each. Special price 2 for 69c.
Sanford Expresso pens. Regular price 89c.
Special price 69c.
Sanford Roller Ball ultra fine pen. Regular price $1.29. Special price 79c.
Pilot 2-Pack Medium and Fine Stick Pens. Regular price $1.78. Special price $1.20.
- Kohinoor Rapidgraph 7-Pen Technical Pen Set. Regular price $88.75. Special Price $40.95. LIMITED QUANTITY.
Sony 3¹/₂ inch Double Sided/Density Disk-
Dual Touch Tissue Pump $73.95
Special price $21.95. LIMIT 2 'BOXES PER CUSTOMER.
Amaray Media Mate 5 Disk Storage System.
Holds 50 5¼ inch Diskettes. Regular price
$12.95. Special price $8.95.
Datagard 115-5 Surge and Noise Suppressor.
6 Outlet in-line switch. Regular price $49.95.
Sale price $39.95.
Evoch Desk Stacking Trays. Regular price $2.00. Special price $1.50.
Swing Arm Lamps. Regular price $19.95.
Special Price $12.95.
Varsity Crimson Girls and J.V. Tryouts
Cheerleading
"Friendship"
"Travel"
Clinics:
August
24, 25, 26
6:30 p.m.
Tryouts:
August
27th
6:30 p.m.
Tryouts
1987 CRIMSON GIRLS
ALL AT ALLEN FIELD HOUSE