Headlines are meant to attract attention, and this one is written perfectly by the news media to serve that purpose. Yet, I took some time to look behind the headline about the Boca Raton teenager who lost her life while having breast surgery, and it seems to be a perfect illustration of something else. That is, the very reason we MUST always look carefully behind those headlines.
Stephanie Kuleba, age 18, underwent reconstructive breast surgery to repair a birth defect. So the first thing we learn is that our headline-based assumption that she was getting breast implants is just not true.
Instead of a hospital, Stephanie chose a day-surgery center run by Dr. Stephen Schuster for her procedure. These centers are sanctioned by the State of Florida and must adhere to certain standards, although I don't know how rigorous those standards are, nor do I know how well they are monitored.
She died from malignant hyperthermia which we're told is reaction some people have to anesthesia. That's not the same as dying at the hands of the surgeon which is what the headlines seem to indicate.
Then, looking behind that headline, we also learn that her malignant hyperthermia is a rare, inherited disorder. So it was a problem with her body and not a problem imposed by the surgeon. Malignant hyperthermia can't be diagnosed until the patient is given anesthesia -- so -- unless Stephanie had been administered anesthesia earlier in her life, the doctors could not have known she had it.
Malignant hyperthermia IS something the surgeon and anesthesiologist should have been prepared for -- by having enough of the drug called dantrolene sodium on hand. While it's a rare occurrence, malignant hyperthermia occurs often enough that any surgery center could be expected to be prepared for it.
Once again, by looking behind the headline, we learn that the surgery center may not have had enough of that drug on hand to treat her. That IS an indication that the surgery center was not prepared for such a reaction.
I wondered whether the patient had done her homework on the capabilities of the surgeon. I started with UcompareHealthcare, input the surgeon's name (Dr. Stephen Schuster) and checked to see if he was board certified, and whether there were any blackmarks on his record. Yes, he is board certified. And no, no disciplinary actions are recorded.
I then checked the web in general to see if I could find any comments about the surgeon's capabilities -- either positive or negative. I found a few references to billing practices, but only one patient who had been unhappy with the surgery services. In a doctor's career, only one patient does not a bad reputation make.
Bottom line? A quick read of the headlines might indicate one thing (that a vain teen having elective breast surgery was the victim of a bad surgeon.) But looking behind the headlines indicates something else completely -- that a teen who needed surgery for a birth defect had a rare genetic disorder which caused her death. The death may have been averted if the surgery center had been prepared by having the right drug on hand to treat her, but we don't know that yet for sure.
Please, please -- make sure you read behind the headlines when your own medical decisions are being made based on them. You can see how your impressions can change from this one example.
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