Paula Andrea Beltrán Sandoval, 41, suffered a cardiorespiratory arrest and died during surgery to remove ‘toxic buttock fillers’ at a clinic in Columbia
A nursing assistant lost her life on the operating table after paying thousands to have toxic cosmetic fillers removed from her bottom. Paula Andrea Beltrán Sandoval suffered a fatal cardiorespiratory arrest just 70 minutes into the surgery.
Desperate medics launched advanced resuscitation efforts and used a defibrillator to deliver electric shocks in a bid to save her. They battled for over 40 minutes to revive the 41-year-old, but she was tragically pronounced dead inside the theatre.
Paula had travelled from her home in New York, USA, to undergo the operation after suffering health complications from her original biopolymer injections.
Reports state she had no known pre-existing health conditions before going under the knife.
The fatal procedure took place on June 18 at a clinic inside the El Tesoro shopping centre in Medellín, Colombia.
Local authorities have now launched an official probe into the tragedy.
Forensic experts at the National Institute of Legal Medicine and Forensic Sciences are set to perform a post-mortem examination to identify the exact cause of death.
Meanwhile, health officials are combing through the clinic’s records, operating licences and staff credentials.
Biopolymer injections for cosmetic purposes are strictly banned under Colombian law.
Paula, who was originally from Medellín but worked as a nursing assistant in the US, had booked the operation weeks in advance. It cost her roughly £8,335 (COP 38 million).
The active investigation continues as authorities await the post-mortem results.