Kanye West’s mother may have died after overdosing on painkillers, according tothe plastic surgeon that operated on her the day before she died.

Dr Jan Adams makes the claim in an interview with The L.A Times. The embattled plastic surgeon told The LA Times he gave West Vicodin tablets to ease her pain following her November 9 breast reduction and tummy tuck.

Adams claims his patient: “probably [had] a rough night” after the operation.

He says the fifty-eight-year-old complained of pain the next morning and alleges she may have taken too much Vicodin - a highly addictive prescription drug.

Dr Adams says: “That’s one speculation on my part, yes.”

“I believe I know exactly what happened to her, but I will not comment on it until I see the final report.”

“When she left this office,” he says. “There was no problem whatsoever.”

He says that - based on his years of experience that, in addition to his undisclosed theory - there was a “small list of possibilities” that may explain her death.

They include a heart attack, a pulmonary embolism and overdose.

Dr Adams says: “Yes there have been some malpractice suits. But 99 per cent of them are what we in this business call nuisance suits.”

Many of these, the surgeon told The LA Times, were the result of patients being unhappy about the way a scar healed - even though he told them ahead of time how it may look.

People who refused to pay extra money to have additional work done were also quick to file lawsuits, he claims.

Dr Adams says: “There’s a level of selfishness that exists, and we as a system are telling people it’s OK to think of yourself as a victim.

“And so they’re trying to recoup their money and they’re looking for anything wrong.”