Beauty Queen's Death Shows Dangers of Buttock Implants

Dec. 2, 2009— -- The former-miss Argentina 1994 died this week following complications from a gluteoplasty procedure to enlarge her buttocks, prompting public mourning in her country and a wave of raised eyebrows abroad.

Doctors say surgeries to enhance the buttocks are still rare in the United States, but that they have slowly gained ground in the past 10 years, both in board-certified practices at home, and among the growing number of patients who seek potentially dangerous bargains on buttock enhancement surgery in medical tourism abroad.

Solange Magnano, a 38-year-old model and mother of twins, remained in critical condition with acute respiratory deficiency for three days after her surgery in Buenos Aires, according to The Associated Press. Her friend Roberto Piazza told the AP that the procedure involved injections and the liquid "went to her lungs and brain."

Magnano died Sunday of a pulmonary embolism, officials announced.

Dr. Renato Saltz, president of the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, said it was impossible to tell from news coverage whether or not Magnano's pulmonary embolism was just a rare complication that can happen after any surgery-- buttock augmentation included -- or if the death was the result of unsafe practices.

"I'm not sure if they're injecting fat, or if they're injecting silicone. Free silicone [not in an implant] is not approved to be used like this in humans in any country," said Saltz.

Pulmonary embolisms are a blockage to the main artery of the lung, often caused by a blood clot. If doctors were indeed injecting fat, Saltz said the pulmonary embolism was likely due to complications. Saltz said precautions such as patient screening, medications and postsurgical care can prevent blood clots in surgery.

However, anything loose in the bloodstream may cause an embolism, including silicone accidentally injected into a vein instead of the rear end.

"The danger is that [silicone] is a very unforgiving, viscous oil or gel -- if it's injected in any volume into the bloodstream ... it will migrate and it can block things," said Dr. Julius Few, director of the Few Institute for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery and clinical associate at the University of Chicago. "If the gel got in, it would be devastating."

If not for an embolism, there are other risks inherent to buttock augmentation surgery. Few said patients who do not choose injections may go for a single silicone implant rather than fat injections.