Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Anesthesia-related heart attack?

You've probably heard that anesthesia carries risks with it. I think that the average person thinks mainly of
  • not waking up from surgery
  • severe nausea
  • prolonged grogginess
  • severe constipation
  • rashes and skin eruptions

and other such things. But did you know that cardiac arrest can also be an unwanted side effect? You may have heard of the rapper "Usher?" His wife went to Brazil for plastic surgery and suffered cardiac arrest in mid-surgery. Here's what the AP news said: A spokeswoman for the Sirio-Libanes Hospital said Wednesday that Tameka Raymond left the facility Monday night but declined to provide any details on Raymond's treatment at the family's request. The spokewoman spoke on condition of anonymity per hospital policy.
Representatives for Usher had no immediate comment.
Ellen Dastry, a spokeswoman for the doctor who was to perform the plastic surgery, said last week that Raymond suffered a cardiac arrest while being anesthetized ahead of a "simple liposuction" at Sao Paulo's Sao Rafael Hospital.
Raymond was revived in less than a minute with heart massage, and was placed in an induced coma before being taken to the intensive-care unit, said Dastry, spokeswoman for plastic surgeon Silvio Sterman.
She was then transferred to the posh and better-equipped Sirio-Libanes Hospital to recover.
Usher was supposed to perform at music mogul Clive Davis' pre-Grammy party, but backed out to come to Brazil to be with his wife.