Liposuction performed on 12-year old

• Wednesday November 8, 2006 in: Global Plastic Surgery Tag(s):

  Technorati Tags: liposuction, plastic surgery

  Obesity in children is a growing problem not only in the United States, but also the world over. More often than not, these overweight kids not only suffer physically, but also emotionally, as they do tend to get bullied in school because of their excess weight.

  But while most obese children just hope to survive school amid the incessant teasing, the parents of 12-year old Brooke Bates did something a little more drastic. They took their daughter to plastic surgeon Dr. Robert Ersek, who obligingly performed liposuction on the 5-foot-5, 220-pound Texan girl.

  Brooke's interview with Ersek before surgery shed light on her fears and her hopes for a normal future.

  "Maybe If I could do it I would look a little normal," she told him.

  Not only was the extra weight affecting Brooke's self-esteem, but it was seriously affecting her health.

  Her mother, Cindy, said that Brooke's blood pressure was sky high, and doctors said she was at risk for a stroke.

  Ersek agreed to go through with the procedure, and removed 35 pounds of fat and fluid from her body. Today, Brooke weighs 153 pounds. She and her family called the surgery a miracle.[ABC News]

  A miracle indeed, but some doctors call it a "dangerous precedent". And I agree, since exposing children to the risks of cosmetic surgery procedures like liposuction could really be a potentially fatal proposition. Brooke Bates was fortunate enough not to suffer any of these consequences. There's no certainty, however, that the same could be said of any other obese kid following her example.