Weight-loss patient 'bled to death'

A man who was undergoing weight-loss surgery developed severe bleeding during the operation and died within three hours, a coroner's court heard yesterday.

Tsang Chiu-kan, 45, died when he was receiving sleeve gastrectomy – in which the size of the stomach is reduced by up to 15 percent to reduce food intake – at Queen Elizabeth Hospital on 10 April last year, coroner Chan Pik-kiu was told.

Tsang, a stable assistant with the Hong Kong Jockey Club, weighed about 108 kilograms.

His surgeon Chick Wai-keung, who admitted it was his first sleeve gastrectomy, said the operation started at around 12:30 p.m. About 35 minutes later, Chick and his team noticed Tsang's blood pressure suddenly dropped. His artery had ruptured and there was excessive bleeding.

Their attempt to resuscitate Tsang failed and he was certified dead at around 4 p.m.

Chick said overseas studies showed the mortality rate of the operation was 3.2 percent.

Expert witness Mui Lik-man, a surgeon who has carried out more than 100 sleeve gastrectomy operations, said the success of the operation was highly dependent on the experience of the surgeon.

The Standard, 17 September 2008