Liposuction Patient’s Autopsy Completed

A woman who died in March after undergoing 10 hours of liposuction surgery bled to death but toxic levels of anesthetic were a contributing factor, the Orange County coroner’s office reported Monday.

Lidocaine, usually administered intravenously to control pain, had not previously been mentioned in connection with the death of Judy Fernandez, a 47-year-old La Habra woman who died after a doctor withdrew about 20 pounds of fat from her body during the lengthy surgery.

“We did locate what we feel is a toxic level of lidocaine in her body,” said Chief Deputy Coroner Jim Beisner. He said the drug is commonly used during plastic surgery.

Beisner added that Fernandez’s death was “the unintended and unexpected result of human action.”

Her doctor, Irvine plastic surgeon William Earle Matory Jr., and his anesthesiologist, Dr. Robert Woo, have had their licenses temporarily suspended by an Orange County Superior Court commissioner. The suspensions came at the request of the California Medical Board, which declared that the doctors “are unfit to practice medicine.” They face an administrative hearing next month.

Beisner said the public needs to be aware of the risks involved in cosmetic or any type of elective surgery. But he noted that many surgeries take place each day without any problems.

Beisner said information such as the status of a licensed physician and the risks involved with different surgeries are available through such organizations as the Orange County Medical Assn.; American Medical Assn.; and the public inquiry division of the state Medical Board at (619) 263-2382.

--- UNPUBLISHED NOTE ---

The anethesiologist’s name is Robert K. Hoo, not Robert Woo.

-- END NOTE