British lawyer, 28, who died after having BBL and liposuction surgical procedure in Turkey felt ‘strain to look slim in authorized occupation’, inquest hears
A young British lawyer who died after having Brazilian butt lift surgery and liposuction said she felt ‘pressure to look slim in the legal profession’, an inquest heard.
Diarra Brown, 28, died on October 26, 2021, days after her four-hour operation at the Private Memorial Hospital in Istanbul, Turkey.
She had taken out a £10,000 loan to pay for the BBL, liposuction and an arm lift after being teased at work for being overweight, the inquest heard.
Her mother Daisy Brown told the inquest of some of her horrendous symptoms: ‘She couldn’t see as she was in so much pain.
‘She could hardly put one foot in front of the other. Her feet was swollen and she couldn’t bend her toes on her left foot.
‘Both feet were swollen but her left foot was more swollen. It was hard for her to stand up.’
Ms Brown, of Wolverhampton, travelled to the private clinic in the middle-class district of Bahçelievler, where she was told how the procedures would restore her confidence by helping her drop eight dress sizes from size 18 to size 10.
But just hours after the dream surgery on Friday, October 22, Ms Brown started to feel cold and complained she was in severe pain and bruised.
Diarra Akua Eunice Brown, 28, died days after her BBL and liposuction surgery in Turkey in October 2021 after she felt ‘pressure to look slim in the legal profession’ due to being teased about her weight, an inquest heard
Dr Sevket Gokham Bayam assured her and her family that this was entirely normal following the surgery and would soon pass.
Over the weekend, she deteriorated quickly, not being able to see, walk or sleep properly, and her worried mum kept contacting the hospital. But again they said the pain would subside.
Ms Brown died three days after the procedure. The inquest heard that the most likely cause of her death was sepsis.
In a statement read out by assistant coroner Kelly Dixon this morning, Mrs Brown said: ‘Before she had the bariatric surgery, she felt there was a pressure to be slim in the legal profession.
‘During her training, she was still overweight and I think she got teased about it at her work.
‘I don’t know what point she started talking to surgeons about the liposuction.
‘I know she started talking to one surgeon in Turkey about doing all the surgery at the same time, and he said he could.
‘The surgeon reassured Diarra that it would be safe.
‘She spoke to the surgeon on WhatsApp before travelling to Turkey.
‘She mentioned that this would be the last step in her weight loss journey and she didn’t want anything else after this.’
Ms Brown had flown out to Turkey with her mother two days before the surgery on October 20 after surgeons had said the operation was possible.
Her mother said: ‘They did blood tests, covid tests and other preoperative tests. They confirmed that she didn’t have Covid 19.
‘We were conscious we were doing something new and different.
‘We were confident that Dr Bayhab had never had a death and he told us he had done the procedure hundreds of times.
‘Diarra had asked the surgeon if it was safe to be under anaesthetic for over five hours, he said it was. He said he had never lost a patient.’
She spoke about how her daughter quickly started to experience severe and worrying symptoms after going under the knife – not being able to see, walk or sleep properly.
‘The surgeon told her it was normal for someone coming out of anaesthesia to have these symptoms,’ she continued.
‘She was told to eat and drink as much as possible, and walk around the room regularly.
‘The nurses came into walk her around the room. She said she couldn’t as she couldn’t see as she was in so much pain.
Doctors continually reassured her and her family her symptoms were normal until the night she died despite not being able to see, walk or sleep properly, her mother told the inquest
Investigations found she likely died of septic shock which gave her a heart attack on the night of October 26, 2021
‘She could hardly put one foot in front of the other.
‘Her feet was swollen and she couldn’t bend her toes on her left foot.
‘Both feet were swollen but her left foot was more swollen. It was hard for her to stand up.
‘Dr Bayhab said it was normal because of the type of surgery she had.
‘I had to push her around the room on a chair. She could only eat 30 mins after eating the stomach protection tablets.
‘Later on I helped pull her onto the bed as she couldn’t move. Diarra wasn’t really doing anything at all between times, she couldn’t move or sleep.’
Ms Brown went into hospital to change her wraps on October 25, the day before she died.
Her mother added: ‘At one point Diarra told me she had wet herself and she was upset.
‘When we got the taxi Diarra could not wear her seatbelt as she was on all fours because of the pain she was in.
‘Diarra could not walk, she was sweating and had a high temp, was breathless and lethargic and she was in and out of consciousness.
‘Her eyes kept rolling back. She was aware she was losing consciousness and told me to slap her.’
Mrs Brown said Dr Bayhan had reassured her to go back to her hotel while they kept her sick daughter in hospital overnight.
Tragically, her condition worsened and she had a suspected heart attack.
Ms Brown had gone into an uncontrolled septic shock which killed her, according to an investigation of her post-mortem and medical data by Dr Vanya Gant, a consultant in clinical microbiology and infectious diseases at University College London Hospitals.
Giving evidence this afternoon, Dr Gant said: ‘Diarra Brown was a healthy young lady who went to Turkey.
‘She suffered a disastrous and very rapid and complete collapse.
‘One of the causes was uncontrolled sepsis and septic shock.
‘Essentially Diarra Brown came back into hospital very fatigued. She had significant hypertension.
‘She had an elevated C protein. Her white blood cell count collapsed and this happens in sepsis.
‘Her doctor’s description of how she was and how her mother’s description was, is entirely consistent with sepsis.’
The inquest continues.
SIX MAJOR SIGNS OF SEPSIS
Sepsis is a life-threatening condition caused when the body releases chemicals to fight an infection.
These chemicals damage the body’s own tissues and organs and can lead to shock, organ failure and death.
Organ failure and death are more likely if sepsis is not recognized early and treated immediately.
Sepsis infects an estimated 55,000 Australians each year, killing between 5,000 and 9,000 making it more than four times deadlier than the road toll.
The symptoms can look like gastro or flu and can become deadly, rapidly.
The six major signs of something potentially deadly can be identified by the acronym ‘SEPSIS’:
- Slurred speech or confusion, lethargy, disorientation
- Extreme shivering or muscle pain, fever or low temperature
- Pressing a rash doesn’t make it fade
- Severe breathlessness, rapid breathing
- Inability to pass urine for several hours
- Skin that’s mottled or discoloured
Children may also show convulsions or fits, and a rash that doesn’t fade when you press it – and more than 40 per cent of cases occur in children under five.
Anyone who develops these symptoms should seek medical help urgently — and ask doctors: ‘Could this be sepsis?’
Sepsis is a leading cause of avoidable death killing about 10,000 Australians each year
The early symptoms of sepsis can be easily confused with more mild conditions, making it difficult to diagnose.
A high temperature (fever), chills and shivering, a fast heartbeat and rapid breathing are also indicators.
A patient can rapidly deteriorate if sepsis is missed early on, so quick diagnosis and treatment is vital – yet this rarely happens.
In the early stages, sepsis can be mistaken for a chest infection, flu or upset stomach.
It is most common and dangerous in older adults, pregnant women, children younger than one, people with chronic conditions or those who have weakened immune systems.
