Woman Gets Uniboob in Botched Surgery

Make sure your surgeon is certified, plastic surgery board urges
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Sep 27, 2011 12:12 AM CDT
Woman Gets Uniboob in Botched Surgery
The botched surgery left Rodriguez's breast joined together.   (American Board of Plastic Surgeons)

In the 48 states where doctors don't need to be certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgeons to perform plastic surgery, unwary patients run the risk of ending up like Dinora Rodriguez, experts warn. The 40-year-old woman was left with a merged "uniboob" by an uncertified surgeon who had incorrectly told her that her breast implants needed to be repaired. Rodriguez, the face of the board's latest safety campaign, was also left with eyes that won't fully close after the surgeon performed a "lid lift" procedure that she hadn't requested.

The uncertified surgeon "cut across muscles you should never cut across," the surgeon who performed reconstructive surgery on Rodriguez tells ABC, noting that botched plastic surgeries are on the rise because unqualified surgeons are seeking to boost their income by offering cosmetic procedures. "The crazy thing is that for every Dinora that goes to the media there are at least 100 patients who don't speak up because they are ashamed." (More plastic surgery stories.)

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