Cairo: What was supposed to be minor cosmetic surgery proved to be fatal for a celebrated Egyptian actress.
Comedienne Suad Nasr died early last week after slipping into a coma for more than a year following a botched liposuction at a private hospital in Cairo. She was 54.
Her family blames her death on a medical blunder caused by giving her too much anaesthetic. Prosecutors have ordered an autopsy to determine the exact cause of her death.
Nasr's tragic death has put medical professionals in Egypt under fire. They are accused of cashing in on an obsession with cosmetic surgery.
"We firmly believe that Nasr died because of carelessness at the private hospital where she underwent the flawed liposuction," Ashraf Zaki, the chairman of the Egyptian Actors' Association, told Gulf News.
"Nasr has already met her fate. Others can face the same fate unless the wrongdoers are brought to justice."
Medical experts attribute a craze for cosmetic surgery to an increased exposure to media.
"Many young men show up at the clinic with pictures of their favourite female singers and say they want their noses to look like theirs," said Dr Faisal Saed, a plastic surgery consultant.
"Rhinoplasty [nose surgery] is attracting more males. Facelifts and hair replacements are also in high demand among men. The nose job is the most popular among women, followed by liposuction and facelifts," he explained.
"Ethics are an inseparable part of the medical profession. So doctors should say 'no' when they think that surgery would put the patient's life in danger," said Dr Ahmad Nour Al Deen, a professor of cosmetic surgery.
He explains that a successful procedure depends on three key factors. "A patient who is fit for the surgery in question; a place that is well-equipped and proper medical methods," he told Gulf News. "Without this, a patient can die, however simple the operation might be."
Muslim clergymen frown upon the increase of cosmetic surgery among men and women. Yousuf Al Qaradawi, a prominent Muslim cleric, has passed a fatwa (a religious edict) that undergoing procedures to have one's nose, breasts or other body parts reshaped contradicts Islamic tenets. "It means an unnecessary change of the form God has created," said Al Qaradawi, however Islam permits plastic surgery if it is aimed at removing abnormal defects "which cause physical or psychological pain."
University students from different social backgrounds are mostly interested in cosmetic surgery, according to a medical expert.
"Girls are obsessed with having thick lips," said Dr Majdi Al Sayed, a plastic surgery consultant at Al Azhar University School of Medicine. He said plastic surgery prices had become affordable to everyone.
"In the past, they used to cost a fortune. Now, prices have decreased. This is due to a surge in demand and the emergence of many [beauty] centres. Private clinics are engaged in a price war, a practice that has affected their standards," he added.
