M Plastic Surgery Facial Contouring Medical Malpractice Case

Incident Overview

A patient suffered severe brain damage during facial contouring surgery at M Plastic Surgery, resulting in a court-ordered compensation of approximately 1.13 billion won.

Reported Details

  • Date: October 2011
  • Patient: Kwon (surname), 38 years old at time of lawsuit
  • Procedure: Facial contouring surgery (안면윤곽수술)
  • Complication: During surgery, surgical instruments damaged the temporal bone or temporal lobe area, causing cerebral hemorrhage and cerebral infarction
  • Outcome: Patient developed left hemiparesis, cognitive impairment, and visual impairment

Court Ruling

  • Seoul Central District Court found M Plastic Surgery and surgeon Park liable
  • Court determined that surgical instruments damaged the temporal region causing brain hemorrhage and infarction
  • Liability was set at 70% (court noted brain hemorrhage during facial contouring is extremely rare and hard to predict)
  • Total compensation ordered: approximately 1.13 billion won (US$1 million+)

Important Note

While this case did not result in death, it represents one of the largest compensation awards in Korean cosmetic surgery malpractice history and highlights the serious risks of facial contouring procedures.

Important Disclaimer

This information is based on court ruling coverage in Korean media. The specific clinic name was anonymized in news reports.

Sources

  • 메디칼타임즈 (medicaltimes.com) - "성형수술 도중 의료사고 낸 의원·의사 11억원 배상"