Case studies
Surgical error claims
Our client underwent ACL reconstruction to repair damage to the ligament. This involves creating a tunnel through the femur (thigh bone) and tibia (one of the two bones in the lower leg). A graft is then taken from the hamstring, inserted into the tunnel and secured.
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Negligent treatment of diabetic foot ulcer
In this case our client sadly ended up requiring a below knee amputation with reduced life expectancy of between one and two years.
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Failure to fix orthopaedic fracture properly
Our client, a professional footballer, fractured his leg in the course of a match. He was taken to hospital and underwent surgery to fix the fracture. However, this was negligently performed.
We have recently settled a case against a private orthopaedic surgeon for inappropriate and technically unacceptable knee surgery. Our client is in her 60s and had suffered intermittent knee pain for several years. The surgeon had advised against operating. She then had two isolated episodes of immobilising pain and sought his advice. Without further investigations or examination, he told her she needed a partial knee replacement which he performed a couple of months later.
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Amputation following podiatric surgery
Our client was advised by a podiatric surgeon to undergo surgery for hammer toes, but during the operation the oxygen supply to her toes was depleted leading to ischaemia.
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Child’s brain damage from excessive glucose
Our client suffered congenital abnormalities as a result of which he had to undergo extensive surgery shortly following his birth. The surgery itself proceeded smoothly, but after his discharge our client developed necrotising entercolitis for which he had to be readmitted.
The claimant in this case had undergone laparoscopic surgery to terminate an ectopic pregnancy at an NHS hospital. She was told that the procedure had been fully successful but continued to feel unwell. On the second day after surgery, she went back to the hospital for tests which confirmed that she was still pregnant. She was informed that she needed a further procedure, but the hospital could not guarantee the operation would be carried out that day or who the surgeon would be.
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Early discharge following appendicectomy
We are advising on behalf of a minor who underwent an operation to remove her appendix and who was discharged from hospital the following day, notwithstanding concerns her mother expressed that our client had a high temperature and was feverish.
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Failure to consider available alternatives to hysterectomy and loss of kidney function as a result
Our client underwent a total abdominal hysterectomy after her treating gynaecologist failed to explore properly other less invasive treatment options for her symptoms.
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Entrapment injury
We have recently issued proceedings on behalf of a client who is bringing a medical negligence claim relating to the management of her care in the period following surgery, when her arm was allowed to become trapped between the rail of her bed and her mattress. At the time, she suffered from significant bruising, grazing and a haematoma, and since this date she has experienced debilitating pain in her arm.
Our client underwent rhinoplasty under the care of an Austrian plastic surgeon through Surgicare in the UK. The surgery was unsatisfactory, both aesthetically and as our client experienced problems with sensation.
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Successful claim relating to gastric banding procedure – failure to warn of and manage complications
We have dealt with a substantial claim for damages for a client seriously injured as a result of a gastric banding procedure performed privately by Professor Nadey Hakim.
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