A mother’s belly became covered in rotting flesh after a botched tummy tuck in Turkey became infected and left her in hospital.
Janet Smalley, 49, of Accrington, Lancashire, had surgery for her upcoming 50th birthday and flew to Istanbul on September 26.
But days after the procedure, she began to shiver “uncontrollably” and intermittently “burn out,” despite nurses at the clinic reassuring her that everything was “normal,” she claims.
After returning to the UK her symptoms continued so she went to see her GP, who opened her bandages to reveal infected ‘red’, ‘swollen’ and ‘dirty’ wounds with black, dead skin.
The account manager was taken to Blackburn Royal Hospital with sepsis.
She has since largely recovered – but may need a skin graft to replace some of the remaining necrotic skin on her abdomen.
After being “fired” by the Turkish clinic, she has now shared shocking photos of her infected wounds to warn of the risks of plastic surgery abroad.
A mother’s belly was covered in rotting flesh after a botched tummy tuck in Turkey became infected and left her in hospital
Janet Smalley, 49, of Accrington, Lancashire, had surgery for her upcoming 50th birthday and flew to Istanbul on September 26
She was quickly admitted to Blackburn Royal Hospital with sepsis and necrotic skin and spent nine days on inpatient antibiotics before being sent home for another four days on oral antibiotics.
Tummy tuck, known medically as tummy tuck, involves removing excess skin, fat, or stretch marks from the stomach to improve its shape.
Surgeons make a large cut across the lower abdomen before separating the skin below the belly button from the fat and muscle inside.
Loose skin and fat are then removed before the cut is stitched back up. It usually takes four to six weeks to recover.
The surgery could cost up to £6,000 in the UK, with more money needed for follow-ups and consultations. In Turkey, they can cost as little as £1,500.
Pain and bruising, numbness and small red raised scars are common side effects of surgery.
But there is also a risk of infection, which is especially high if sufficient attention is not paid to hygiene when dressing the wounds.
Sepsis is a sometimes fatal condition caused by the body’s immune response to an infection, causing it to attack its own organs.
It is the leading cause of preventable death, with at least 48,000 deaths annually in the UK and about 270,000 in the US.
Reflecting on her ordeal, Ms. Smalley said, “I’m turning 50 in January, so I’ve decided to do it as a treat for my 50th.
“It wasn’t that bad at first because you’re sleeping – you’re in a lot of pain, but you don’t know what’s normal and what isn’t, so you just keep going.
‘Day three I was sent back to the hotel and it started to get really bad. I shivered uncontrollably to the point where my teeth chattered.
“I contacted the coordinators to have a nurse come to the room. She did my blood pressure and it was very low but she said “it’s absolutely fine, it’s just from the anesthetic”.
“The next day I was the opposite, I was burning and sweating. The nurse came back up and said it was the stress. I knew something wasn’t right. It was just really scary.
‘Saturday was flying day – I felt so unwell, every little jolt was pain that went right through me.
“When I got home, I slept pretty much all weekend. I felt very unwell, but I thought ‘they said it was normal’.’
Her daughter was concerned about her condition and persuaded her to see her local GP.
The doctor opened the compression stocking — which was worn to minimize swelling and promote healing after surgery — and told her to go to the hospital “immediately.”
She said: ‘It was really swollen, red and tasteless and there were blisters all over, so she called and had me hospitalized and it was sepsis.
“They told me I had necrotic skin and I said ‘what does that mean?’ and they said “your skin is dead”. It was really disturbing.’
The mother of three claims she decided to fly to Turkey for the surgery after being paid just £4,300 – less than half the price offered at the UK clinics she researched.
She flew home five days after surgery and, having been assured by the clinic that her symptoms were ‘normal’, she waited another four days before seeing her GP.
Ms Smalley was then quickly admitted to Blackburn Royal Hospital with sepsis and necrotic skin and spent nine days on inpatient antibiotics as a patient before being sent home for a further four days on oral antibiotics.
She still goes to weekly appointments at the Royal Preston Hospital to have her wounds cleaned and checked and may need a skin graft on an area of her abdomen that remains necrotic.
Ms Smalley said: ‘I got a few quotes on the spot and it was almost double the price in Turkey.
“At first I just went for the tummy tuck, but once you get there they kind of sell out – “we can’t do the tummy tuck without liposuction”.
She said: ‘It was really swollen, red and nasty and there were blisters all over’
The account manager may need a skin graft to replace the necrotic skin on her abdomen
“I was foolishly persuaded to have four areas of liposuction – two areas of my back, my sides and stomach and then of course the tummy tuck.
‘If they had said ‘as soon as you get home book and see your GP’ I don’t think it would have been so serious.
“But there were four days when I came home before I went to see my GP and those are four days when it just got worse and worse.
“It’s healing a lot better now than I imagined. I only have one area about three inches at the top of my hip that is necrotic and it will be quite scarring.
“Depending on how it heals, I may need a skin graft.”
She claims that the plastic surgery clinic refused to take responsibility for her health complications from the procedure and is now refusing to communicate further with her.
Ms Smalley now hopes to warn others about the poor treatment and aftercare she has received as she ‘regrets’ going abroad for the procedure.
She said: ‘I did contact them afterwards to make a complaint and they didn’t want to know, they basically said that instead of going to my GP I should have gone to their aftercare clinic.
“They said they couldn’t take responsibility because I didn’t go to their aftercare center and they refused to talk to me after that. I feel really angry about it.
“Before you pay them, they are constantly there to reassure you and give you advice, but once the money is handed over, they just don’t want to know.
‘Just don’t do it. I’m so sorry, it’s really not worth it’.’
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