26-year-old Obese youth dies during bariatric surgery, probe ordered on Chennai Hospital

Chennai: Following the death of a 26-year-old man from Muthialpet weighing about 150 kg during a bariatric surgery at a private hospital in Chennai, the state government has constituted a committee to order an enquiry into the matter. 

The deceased was identified as a 26-year-old, hailing from Muthialpet and weighing approximately 150 kg who was admitted to a suburban hospital in Pammal on April 21.

According to a PTI report, the incident has prompted the Tamil Nadu health department to order an inquiry, a senior official said on Thursday. 

The patient, purportedly diabetic, was informed by the doctor's personal assistant that the surgery would cost Rs 8 lakh at a private hospital in Chennai. However, selecting the hospital where the patient eventually decided to be admitted would lower the cost to Rs 4 lakh.

He was taken to the operation theatre the following day for a metabolic and bariatric surgery, his father, Selvanathan, who lodged a complaint with the Shankar Nagar Police in Pammal, said.  

Tragically, despite efforts, the young man succumbed to chest pain on the night of April 23, leaving his family devastated. Selvanathan, grieving the loss of his son, has demanded accountability, urging appropriate action against the doctor responsible for the surgery.

He said that his son, who was working as an IT professional, had got in touch with the doctor last year after he saw videos of the doctor performing the weight loss surgery on YouTube.

As per a media report in TNIE, Hemachandran went to a bariatric surgeon at a private hospital in Chromepet and inquired about the procedure a year ago. “After his return, we thought he would forget about it. But calls kept on coming from the hospital and thus he went again in February. The doctor’s assistant said it would cost around Rs 8 lakh,” said Durai Selvanathan. When he said that he could not pay so much, the assistant suggested it could be brought down to Rs 5 lakh at SK Jain Hospital, Selvanathan added.

As Hemachandran’s blood sugar was high, the surgery was postponed. Selvanathan said his son was admitted to SK Jain Hospital on April 21 and was taken for surgery at 8.55 am the next day. “After 40 minutes, we were informed that there were some complications and they took him to another private hospital,” he added.

Responding to the distressing incident, the health department has initiated an inquiry, forming a committee led by two joint directors to investigate the circumstances surrounding the tragedy and submit a detailed report within two days.