A Melbourne cosmetic surgeon has settled a lawsuit filed by a former patient who was left disfigured and psychologically traumatised after he removed her labia and clitoral hood when she was 13 years old.
Granot has avoided a civil court trial after a significant financial settlement was agreed to by the former patient and her lawyers last month. The payment is the subject of a non-disclosure agreement and will be covered by an insurance company, acting for Granot.
The civil case against Granot has renewed calls for tougher regulation of the nation’s booming cosmetic surgery industry, while also raising serious concerns about the suitability of such a procedure on a teenage girl.
His former patient, who is now aged 27 and studying to become a doctor, has told The Age that her body was irreparably damaged by the surgery at a Malvern East clinic in 2008. She said the financial settlement could never compensate her for the harm done.
“Children cannot understand how a surgery like this will affect them. Even if it was properly explained there’s no way they can comprehend it,” she said.
n 2019, the woman made a complaint to the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency, which cleared Granot of any wrongdoing in 2020.
The 72-year-old cosmetic surgeon continues to practice from the same Malvern East clinic, which spruiks his 35 years of experience and extensive training on its website.
However, Mark Ashton, professor of surgery and anatomy at the University of Melbourne, said the procedure known as a labiaplasty should never have been performed on a 13-year-old.
“How can any doctor believe this is reasonable and how can any regulator consider this to be acceptable surgical practice?” he said.
Source: Cosmetic surgeon Asarjahu Granot settles legal claim after removing teenager’s labia