Plastic Surgery Scam? Brit Dies in Philly After Butt Injection

Feb. 10, 2011 — -- Claudia Aderotimi, a 20-year-old British woman who died early Tuesday following a hotel room cosmetic buttocks injection, may be yet another casualty of dangerous, corner-cutting enhancement procedures.

Police believe Aderotimi, who was visiting from the U.K. with three friends, received the injection Monday morning at the Hampton Inn in Southwest Philadelphia, local ABC affiliate WPVI-TV reported.

At around 1:30 a.m. Tuesday, medics were called to the hotel in response to Aderotimi's reports of difficulty breathing and chest pains. She was rushed to Mercy Fitzgerald Hospital where she was pronounced dead, WPVI reported.

A complete autopsy was performed by the Delaware County medical examiner, but a cause of death and the details of the report were pending. Aderotimi originally was misidentified by police as Claudia Adusei.

As police question the two women suspected of offering an illegitimate cosmetic service, plastic surgeons renewed public warnings concerning non-approved facilities and non-certified cosmetic practitioners: Cutting corners in hopes of a cheaper nip-tuck is dangerous, and potentially life-threatening.

"This is a distressing, tragic event," said Dr. Malcolm Roth, president-elect of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons. "What we want is for patients to learn how to avoid disastrous complications like this. I don't know who performed the procedure. Considering the scenario it was highly unlikely to be a board-certified plastic surgeon ... who should be performing these types of procedures."

Choosing a board-certified physician is just one of many requirements patients should take into account when opting for cosmetic procedures, plastic surgeons said. Whether going under the knife or having an injection of some sort, there are numerous requirements that any prospective patient should evaluate in order to minimize risk of adverse, potentially lethal effects.