A mother’s stomach was covered in rotting flesh after a mangled stomach lining in Turkey became infected and left her in hospital.
Janet Smalley, 49, from Accrington, Lancashire, had surgery for her upcoming 50th birthday and flew to Istanbul on September 26.
But days after the procedure, she “started shaking uncontrollably” and sometimes became “burnt”, despite the clinic’s nurses reassuring her that everything was “normal”, she claims.
When she returned to the UK her symptoms persisted so she visited her GP who opened her dressings to reveal infected ‘red’ ‘swollen’ and ‘dirty’ sores 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” from the Turkish clinic, she has now shared shocking photos of her infected wounds to warn about the risks of cosmetic surgery abroad.
A mother’s stomach was covered in rotting flesh after a ruptured stomach muscle in Turkey became infected and left her in hospital
Janet Smalley, 49, from Accrington, Lancashire, had surgery for her upcoming 50th birthday and flew to Istanbul on September 26
She was rushed to Blackburn Royal Hospital with sepsis and necrotic skin and spent nine days as an intravenous patient on IV antibiotics before being sent home on oral antibiotics for a further four days
A tummy tuck, medically known as an abdominoplasty, removes excess skin, fat or stretch marks from the abdomen to improve its shape.
Surgeons make a large incision in the lower abdomen before cutting away the skin below the belly button from the fat and muscle inside.
Loose skin and fat are then removed before the incision is sewn back up. Recovery usually takes four to six weeks.
The operation can cost up to £6,000 in the UK, with additional money required for aftercare and consultations. In Turkey they can cost as little as £1,500.
Pain and bruising, numbness and small red scars are common side effects of surgery.
However, there is also a risk of infection, which is particularly high if insufficient attention is paid to hygiene when treating the wound.
Sepsis is a sometimes fatal condition caused by the body’s immune response to an infection that causes it to attack its own organs.
It is the leading cause of preventable death, killing at least 48,000 people in the UK and around 270,000 in the US each year.
Reflecting on her ordeal, Mrs Smalley said: “I’m turning 50 in January so I decided to do this 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’s not, so just keep going.
“On the third day I was sent back to the hotel and things started to get really bad. I was shaking uncontrollably to the point of chattering my teeth.
“I contacted the dispatchers to have a nurse come to the room. She took my blood pressure and it was very low but she said “It’s perfectly fine, it’s just coming from calmness”.
“The next day I was the complete opposite, burning and sweating. The nurse came back and said it was stress. I knew something was wrong. It was just really scary.
“Saturday was the flight home – I was so uncomfortable, every moment was a pain that shot through me.
“I slept most of the weekend when I got home. I really didn’t feel good but I was like ‘they said it’s normal’.’
Worried about her condition, her daughter persuaded her to see her GP.
The doctor opened the compression garments – worn to reduce swelling and promote healing after surgery – and told her to go to hospital “immediately”.
She said: “It was very swollen, red and dirty and blistered all over the place, so she called me and took me to hospital 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 shocking.’
The mother-of-three claims she decided to fly to Turkey for the operation after paying just £4,300 – less than half the price on offer at UK clinics she researched.
She flew home five days after the operation and after being reassured by the clinic that her symptoms were “normal”, she waited another four days before seeing her GP.
Ms Smalley was then rushed to Blackburn Royal Hospital with sepsis and necrotic skin and spent nine days as an intravenous patient on IV antibiotics before being sent home on oral antibiotics for a further four days.
She still goes to weekly appointments at the Royal Preston Hospital to have her wounds cleaned and examined and may need a skin graft on an area of her abdomen that remains necrotic.
Ms Smalley said: “I got some quotes locally and they were about twice as much as in Turkey.
“At first I just went for the tummy tuck, but once you get there, they sell a little bit more – ‘we can’t do the tummy tuck without liposuction.’
She said: “It was really swollen, red and slimy and had blisters all over the place.”
The account manager may need a skin graft to replace the necrotic skin on her abdomen
“Stupidly enough, I was persuaded to have liposuction done in four places – two parts of my back, my sides and stomach and 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 bad.
“But there were four days I got home before I went to my GP and those are four days where it got progressively worse.
“It’s healing much better now than I thought it would. I only have an area about an inch at the top of my hip that is necrotic and will leave significant scarring.
“Depending on how it heals, I might need a skin graft.”
She claims the plastic surgery clinic refused to take responsibility for her health complications from the procedure and now refuses to communicate with her further.
Smalley now hopes to warn others about the poor treatment and follow-up care she received as she “regrets” going overseas for the procedure.
She says: “I contacted them afterwards to complain and they didn’t want to know, they basically said I should have gone to their aftercare clinic instead of my GP.
“They said they couldn’t take responsibility because I didn’t go to their aftercare center and then they refused to talk to me. I am really angry about this.
“Before you pay them they are constantly there to reassure you and give you advice, but as soon as the money is handed over they just don’t want to know anymore.
“Just not. I’m so sorry, it’s really not worth it’.
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Lloyd Grunewald is an author at “The Fashion Vibes”. He is a talented writer who focuses on bringing the latest entertainment-related news to his readers. With a deep understanding of the entertainment industry and a passion for writing, Lloyd delivers engaging articles that keep his readers informed and entertained.
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